Phonte ...he’s from North Carolina while his partner Nicolay
is from Netherlands. Yet together they’re a duo known as The Foreign Exchange
and they will be returning to Chicago May 10 to rock the Metro stage. And
SouthSide was lucky enough to spend some time chatting with both musicians to
discover more about Foreign Exchange, its music and what makes them uniquely
different from other hip hop artists this reviewer has met before.
SouthSide: Please describe The Exchange in five (5) words or
less.
The Foreign Exchange: “...adventurous soulful sexy talented
driving...”
SouthSide: I’m curious why you would see TPE as
“...adventurous soulful sexy talented and driving...”
TFE: “...Honestly at the end of the day, we’re ourselves
...always been ourselves ...we’re not looking to be that but at the end of the
day it’s naturally like that ...we kinda do what we like to do...”
SouthSide: What makes TFE unique than most other hiphop
artists and/or duos in the music scene today?
TFE “...[we’re} primarily not hiphop artists [though labeled
as one] ...[we] have not been a hiphop group ...[but] it’s our willingness to
experiment and not pride ourselves [in] doing the same thing twice ...always
finding a new direction with each album [we produce]...”
SouthSide: What was the thought process behind the title of
your current release “Love In Flying Colors”?
TFE: “...[it] sounded to me [like] a
verbal representation of what the album sounded like ...[with] the different
textures, sounds, colors ...it’s a multi-colored experience ...right now the
main track “Better” a music video featuring Eric Roberson & Shana Tucker,
[has] good elements of the classic The Foreign Exchange sound but where we are
going now ...it [also] embodies what we do...”
SouthSide: Within your songwriting
process, what comes first – lyrics or beats/rhythms?
TFE: (Phonte) – “...music for me
...trying to figure out what the story [our] music is trying to tell ...I don’t
write any lyrics down...” (Nicolay) “...I may [some[ have influence on the song
title ...it’s 50 – 50 shared labor [between us]...” (Phonte) “...at the end of
the day, it’s [about] finding the right guest vocals...”
SouthSide: From whom do your draw most
of your musical influences? And is there a particular artist/musician that TPE
would like to collaborate with?
TFE: “...hiphop [music] is a foundation for us
...House and R&B is a genre we play ...in reality, the new album represents
us ...[it] comes from artists that we’ve listened ...past and present like
Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye ...and new artists like Thundercat...”
(SouthSide mentions the recent loss of
Frankie Knuckles)
(Then she mentions the death of DJ
Rashad)
TFE: “...heard of DJ Rashad [too] ... we like
to work to work with any artist that we come across and like what they do [for
example] Eric Roberson ...we do best when we work with people as part of our
camp ...and people we choose to work with reflects our music...”
SouthSide: What kind of performance
will TFE be bringing to Chicago’s Metro stage on May 10? And Besides the music,
in your opinion, what do you attribute fans returning to your shows?
TFE: “...something that’s always fun
likened to a family reunion [for us] ...[we] want people to walk out of our
shows better than they did coming in ...our Chicago fans are a passionate crowd
...we love performing in front of them ...[we] played at Double Door before but
now graduated to Metro ...[it] was always a great fit at Double Door [though]
it’s more like a rock venue ...and we had a full band ...no two shows are going
to be the same ...it’s important to give the fans a reason to come back for
more...”
SouthSide: And lastly, any final words
to fans about The Foreign Exchange?
TPE: “...Come check us out ...looking
forward to seeing the city [Chicago]...”
SouthSide would to thank the duo The Foreign Exchange for taking time out of their busy schedulet to do this interview with her. For more information about The Foreign
Exchange, visit http://www.theforeignexchangemusic.com/fe
Until next time, support your local
scene,
SouthSide
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