Trevor Nelson's Divas

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Trevor Nelson opens his interview archive to share the stories of our greatest divas.

Trevor Nelson opens his extraordinary interview archive to share the stories of our greatest divas.

Don't let the title mislead you! Divas aren't all women. And diva is not a negative.

For Trevor Nelson, a diva is a super-successful artist, a household name, someone who is driven, has left their mark. Someone who is sure of themselves and sure of their own ability. And they have to be top of their game.

Throughout his career Trevor has interviewed some of the best-loved musicians in the world, and along the way has gained a unique insights - and access - into their lives both on and off stage. In this podcast, he goes back into his own archive to share what he's learned about the biggest artists of our generation.

Hear Mariah Carey talking to Trevor on her private jet, as well as incredible early interviews with the likes of Beyoncé, Usher, Kanye West, Mary J. Blige and more.

Trevor Nelson's Divas: Kanye - the Diva who puts on a million dollar show on and off stage

Kanye - the Diva who puts on a million dollar show on and off stage

BBC Radio 2 - Trevor Nelson's Divas, Kanye - the Diva who puts on a million dollar show on and off stage

Celebrating Kanye, the saviour of Hip Hop, a risk taker, game changer, rapper and producer

Celebrating the saviour of Hip Hop. Trevor meets a game changer, working as both a rapper and producer entirely on his own terms, taking huge risks but gaining worldwide success.

Trevor is captivated with interviews he has conducted with the saviour of Hip Hop - who kept the genre on top of the agenda and was never afraid to be different with each release. Trevor finds Kanye insightful on fashion and race and highly intelligent when they discuss his life, politics and music, but equally expectant and demanding at times, especially during public appearances. 

Trevor comments that Kanye was a gamechanger, working as a rapper and producer entirely on his own terms, quiet and introverted but also obsessed with recognition. Trevor interviews Kanye around all his masterpieces - 'The College Dropout', 'Late Registration' and 'Graduation' - and with the latter, Kanye is brave enough to play back the album for the first time in front of a live audience in the BBC Radio Theatre with Trevor - the biggest focus group he could find. His risks are admirable and always bring greater success during this period when his live shows were also legendary.

Kanye West was born in Chicago; his father was a Black Panther and civil rights activist and photojournalist and his mother was a professor and chair of the English department at the state university. Kanye started his career as a producer with incredible contributions to his label boss Jay Z's 2001 album The Blueprint.

He started his own solo career after a near fatal car crash which resulted in his jaw being shattered.

Kanye West is one of the world's best selling artists with 20 million albums and 140 million singles being purchased worldwide, even in the age of downloads and streams. All his nine albums have debuted at number one on the Billboard charts and he has won three Brit Awards and 22 Grammy awards.

Amazing music. Played by an amazing line up.

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Trevor Nelson's Divas

Kanye - the Diva who puts on a million dollar show on and off stage

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