Adrian Nicholas Matthews Thaws (born 27 January 1968), better known by his stage name Tricky, is a British record producer and rapper. Born and raised in Bristol, he began his career as an early collaborator and guest rapper/producer and also best known as founding member of the band Massive Attack alongside Robert Del Naja, Grant Marshall & Andrew Vowles. He embarked on a solo career with his debut album, "Maxinquaye", in 1995. The release won Tricky popular acclaim and marked the beginning of a lengthy collaborative partnership with vocalist Martina Topley-Bird. He released four more studio albums before the end of the decade, including "Pre-Millennium Tension" and the pseudonymous "Nearly God", both in 1996. He has gone on to release nine studio albums since 2000, most recently "Fall to Pieces" (2020). In 2016, he joined Massive Attack a few times on stage for the first time in two decades, while continuing his solo career.