Tricky
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Biography
Born Adrian Thaws on January 27, 1968, in Knowle West, Bristol, Tricky entered music through the Wild Bunch sound system, the collective from which Massive Attack emerged. He contributed his hushed rap vocals to Massive Attackâs Blue Lines in 1991 and Protection in 1994, appearing on tracks including âDaydreaming,â âFive Man Army,â âKarmacomaâ and âEurochild.â After making his solo entrance with âAftermath,â he released Maxinquaye in 1995, recording much of the album with vocalist Martina Topley-Bird. Named after his mother, Maxine Quaye, the record reached number 3 in the UK, received a Mercury Prize nomination and established Trickyâs dark blend of hip-hop, dub, rock and electronic music. Rather than repeat its formula, he moved into increasingly abrasive and unsettled territory on Nearly God and Pre-Millennium Tension in 1996, followed by Angels with Dirty Faces in 1998, Juxtapose in 1999, Blowback in 2001 and Vulnerable in 2003. His work outside music included playing Right Arm in Luc Bessonâs 1997 film The Fifth Element. Tricky reconnected with his Bristol upbringing on Knowle West Boy in 2008 before releasing Mixed Race in 2010. In 2013, he founded the False Idols label and issued the album False Idols, later followed by Adrian Thaws in 2014, the collaborative project Skilled Mechanics in 2016 and Ununiform in 2017. The stark Fall to Pieces arrived in 2020, with Marta ZÅakowska and Oh Land providing much of its vocal presence. In 2021, he conceived and produced the collaborative album Lonely Guest, which featured Lee âScratchâ Perry, Joe Talbot, Paul Smith, Marta and several other guests, and accompanied it with a self-directed short film. He produced Martaâs debut album, When Itâs Going Wrong, in 2023, then worked with Paris-based producer Mike Theis under the name Theis Thaws on Fifteen Days in 2024. His partnership with Marta continued on the 2025 album Out the Way. Tricky returned under his own name on July 17, 2026, with his fifteenth studio album, Different When Itâs Silent. Recorded between France and Bristol and introduced by âOut of Place,â featuring Marta, the release coincided with an extensive European tour and the announcement of his first North American concerts since 2018.
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Albums
Top Tracks
- Track Popularity
- Christiansands by Martina Topley-Bird
- Ragga by Tricky
- Evolution Revolution Love
- Black Steel
- Pre War Tension by Tricky
- Something in the Way
- Overcome by Martina Topley-Bird
- Analyze Me by Martina Topley-Bird
- Scrappy Love by DJ Muggs
- Makes Me Wanna Die by Martina Topley-Bird
- Broken Homes by Martina Topley-Bird
- Feed Me by Martina Topley-Bird
- When We Die by Martina Topley-Bird
- Running Wild by Mina Rose
- Turn Around
- It's Your Day
- Necessary
- The Only Way
- Beijing To Berlin
- Same as It Ever Was
- Obia Intro
- Hell Is Round The Corner featuring Martina Topley-Bird
- Wait for Signal
- Necessary
