Adrian Thaws, better known as Tricky, grew up in the Knowle West council estate (projects) in Bristol, UK. Getting his first break at the age of 9 when turntables were brought into the youth club, Tricky went on to become one of the biggest "trip-hop" icons to emerge from the UK, channeling his own mixed heritage to bridge white and black Britain, particularly in his fusion of rock and hip-hop, high art and pop culture.

Although Tricky has spent a long time in the United States (most recently in Los Angeles), the accomplished actor, musician, and producer with over 7 albums under his belt has still not forgotten where he comes from. "Knowle West is where I was born. It’s a' white ghetto. I didn’t know what racism was until I left. My family's mixed race, so we don’t see color. I grew up on a council estate more as a white kid, but with Jamaican roots. But all of us there had something in common...we were poor. I realized that I’d never written anything for these kind of people."

Tricky's ninth studio album, titled Mixed Race, was recorded in Paris, where Tricky has been residing for the past two years. Mixed Race is his most passionate album to date. Musically his production work takes influences from UK, Jamaican, US, North African and French music, but that range of influence is only to be expected from a barrier-breaking artist like Tricky.