“M“Usic is back,” says one of the comments in the preview video for No Guidnce’s new song “Is It A Crime?” It’s an old-school R&B track that’s velvety smooth and oozes mesmerizing harmonies. Considering that this track really does get something back: reviving an undeniably ’90s “emotional” groove that listeners can’t quite get enough of right now, the listener’s hyperbole you will be forgiven. The group captioned a recent video, “Reviving an R&B group for real.”
A band from across London, Casey Brooks and Jikei (both 19), Ebbe (20) and Josh Lomat (22) are sitting together on an office couch dialing into a video call. NMEare just days away from the release of their first EP, Is It a Crime? Despite boasting 2.7 million TikTok followers and a fanbase that is regularly bombarded with commentary on polished covers by Usher, Ne-Yo, Drake and others shot from a desolate parking lot with sensational acoustics, The four crooners didn’t share much. It is not yet known who the boys behind the voice are. Today, though, they’re joking with each other and playfully urging their bandmates to answer questions in preparation for their first press interview.
Jakey and Casey were on the Little Mix reality show search ‘togetter’ aired in 2020 before industry executives approached him about the idea of forming an R&B boy band. They found Josh on his Instagram, then on TikTok he discovered Ebubé. The latter “was so perfect that he didn’t need five members,” he jokes Zeekay. They’ve spent the summer of 2021 honing their sound and decided to launch a TikTok account in 2022. After quickly finding a fanbase online, the group flew to Los Angeles to work with singer-songwriter and R&B hyphen Victoria Monet (who wrote a song for Ariana). Grande and Nas – and recently played their first ever live show as a fully formed band.
With NME 100 2023 artists such as FLO and Bellah currently leading what seems to be a UK R&B revival, No Guidnce prepares to join the renaissance by bringing their own brand of boy band nostalgia into the present. is in order. “The goal was always to be the biggest group in the world,” says Zekei.
NMEs: How was your first time working together?
Casey: “Fortunately we all got along. There was no real tension between the groups. We were all very excited to be working on such an exciting project.” We didn’t sing together for the first few months, people knew we could sing together as individuals, but they didn’t know if we could sing together as a group. went to the parking lot and started doing a little group harmony video, which blew us away on TikTok.”
I would like to ask about the TikTok parking lot. Is it the main rehearsal space? How do your neighbors feel about it?
Casey: “We always get kicked out.”
Josh: “The guards don’t like us.”
JeeKay: “We all live in different places, so we’re centrally based in the middle of London. Also, the nearest car park is free, and the acoustics are nice! So! I ended up doing it for the first few covers and it started to work, so I kept doing it.”
How have you gained attention on TikTok so far? This is a very vulnerable platform.
Kaci: “I think there’s one thing we learned on TikTok.” [is] no one is happy. We provided them with every cover from everything out there. they wouldn’t like something. But you have to act according to what you think is right at the time. We call this “stitching,” but they kind of miss the point by just picking their favorite person. “
Zeekay: “At the same time, it can be a level of motivation.
Is writing a song together a very collaborative process?
ZeeKay: “We often work outside the US and have a team there to work with. Regarding the latest single. [‘Is It A Crime?’], I cooperated with Victoria Monet, who contacted me through Instagram saying, “I would love to work with you.” Then we went to America. She carried out her ideas about us very faithfully and as a result it was very accurate. We have a team of writers and producers in Miami, they are the main team we use for many of our songs. They are very cooperative. “
How did you create your first singles ‘Lie To Me’ and ‘Committed’?
Casey: “We wrote a song with Theron Thomas, but they both ended up being completely different. First, producer JR. [Rotem] played some sample tracks and we were immediately drawn to the Spandau Ballet song “True” and made the song right away. As soon as I heard the hook, I was like, “Oh, this is crazy.” And three days later came Committed. It came out of us having conversations over lunch and talking about relationships and this generation. We wanted to devote ourselves to just one woman. “
How did you feel when you received that message from Victoria Monet?
ZeeKay: “I almost cried. It was posted by Genius, one of Michael Jackson’s covers. Our DMs were pretty inundated that week, but I got a DM from Victoria Monet. , I immediately sent a message to the group chat, and the second message was from her saying, “I would love to work with you.” And it’s like, “Oh, we’re open for business now!” So soon we started talking about going to Los Angeles to make connections. And when it happened, I was really surprised. “
“FLO reminded people that they needed an R&B group, and that’s what we’re trying to do.” – Ebubé
What do you think about the current state of R&B in the UK?
Casey: “Now it’s hyped up. I think people are more brave about this. It used to feel like everything was one sound. You can listen to ‘UK R&B’ on Spotify and it’s all It sounded the same. But now, with people like FLO and hopefully us in the scene, it’s a much broader sound and more individual to each person. “
Ebbe: “FLO reminded people that they needed an R&B group, and that’s what we’re trying to do with the male space.”
We recently played our first gig with The Great Escape. How does singing to a relatively small audience compare to the numbers you reach on TikTok?
Jeekei: “With a small audience, it feels more intimidating than usual. With a million faces, you can’t see any of them. On the other hand, with 10 people, you can see all the reactions. It’s still one of the daunting things, but it really isn’t.At the moment, it feels like we’ve been working behind the scenes for quite some time, but it’s finally time to come out and play. It’s one of the main parts of a musician’s life and I’m very happy about it.I had a great time and really enjoyed being on stage.”
What do people not know about your band?
Casey: “We are the funniest people in the world. We are comedians.
Ebbe: “We are always laughing. It was insane, and I think that’s the best way to deal with a lot of things that happen when you’re doing music, just to laugh it off.”
No Guidnce’s EP “Is It a Crime?” is out now
