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Black Kids

 
Artist: Black Kids
Black Kids

Group Members:

Ali Youngblood, Kevin Snow, Dawn Watley, Reggie Youngblood, Owen Holmes

Similar Artists:

Influenced By:

Formal Connection With:

Dawn Watley, Owen Holmes, Kevin Snow, Ali Youngblood, Reggie Youngblood
See Black Kids Lyrics
  • Genres: Rock
  • Representative Albums: "Partie Traumatic

Biography

Once again demonstrating the power of the Internet in breaking new bands, in a matter of months the Black Kids came from obscurity to become one of the most talked-about bands at the 2007 CMJ Music Marathon, all on the basis of four songs posted on the band's MySpace page and a lot of buzz among music bloggers. Hailing from Jacksonville, FL, the Black Kids consist of Reggie Youngblood on guitar and lead vocals, Ali Youngblood and Dawn Watley on keyboards and backing vocals, Owen Holmes on bass, and Kevin Snow on drums. Reggie and Ali, who are brother and sister, met the other three members of the group while attending the same Sunday-school classes as kids (Reggie points out that in the often-conservative South, Sunday school is a great place to socialize with the opposite sex), and in 2006 they got together to form a band.

Combining bouncy '60s-style pop, '80s new wave atmospherics, and upbeat dance grooves played with a playful, organic spirit, the Black Kids had earned a loyal local following when they posted their four-song EP, Wizard of Ahhhs, on their MySpace} page in August 2007. The witty, hook-laden tunes impressed music fans in Florida and Georgia who had seen the Black Kids' live shows (in particular a fabled appearance at the 2007 Popfest in Athens, GA), and several bloggers began writing up the band. Word spread like wildfire across the Internet, and "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You" and "Hurricane Jane" were being hailed as potential hit singles. After Vice magazine, New Musical Express, and Pitchfork Media} began talking up the band, the Black Kids' appearances at the CMJ Music Marathon in October 2007 found them turning away hundreds of curious music fans and winning rapturous notices in the music press, all without the benefit of a record deal. Not long after the CMJ appearances, the Black Kids signed a management deal with Quest Management, and were booked to play their first tour of England while weighing offers from several record labels. After signing with Columbia Records in the States and Almost Gold Recordings for distribution in regions outside North America, they recorded their debut, Partie Traumatic, produced by former Suede guitarist Bernard Butler. The album was officially released in July of 2008. ~ Mark DemingMySpace} page and a lot of buzz among music bloggers. Hailing from Jacksonville, FL, the Black Kids consist of Reggie Youngblood on guitar and lead vocals, Ali Youngblood and Dawn Watley on keyboards and backing vocals, Owen Holmes on bass, and Kevin Snow on drums. Reggie and Ali, who are brother and sister, met the other three members of the group while attending the same Sunday-school classes as kids (Reggie points out that in the often-conservative South, Sunday school is a great place to socialize with the opposite sex), and in 2006 they got together to form a band.

Combining bouncy '60s-style pop, '80s new wave atmospherics, and upbeat dance grooves played with a playful, organic spirit, the Black Kids had earned a loyal local following when they posted their four-song EP, Wizard of Ahhhs, on their MySpace page in August 2007. The witty, hook-laden tunes impressed music fans in Florida and Georgia who had seen the Black Kids' live shows (in particular a fabled appearance at the 2007 Popfest in Athens, GA), and several bloggers began writing up the band. Word spread like wildfire across the Internet, and "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You" and "Hurricane Jane" were being hailed as potential hit singles. After Vice magazine, New Musical Express, and Pitchfork Media} began talking up the band, the Black Kids' appearances at the CMJ Music Marathon in October 2007 found them turning away hundreds of curious music fans and winning rapturous notices in the music press, all without the benefit of a record deal. Not long after the CMJ appearances, the Black Kids signed a management deal with Quest Management, and were booked to play their first tour of England while weighing offers from several record labels. After signing with Columbia Records in the States and Almost Gold Recordings for distribution in regions outside North America, they recorded their debut, Partie Traumatic, produced by former Suede guitarist Bernard Butler. The album was officially released in July of 2008. ~ Mark DemingMySpace} page in August 2007. The witty, hook-laden tunes impressed music fans in Florida and Georgia who had seen the Black Kids' live shows (in particular a fabled appearance at the 2007 Popfest in Athens, GA), and several bloggers began writing up the band. Word spread like wildfire across the Internet, and "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You" and "Hurricane Jane" were being hailed as potential hit singles. After Vice magazine, New Musical Express, and Pitchfork Media began talking up the band, the Black Kids' appearances at the CMJ Music Marathon in October 2007 found them turning away hundreds of curious music fans and winning rapturous notices in the music press, all without the benefit of a record deal. Not long after the CMJ appearances, the Black Kids signed a management deal with Quest Management, and were booked to play their first tour of England while weighing offers from several record labels. After signing with Columbia Records in the States and Almost Gold Recordings for distribution in regions outside North America, they recorded their debut, Partie Traumatic, produced by former Suede guitarist Bernard Butler. The album was officially released in July of 2008. ~ Mark DemingPitchfork Media began talking up the band, the Black Kids' appearances at the CMJ Music Marathon in October 2007 found them turning away hundreds of curious music fans and winning rapturous notices in the music press, all without the benefit of a record deal. Not long after the CMJ appearances, the Black Kids signed a management deal with Quest Management, and were booked to play their first tour of England while weighing offers from several record labels. After signing with Columbia Records in the States and Almost Gold Recordings for distribution in regions outside North America, they recorded their debut, Partie Traumatic, produced by former Suede guitarist Bernard Butler. The album was officially released in July of 2008. ~ Mark Deming, All Music Guide
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Wikipedia: Black Kids
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Black Kids

