A Childish shot at the fame name game for rapper

HE'S the shy guy who name-drops famous women in his rhymes in the hope they contact him.

childish gambino jan 16 Hit

HE'S the shy guy who name-drops famous women in his rhymes in the hope they contact him.

He's the comedian and actor who swaps jokes for tales from the heart in his music.

Welcome to the parallel universes of Donald Glover, actor and writer by day and rapper Childish Gambino by night.

With his head down and a beanie pulled low as he arrives at his trailer backstage at the Lollapalooza festival in Chicago, Glover appears to be the most unlikely of hip hop stars on the rise.

The artist who quietly won fans at college with mix tapes and online songs before he gained fame as a writer on 30 Rock and star of TV show Community had no aspirations for a music career, but has since released four albums, including major label debut Camp in 2011.

"I just realised this is serious; it was never supposed to be anything. I didn't even want it to be a side thing," Glover says.

"When I did it, I wasn't an actor or comedian, I was just a kid at college with a laptop that his dad got me as a going away present. I was just doing it because I could and it was fun, and it became this inside joke to all of my friends.

"I really do think that because of the internet it became really personal to other kids and I felt really bad about that because I didn't think about other kids listening to it ... I probably would have been more careful about some things. But maybe that's also the reason why people liked them."

Glover has a style which borrows as much from a '90s indie rock aesthetic as it does from conventional hip hop.

"I actually have trouble with that myself, trying to figure out what people like about it or what it is," he says. 

While John Mayer has received a clever shout-out in one of his tunes, Glover is far more interested in the reactions of beautiful women to his name-drops. Actresses Olivia Munne and Rashida Jones have won his lyrical attention as has British Page 3 girl Rosie Jones.

He may swagger on stage when mentioning them, but the shy rapper gets coy when asked if any of his shout-outs have won him a date.

"I am awkward ... I mean ... I'm very awkward. I think I must be the most awkward rapper. So awkward," he says.

"I have had Olivia Munne contact me, she's a model and actress. And Rashida Jones. Mostly I name-drop girls because girls pay attention to that stuff. Dudes don't care really. I don't think I've said anything shitty about anyone, but girls want you to know they are onto you.

"Rosie Jones is a model I kind of have the hots for and she hasn't said anything, but now she follows me on Twitter so I think I have a shot."

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-- SEE Childish Gambino at Big Day Out across Australia. $165, www.bigdayout.com

VIC Flemington Racecourse, January 26, $165, bigdayout.com

NSW  Sydney Showground, January 18

QLD Parklands, Gold Coast, January 20

SA Adelaide Showground, January 25

WA Claremont Showground Perth,  January 28.

 - Hi-Fi Bar, Melbourne, January 23 (sold out).