Adrian Thaws (born 27 January 1968), better known as Tricky, is a rapper an… Read Full Bio ↴Adrian Thaws (born 27 January 1968), better known as Tricky, is a rapper and musician from Knowle West, Bristol, England who is important in the trip-hop scene (despite loathing the tag) and remains influential on the British scene more generally.

He is noted for an asthmatic whispering lyrical style that is half-rapped, half-sung. As a producer and a musician he is known for having an aversion to perfection preferring to build up a dark, rich and layered sound. Culturally, Tricky bridges white and black Britain particularly in his fusion of rock and hip-hop, high art and pop culture. He drew his influences from rap (Public Enemy) to post-punk (he covered a Siouxsie and the Banshees's song Tattoo).

Throughout his work, Tricky blurs the normally clear sexual definitions found within hip hop. Despite the heavy influence he drew from American hip hop in his debut album, Maxinquaye, he fights against typical sexual representations by, for example, dressing as a woman on the side sleeve of his album cover. Within many of his tracks he blends elements of varying types of music, and use his lyrics to create a much more ambiguous and blurry reality of sexuality.

Maxinquaye remains his most commercially and critically successful album to date. About it, Tricky originally said in an interview with Raygun in October 1996 that he wanted to make an 'out-an-out punk record' and that "I thought it was going be heavier. I thought it was just going to be an out-an-out punk record. But you end up straying. What I wanted to do was a total fast album. Some of the tracks are fast and hard, but they didn't come out like that." He also said that he hated being stuck with the trip-hop tag so "That's why I did Nearly God, and that's why I did Pre-Millennium Tension. You can't see them as trip-hop albums. So I just keep running away from it. But the farther you run, it's still there. They'll find you." Ever since, Tricky' style has evolved away from obscure, sample-based textures to a more contemporary, electronic sound.

Tricky was in Massive Attack and appeared in the movie The Fifth Element as well as the music video for Parabola by Tool. He has collaborated extensively with other artists on tracks on his various releases, including Bjork, Alanis Morissette, Cyndi Lauper, Anthony Kiedis , John Frusciante and Flea (of the Red Hot Chili Peppers), Martina Topley-Bird, and Alison Goldfrapp of Goldfrapp also many others.

After his initial success in the latter 1990's, he started his own label called Durban Poison. Currently he is heading a new imprint called Brown Punk.

YOUR NAME
Tricky Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

If you like-a-me,
Like I like-a-you
And we like-a-both the same,
I like-a say,
This very day,
I like-a-change your name.
'Cause I love-a-you
And love-a-you true

And if you-a love-a-me.
One live as two,
Two live as one
Under the mango tree

If you like-a-me,
Like I like-a-you
And we like-a-both the same,
I like-a say,
This very day,
I like-a-change your name.
'Cause I love-a-you
And love-a-you true
And if you-a love-a-me.
One live as two,

Two live as one
Under the mango tree

Overall Meaning

Tricky's song Your Name expresses the desire to be with someone who reciprocates the same level of affections. The lyrics emphasize the idea of two individuals being compatible with one another and finding a mutual connection. The song focuses on the idea that love is a two-way street where both parties have to be willing to give and take in order for it to work. Tricky's use of like-a-me and like-a-you suggests that the love between these individuals is not just a physical attraction, but rather a strong emotional connection. The repeated usage of the phrase "I like-a-change your name" emphasizes the depth of his feelings, suggesting that he wants to make a significant, permanent change in his life by sharing it with this person.

The lyrics can be viewed as a metaphor for a deeper connection between two individuals where the relationship is based on mutual affection and respect. The line "One live as two, Two live as one," implies that both individuals in the relationship share a profound love that unites them as one under the Mango tree. The Mango tree, which is associated with tropical climates and warm weather, symbolizes a place of peace and tranquility, providing a sanctuary for the couple to start their new life together.

Line by Line Meaning

If you like-a-me,
If you have affection towards me,

Like I like-a-you
Just like the affection I feel towards you,

And we like-a-both the same,
And if we both share the same feeling of love,

I like-a say,
Then I would like to express my desire,

This very day,
Without wasting any more time,

I like-a-change your name.
I would love to give you a new identity as a symbol of our love.

'Cause I love-a-you
Because I have a fondness for you,

And love-a-you true
And my love for you is genuine,

And if you-a love-a-me.
And if you reciprocate those feelings towards me.

One live as two,
We can live as a couple,

Two live as one
And become inseparable as one entity,