Black Kids performing in Bristol in February 2008
Background information
Origin Jacksonville, Florida
Genres Alternative rock, indie pop, indie rock, synthpop
Years active 2006–present
Labels Columbia Records (US)
Almost Gold Recordings (UK)
Website http://www.blackkidsmusic.com
Members
Owen Holmes
Kevin Snow
Dawn Watley
Ali Youngblood
Reggie Youngblood

Black Kids is an American indie pop band from Jacksonville, Florida. The band's debut EP, Wizard of Ahhhs, was released to critical acclaim in 2007 and was followed by the Partie Traumatic album, which debuted at #5 on the UK Albums Chart in July 2008.

Contents

History

Black Kids, consisting of Reggie Youngblood (vocals and guitar), Owen Holmes (bass guitar), Kevin Snow (drums), Dawn Watley (keyboards and vocals), and Reggie's sister Ali Youngblood (keyboards and vocals), formed in early 2006. Previously, members were in the Christian soft-tempo ska band Honeylocust.[1] Although they initially performed only in Jacksonville, they received national attention after a breakout performance at the Athens Popfest in Athens, Georgia on August 11, 2007, which led to a sudden flurry of coverage in the music press, including NME,[2] Vice,[3] The Guardian,[4] and The Village Voice[5]. The same month, Black Kids' demo EP, Wizard of Ahhhs, was released via free download on their MySpace page. Soon after, Black Kids began working with Quest Management,[6] the company that manages Björk and Arcade Fire.[7] In October, the EP received a favorable review of 8.4 out of 10 from Pitchfork Media, including a "Best New Music" commendation.[8]

Black Kids participated in the CMJ Music Marathon in New York City in October,[9] earning the band exposure in The New York Times[10] and USA Today.[11] In December the band travelled to London for a brief tour.[12] Rolling Stone called them one of ten "Artists to Watch" for 2008[13] and the band was also included in the BBC Sound of 2008 poll.[14]

Black Kids toured the United Kingdom in early 2008, including the Vice Live Tour with Friendly Fires and Ipso Facto, a Sons and Daughters tour, and a Kate Nash tour.[15] In April and May, Black Kids toured the United States as an opening act for Cut Copy. The band played the summer festival circuit in the U.S. and the UK, including the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April[16], Radio 1's Big Weekend in May[1], Glastonbury Festival in June, and T in the Park [17] and Camp Bestival in July[18]. Black Kids then headlined an international tour in the U.S. and Europe from June to November.

While in the UK in early 2008 the band recorded their debut album, Partie Traumatic, with producer Bernard Butler, former guitarist of Suede. Their first single, "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You", was released in the UK on April 7 and debuted at #11 on the UK Singles Chart. "Hurricane Jane", the followup single, was released in the UK on June 23, where it charted at #36. The album Partie Traumatic was released on July 7 in the UK on Almost Gold Recordings, debuting at #5, and was released two weeks later in the US on Columbia Records, debuting at #127.

In 2009 Black Kids performed at the Big Day Out festivals in New Zealand and Australia. They have also toured with Kaiser Chiefs in the U.K. and Mates of State in the U.S. Their song "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You," was used in a trailer for the movie "Fame", and is featured on the soundtrack of the 2009 film Jennifer's Body. "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You" was also offered as an iTunes Free Download in July 2008.

