The vInspired Awards 2009 last week, held at the IndigO2 in London, commemorated young people for their efforts in the community and helping others around them through volunteer work. The ceremony also brought together some of the biggest names in the music and entertainment industry, from Australian rising star Gabrielle Cilmi to Dragon’s Den billionaire James Caan, who attended in support of the initiative. Our Ctrl.Alt.Shift reporters James Prosho and Luca Massaro fixed up, looked sharp, and headed down to the shin-dig to bump heads with the celebs. Here’s their interview with UK rapper Bashy – exactly how much did the ‘BiSH! BASH!! BOSH!’ boy know about volunteer work...?

Bashy, pleasure to meet you, ready to be grilled?
I was born ready bruv.

Excellent. So you know that a big part of Ctrl.Alt.Shift is volunteering, you got any words of wisdom for our readers to get them involved?
Yeah man, volunteering is very important, you get me - it gives you that sense of satisfaction doing something for someone else, not being selfish all the time you know.

Yeah definitely, I think if you do something for others you feel a sense of pride about it, and you want to uphold that...
Yeah sure.

Do you try and promote this type of attitude through your music?
I try as much as possible to promote positivity and a sense of unity - which I guess walk hand in hand.

Good times. Here’s a scenario for you. Bear in mind, most of the world live on less than a pound a day, how would you spend your measly quid? Dragon’s Den billionaire James Caan said a “chicken tikka masala’…
(Long Pause) Can I save it?

I guess you could, it’s your money. It just means that you won’t eat that day.
Yeah but then I’d have £2

Ok, well what would you spend your £2 on instead? You’ve doubled your money.
You know what I’d do - I’d just buy a big bag of rice and something else like some sauce, make a big pot of it, and then sell it.

That’s not a bad idea. There’s a profit in there. Good thinking my man.
Thanks, I’d have to go to Lidl mind, because it’s the cheapest option, then I’d sell it on.

I like it, that’s a lot better than James Caan’s answer. You’re the real business master.
Yeah, innit.

So moving on from your future as a rice seller, what volunteer work would you personally be interested in?
I’d probably run some workshops and try and inspire this generation, and show them how I’ve used my experiences to make music, and help them to do the same.

For Bashy news and updates please visit www.myspace.com/bashymusic

Words: James Prosho. James is currently volunteering as a staff writer for Ctrl.Alt.Shift.
Photo: Luca Massaro. Luca believes volunteer work is “a chance to broaden your horizons whilst opening your eyes to the reality of the real world.”