Lady Sovereign now resides in North London, England.
Career
Lady Sovereign first received attention when she recorded "The Battle", a freestyle girls versus boys battle rap with Shystie, Suz Rock and Frost P. Each rapper who participated in the recording of "The Battle" has since been signed to a record deal.
Lady Sovereign signed to Island Def Jam Music Group in 2005, after auditioning for Def Jam Recordings president and CEO, Jay-Z and The Island Def Jam Music Group chairman, Antonio "L.A." Reid.
Shortly afterwards, "Random" was released. This was followed by "9 to 5" which entered the UK Top 40 at number 33. The follow-up single, "Hoodie" - produced by dance act Basement Jaxx - failed to reach the top 40, peaking at number 44. Lady Sovereign has since recorded with AdRock from the American rap group the Beastie Boys and American producer Dr. Luke.
When The Ordinary Boys released the single "Boys Will Be Boys", Lady Sovereign came back with her own reply remix, featuring the music and chorus of the original, but with mostly her own vocals to the tune of "girls will be girls". In May 2006, the favor was returned when she was featured on The Ordinary Boys single, "Nine2Five," a remixed version of her own "9 to 5," credited as "The Ordinary Boys vs Lady Sovereign." "Nine2Five" entered at number 38 in the UK top 40 singles on downloads only, and jumped to #6 upon availability as a CD and 7" vinyl single during the week commencing May 22, 2006. This was her highest chart position to date and has helped to increase the media attention garnered by Lady Sovereign.
Lady Sovereign is the first non-American female to appear on the Def Jam label. Her former lack of success in the UK may be due in part to her stigma as representative of chav culture. She was featured on a Sky One documentary on chavs produced by Julie Burchill, after having been the target of a barrage of abuse and ridicule on the internet forum ChavScum. However, she has a following in the United States and has co-headlined a tour with The Streets, with whom she appeared in a remix for his song "Fit But You Know It." Lady Sovereign's cult following was again boosted after she recorded an attack on singer Jentina with "Sad Ass Strippa," a play on words of Jentina's song "Bad Ass Strippa." Kitty Empire of The Guardian is known to be a fan of "Sad Ass Strippa" and mentioned it in an interview she wrote about Lady Sovereign.
Lady Sovereign recently served as the host and spokesperson for Adult Swim and Chocolate Industries' Chocolate Swim.
On October 31, 2006, her debut album, Public Warning, was released, featuring "Random," "9 to 5," "Hoodie" and her new single, "Love Me or Hate Me," which was also released on the same day.
On August 1, 2006, Lady Sovereign's new single "Love Me or Hate Me", a collaboration with American producer Dr. Luke, was aired on the radio for the first time in North America on Flow 93.5 in Canada. The song explains how she is almost the exact inverse of typical female rappers that sell very well, and shows some disgruntlement in pop culture. She explains she doesn't have looks, she can't sing, and can't dance, so love her or hate her. The harmony featured in this song references the Genesis track "I Can't Dance". She is also known for sometimes calling herself a midget (she stands at 5'1, or 152 cm), where she says: "This is officially the biggest midget in the game".
She began an American tour on October 23, 2006 and soon appeared live on CBS-TV's Late Show with David Letterman. On November 18, 2006, it was announced that Lady Sovereign had contracted a throat and chest infection, forcing postponement of her shows in Las Vegas.
As of late 2006, "Love Me or Hate Me" was played in a Verizon Wireless advertisement for the LG Chocolate. It also appears on the Need for Speed: Carbon and Ugly Betty soundtrack, as does "9 to 5" on the latter. On October 17, 2006 "Love Me or Hate Me" became the first video by a British artist to reach #1 on the U.S. (and original) version of MTV's Total Request Live. "Love Me Or Hate Me" was released in the UK on 29 January 2007, with the album following on 5 February 2007.
She has recorded a track for The O.C.'s new album, Music From The O.C. Mix 6 "Covering Our Tracks", where she sings The Sex Pistols' "Pretty Vacant".