Discography

Albums

Year Title Charts

UK

US
2008 Partie Traumatic 5 127

EPs

Year Title
2007 Wizard of Ahhhs
2009 Cemetery Lips

Singles

Year Title Charts Album

UK

US
2008 "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You" 11 - Partie Traumatic
"Hurricane Jane" 36 n/a
"Look at Me (When I Rock Wichoo)" 175
[19]
n/a

Compilation appearances

  • American Teen: Music from the Motion Picture (2008) – "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You"
  • Jennifer's Body: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (2009) - "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You"

Television appearances

Honors

  • Artist to Watch – Rolling Stone, November 2007 [13]
  • Sound of 2008: Top 10 (#8) – BBC News, January 2008[14]

Albums

Wizard of Ahhhs

  • Best New Music – Pitchfork Media, October 2007[8]

Partie Traumatic

  • Best of 2008 (#4) – New York Post, December 2008 [24]
  • 50 Best Albums of the Year (#39) – The Observer, December 2008 [25]
  • The 40 Best Albums of 2008 (#22) – Spin, December 2008 [26]
  • The Top 50 Albums of 2008 (#43) – NME, December 2008 [27]

Songs

"I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You"

  • Top 100 Tracks of 2007 (#68) – Pitchfork Media, December 2007[28]
  • iTunes Single of the Week – iTunes, August 26, 2008[29]
  • Top 10 Singles of 2008 (#2) – New York Post, December 17, 2008[30]
  • Best Songs of 2008 (#22) – Spinner, December 2008[31]
  • Best Single of 2008 – The Sunday Mail, December 21, 2008[32]
  • Top Singles of 2008 (#36) - Village Voice, January 21, 2009[33]

