 After a troubled upbringing in the Knowle West neighbourhood of Bristol , Tricky became involved with an eclectic collective of DJs and musicians known as The Wild Bunch during the late 1980s . As part of the collective , he helped arrange sound systems around Bristol 's club scene and penned raps under a stage name derived from " Tricky Kid " , the nickname given to him in a street gang as a youth . The Wild Bunch signed a record deal with 4th & B 'way Records and released two singles but their slow , experimental sound failed to make a commercial impact . The collective dissolved in 1989 , but would eventually lead to the formation of the group Massive Attack , with Tricky a frequent collaborator who rapped over their productions ; he later reworked material he had written for Massive Attack on Maxinquaye . 
