Background and career
Adrian Nicholas Matthews Thaws (born 27 January 1968), better known by his stage name Tricky, is an English musician, record producer, vocalist and rapper. He was born and raised in Bristol, in southwest England. Through his work with Massive Attack and other artists, Tricky became a major figure in the Bristol underground scene, which gave rise to multiple internationally recognized artists and the music genre of trip hop. Tricky 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 Different When It’s Silent (2026). In 2016, he joined Massive Attack on stage for the first time in two decades while continuing his solo career.
Tricky is a pioneer of trip hop music, and his work is noted for its dark, layered musical style that blends disparate cultural influences and genres, including hip-hop, alternative rock, and ragga. He has collaborated with a wide range of artists over the course of his career, including Terry Hall, Björk, Gravediggaz, Alanis Morissette, Grace Jones and PJ Harvey.
Tricky was born Adrian Nicholas Matthews Thaws on 27 January 1968 in Knowle West, Bristol, to a Jamaican father and a Ghanaian-English mother. His mother, Maxine Quaye, died either by suicide or due to epilepsy complications when Tricky was four. His father, Roy Thaws, operated the Studio 17 sound system (formerly known as "Tarzan the High Priest") with his brother Rupert and his own father, Hector. Bristol musician Bunny Marrett claimed in 2012, "It became the most popular sound system in Bristol at the time." Tricky experienced a difficult childhood in Knowle West, an economically deprived area in Southern Bristol. He became involved in crime at an early age, joining a gang that was involved in car theft, burglary, fights, and promiscuity. Tricky spent his youth in the care of his grandmother, who often let him watch old horror films instead of going to school. At 15, he began to write lyrics ("I like to rock, I like to dance, I like pretty girls taking down their pants", MixMag, 1996).
When he was 17, he spent some time in prison after purchasing forged £50 notes from a friend, who later informed the police. Tricky stated in an interview afterward, "Prison was really good. I'm never going back."
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth, in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