References

  1. ^ Power, Ed (2008-07-25). "Adult Kids". Irish Independent. http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/music/adult-kids-1439833.html. Retrieved 2009-07-18. 
  2. ^ Miller, Alex (2007-09-02). "Black Kids Are Amazing". NME. http://www.nme.com/blog/index.php?blog=15&title=the_new_love_is_all&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1. Retrieved 2007-10-05. 
  3. ^ Vice (2007-09-19). "Interview: Black Kids". Vice Magazine. http://vice.typepad.com/vice_magazine/2007/09/interview---bla.html. Retrieved 2007-10-05. 
  4. ^ Lester, Paul (2007-09-26). "New band of the day No. 191: Black Kids". http://music.guardian.co.uk/newbands/story/0,,2177564,00.html. Retrieved 2007-10-05. 
  5. ^ Bowers, William (2007-10-09). "Provincializm: Siblings Gonna Work It Out". The Village Voice. http://www.villagevoice.com/blogs/music/archives/2007/10/provincializm_1.php. Retrieved 2007-10-10. 
  6. ^ Cohen, Jonathan (2007-10-19). "Update: Buzz Band Black Kids Inks Management Deal". Billboard.com. http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003659185. Retrieved 2007-10-22. 
  7. ^ Maher, Dave (2007-10-17). "Black Kids Have a Manager, Gigs, No Label Yet". Pitchfork Media. http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/news/46439-black-kids-have-a-manager-gigs-no-label-yet. Retrieved 2007-11-13. 
  8. ^ a b Hogan, Marc (2007-10-05). "Black Kids: Wizard of Ahhs EP: Pitchfork Record Review". Pitchfork Media. http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/record_review/46095-wizard-of-ahhhs-ep. Retrieved 2007-10-05. 
  9. ^ Hogan, Marc (2007-10-19). "CMJ: Thursday (Marc Hogan)". Pitchfork Media. http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/news/46498-cmj-thursday-marc-hogan. Retrieved 2007-10-22. 
  10. ^ Parales, Jon (2007-10-22). "Play Well, and May the Blog Buzz Be With You". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/22/arts/music/22cmj.html?_r=1&ref=arts&oref=slogin. Retrieved 2007-10-22. 
  11. ^ Matheson, Whitney (2007-10-22). "CMJ lessons: Ten bands to hear today". USA Today. http://blogs.usatoday.com/popcandy/2007/10/cmj-lessons-ten.html. Retrieved 2007-11-01. 
  12. ^ Solarski, Matthew (2007-11-09). "Black Kids Add Dates". Pitchfork. http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/page/news/47012-black-kids-add-dates. Retrieved 2007-11-09. 
  13. ^ a b Hoard, Christian (2007-11-14). "Artist to Watch: Black Kids". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/17323882/artist_to_watch_black_kids. Retrieved 2007-11-19. 
  14. ^ a b BBC (2008-01-04). "Sound of 2008: The Top 10". BBC. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7163404.stm. Retrieved 2008-04-30. 
  15. ^ Black Kids (2008-01-08). "**SONS & DAUGHTERS TOUR + KATE NASH TOUR**". Black Kids Myspace. http://www.myspace.com/blackkidsrock. Retrieved 2008-01-08. 
  16. ^ Press Release (2008-01-21). "Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival Announces Lineup". Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. http://coachella.com/updates/news. Retrieved 2008-02-02. 
  17. ^ Press Release (2008-02-15). "T Lineup Announced". T in the Park. http://www.tinthepark.com. Retrieved 2008-02-15. 
  18. ^ NME (2008-02-05). "Camp Bestival add more acts to lineup". NME. http://www.nme.com/news/nme/34104. Retrieved 2008-02-05. 
  19. ^ Entry position 20.09.2008 "Official Singles Chart for the week ending September 20, 2008". ChartsPlus (Milton Keynes: IQ Ware Ltd) (369): 1–4. 
  20. ^ MTV (2008-02). "Black Kids - MTV UK". MTV. http://www.mtv.co.uk/music/sessions/black_kids. Retrieved 2008-12-15. 
  21. ^ a b BBC (2008-04-01). "Later with Jools Holland - Black Kids". BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/later/shows/series32/episode01/blackkids/. Retrieved 2008-04-01. 
  22. ^ "Friday Night with Jonathan Ross". TV.com. 2008-05-30. http://www.tv.com/friday-night-with-jonathan-ross/john-barrowman-kirsty-young-mark-wahlberg-lord-andrew-lloyd-webber-black-kids./episode/1201584/summary.html. Retrieved 2008-12-15. 
  23. ^ a b c "Black Kids News". Black Kids. http://www.blackkidsmusic.com/news.html. Retrieved 2008-12-15. 
  24. ^ Aquilante, Dan (2008-12-07). "Best of 2008". New York Post. http://www.nypost.com/seven/12072008/entertainment/music/best_of_2008_142978.htm?page=0. Retrieved 2008-12-11. 
  25. ^ "2008 Review: 50 albums of the year". The Observer. 2008-12-07. http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2008/dec/07/bon-iver-coldplay-best-albums. Retrieved 2008-12-11. 
  26. ^ Walters, Barry (2008-12-11). "The 40 Best Albums of 2008". Spin Magazine Online. http://www.spin.com/articles/40-best-albums-2008?page=0%2C1. Retrieved 2008-12-11. 
  27. ^ "NME's Top 50 of 2008". Stereogum. 2008-12-11. http://stereogum.com/archives/yearend-list/nmes-top-50-of-2008_041012.html. Retrieved 2008-12-11. 
  28. ^ Richardson, Mark (2007-12-17). "Top 100 Tracks of 2007". Pitchfork Media. http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/47681-top-100-tracks-of-2007?page=4. Retrieved 2008-12-11. 
  29. ^ "Another Free iTunes Single of the Week: Black Kids' "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance With You"". The Village Voice. 2008-08-26. http://blogs.villagevoice.com/music/archives/2008/08/another_free_it_1.php. Retrieved 2008-12-15. 
  30. ^ Brockington, Ryan (2008-12-17). "PopTracks' Top 10 Singles of 2008". New York Post. http://blogs.nypost.com/poptracks/archives/2008/12/poptracks_top_10_singles_of_2008.html. Retrieved 2008-12-18. 
  31. ^ "Best Songs of 2008: No. 22". Spinner. 2008-12-18. http://www.spinner.com/2008/12/12/best-songs-of-2008-no-22/. Retrieved 2008-12-18. 
  32. ^ McMonagle, Mickey (2008-12-21). "Review of the 2008: Mickey McMonagle's best bits of the year". The Sunday Mail. http://www.sundaymail.co.uk/tv-showbiz-news/music-news/2008/12/21/review-of-the-2008-mickey-mcmonagle-s-best-bits-of-the-year-78057-20985724/. Retrieved 2008-12-22. 
  33. ^ "Pazz + Jop Singles 2008". Village Voice. 2009-01-21. http://www.villagevoice.com/pazznjop/singles/2008/. Retrieved 2009-01-21. 

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