On December 31, 2006, Lady Sovereign helped ring in the New Year with a performance of "Love Me Or Hate Me" during the MTV Goes Gold: New Year's Eve 2007 special which aired on MTV.
Sov's full-length Straight Up Cheeky is supposedly coming out early summer, but as for other LS sightings: "Ch-Ching (Cheque 1, 2 Remix)" is on the first major-label grime comp Run The Road, and a 20-minute "FelineMix" has been floating around the p2ps for about a year now.
She returned with her new album Jigsaw which was released on April 7, 2009 on Sov's own label Midget Records.
Gatheration
Lady Sovereign Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Yo, an' if you ain't invited
You ain't comin' in
By S O V
It's like orcas splashin', people crashin'
Unnecessary drunken feuds is fashion
Clean up that spilt drink or you ain't crashin'
Where's my debit card? Nobody move
You ain't gettin' out of this room until I prove
That you didn't take it and I misplaced it
Now get out my chair, I wanna trade face, pick
All these facety chicks 'ave gotta face it
Even on a Friday evening when I'm wasted
You see this life? Well, you'll never gonna taste it
I don't associate with wasters
There's a gatherin', where's it at? My yard
Who's reachin'? It's gettin' messed up
There's a gatherin', where's it at? My yard
Who's reachin'? It's gettin' mashed up
There's a gatherin', where's it at? My yard
Who's reachin'? It's gettin' messed up
There's a gatherin', where's it at? My yard
Who's reachin'? It's gettin' f***ed u*
Now who's in my yard? I've lost count
There's 10 downstairs, there's 4 on the couch
There's 5 runnin' about, someone better bounce
Before I ding ding and your lights are out
Or you get left out like the ginger girls are louts
Someone's vomitin' and give me the sponge and towel
Allow it, I'll clean up the sick
Why have another sip if you can't even handle it?
Lightweights, I really can't stand 'em
Stay away 'cause I'll do somethin' random
And they're monkeys, and their faces are brown
And the world comes to the midget's mansion
There's a gatherin', where's it at? My yard
Who's reachin'? It's gettin' messed up
There's a gatherin', where's it at? My yard
Who's reachin'? It's gettin' mashed up
There's a gatherin', where's it at? My yard
Who's reachin'? It's gettin' messed up
There's a gatherin', where's it at? My yard
Who's reachin'? It's gettin' f***ed u*
Who's reachin'? Who's getting what what?
Who's reachin'? Who's getting what what?
Who's reachin'? Who's getting what what?
Who's reachin'? Who's getting what?
Who's reachin'? Who's getting what what?
Who's reachin'? Who's getting what what?
Who's reachin'? Who's getting what what?
What? What? What? What?
So that's me drunk as a skunk
Shaggin' like some offbeat punks
So I got scared and went to the shop
And got my junk food, I wasn't tryin' to be rude
I was in the Gatheration spirit, in it?
My bedroom stinkin' of fries and Guinness in it
I gave it one look and I said, "Bin it", in it
She said that she'd be back in a minute, is it?
How 'bout next Friday?
There's a gatherin', where's it at? My yard
Who's reachin'? It's gettin' messed up
There's a gatherin', where's it at? My yard
Who's reachin'? It's gettin' mashed up
There's a gatherin', where's it at? My yard
Who's reachin'? It's gettin' messed up
There's a gatherin', where's it at? My yard
Who's reachin'? It's gettin' f***ed u*
There's a gatherin', where's it at? My yard
Who's reachin'? It's gettin' messed up
There's a gatherin', where's it at? My yard
Who's reachin'? It's gettin' mashed up
There's a gatherin', where's it at? My yard
Who's reachin'? It's gettin' messed up
There's a gatherin', where's it at? My yard
Who's reachin'? It's gettin' f***ed u*
Yeah,yeah, get to know this, Gatheration
It's not called a house party no more
Yeah, Gatheration Nation, Lady Sovereign
On time, yeah, make way for the S O V
In "Gatheration," Lady Sovereign describes a party that has gotten out of hand. The setting is her own house, which she refers to as "the midget's mansion." Despite the chaos, Lady Sovereign is in control of the situation. She sets the rules and warns those who are not invited that they are not welcome. There is a lot of drinking and partying going on, but Lady Sovereign makes it clear that she does not tolerate any bad behavior or disrespect. She commands attention and respect from everyone in attendance and is not afraid to kick people out if necessary.
The song is an anthem about living life on your own terms and not letting anyone tell you what to do. Lady Sovereign is known for her irreverent attitude and "Gatheration" captures this spirit perfectly. The song is full of witty lines and clever wordplay that has become a hallmark of her music. The chorus is catchy and memorable, making it an instant party favorite.
Line by Line Meaning
This is the midget's mansion
She's referring to her own house.
Yo, an' if you ain't invited
If you aren't given an invitation, you aren't allowed.
You ain't comin' in
You aren't getting inside.
It's like orcas splashin', people crashin'
People are going wild like orcas, and there's chaos all around.
Unnecessary drunken feuds is fashion
Arguing over small things while being drunk is being considered as trendy behavior.
Clean up that spilt drink or you ain't crashin'
You will not be allowed to stay if you don't clean up the drink you spilled.
My bed's out of bounds, so strictly no lashin'
She won't allow anyone to have sex in her bed.
Where's my debit card? Nobody move
She's worried about her debit card and doesn't want anyone to disturb her while looking for it.
You ain't gettin' out of this room until I prove
She will not let anyone leave the room until she finds out who took her debit card.
That you didn't take it and I misplaced it
She's suggesting that she might have misplaced it herself and wants to make sure nobody stole it.
Now get out my chair, I wanna trade face, pick
She wants someone to give up their seat so she can exchange places with them.
All these facety chicks 'ave gotta face it
She's calling out the fake girls who pretend to be her friends.
Even on a Friday evening when I'm wasted
Even when she's drunk on a Friday night.
You see this life? Well, you'll never gonna taste it
She's referring to her party lifestyle, as she thinks others won't get to experience it.
I don't associate with wasters
She doesn't socialize with people who don't add value to her life.
There's a gatherin', where's it at? My yard
There's a party happening at her house.
Who's reachin'? It's gettin' messed up
She asks who's coming to the party, and how wild it's going to get.
Now who's in my yard? I've lost count
She's questioning how many people are in her house because she's lost track.
There's 10 downstairs, there's 4 on the couch
She points out the number of people located in different areas of her house.
There's 5 runnin' about, someone better bounce
She notices some people who might be getting out of control and tells them to leave her house.
Before I ding ding and your lights are out
She's threatening to get physical with someone if they don't leave her home.
Or you get left out like the ginger girls are louts
She compares the fate of the people she dislikes to those who are left out by society due to their hair color.
Someone's vomitin' and give me the sponge and towel
Someone has thrown up, and now she needs cleaning supplies to take care of the mess.
Allow it, I'll clean up the sick
She's up for the challenge and will do the cleanup herself.
Why have another sip if you can't even handle it?
She questions the drinking habits of people who can't handle their liquor.
Lightweights, I really can't stand 'em
She dislikes people who can't handle their alcohol.
Stay away 'cause I'll do somethin' random
She's warning the lightweights to stay away from her because she might do something unpredictable.
And they're monkeys, and their faces are brown
She makes an offensive remark about people of color who she compares to monkeys.
And the world comes to the midget's mansion
People from all over want to come to her house for parties.
Yeah, Gatheration Nation, Lady Sovereign
She's claiming her party scene and her house as a nation called Gatheration.
On time, yeah, make way for the S O V
She's confident and has established herself as an influential and powerful figure in her circle of friends.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ARTHUR JAMES GORDAN SMITH, DANNY HARRISON, GABRIEL OLEGAVICH, LOUISE AMANDA HARMAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind