Ayushi
Just Kiddin is no stranger to an EDM lover. The duo first burst onto the scene with their single “Thinking About It” and since then have been garnering attention amongst fans and artists alike. The duo comprising of Lewis Thompson and Laurie Revell have received the shout-outs from industry heavyweights including Martin Garrix and Tiesto. Also, their acts have been supported by Annie Mac, Pete Tong & Danny Howard, with Howard opting to sign them to Nothing Else Matters.
Post success of their track “Indiana”, the duo is back with their new single “Body Talk”. This dark/moody track is quite different from the tracks JK have released till now. Utilizing club-ready bassline, “Body Talk” talks about the inability of the person to control her/his mind but the subject matter does not tone down the mood. Instead, one listen would make the person groove to the tunes of the single.
CelebMix talked to the duo via an email interview to discuss their journey and their new song. Check out the complete interview below:
1. While we have read quite a lot about how you guys started, we would want to know your outlook on your journey so far.
The JK journey has been amazing, to say the least. We probably didn’t expect things to come this far when we first started out, but both feel very lucky to be doing what we love for a living.
2. Just Kiddin as a name is quite interesting as it can be understood both literally or as a pun on the temperament. Who came up with this name and what does it really signify?
Ok, so one of our friends (Spencer) from our hometown in Kettering actually came up with the name on a night out. We’ve never actually mentioned this before, but we both loved the name and agreed to give him 1% of all our earnings (no lie). At the time he got a small post-it note and got both our signatures to sign it and stuck it on the wall in his bedroom – luckily he’s lost it now (unlucky Spencer – we owe you some beers).
3. You have received shout-outs from some eminent names in the industry and now you are directly working with Nothing Else Matters. How has been your experience of collaborating with NEM and other labels?
Working with NEM has been amazing. As soon as we met the guys behind it (Danny & Nigel), we knew they were the right team for us. They 100% get our sound and believe in what we do – look out for us playing some Nothing Else Matters parties later in the year. We’ve worked with a bunch of other amazing labels, but really feel like we’ve found our home with NEM.
4. From “Thinking About It” till “Body Talk”, how do you see your evolution as producers?
We’ve always just been a couple of kidders pressing buttons until something good happens really! The production side has always interested us but we’ve evolved into better songwriters nowadays, this is what we both enjoy doing. Hopefully, that comes across with the music!
5. Also, throughout your journey, you have delved into both producing original tracks as well as remixing the already released tracks. How do you perceive these roles especially now when you have become popular for your original tracks?
Remixing tracks is always great fun and we’re getting really quick at it. It’s already a completed idea so it’s just a case of putting a JK spin on it. We only really remix songs that we like or find inspiring and generally like to keep the fundamental elements of the record in our remix. For example, our “Craig David – Magic” remix uses the chords from the original, which we chopped up loads to make it sound sampled.
We’re probably a lot more precious when it comes to originals, and as a consequence, it takes a little longer for us to write original JK material.
6. Once a popular underground genre, Electronic music has finally taken the center stage. A lot of artists create their song to suit the vibe of the electronic music. Why do you think that the genre has been to garner so much attention?
I think it’s because it’s so much more accessible now. Making music is cheaper and easier to do than ever before, pretty much anyone with a laptop and some headphones can do it. This has brought loads of fresh ideas to the world of electronic music, and that’s very inspiring for everyone on the industry and the listeners.
It feels like there’s been a big shift in the last 15 years of what kids are learning. When we were at school everyone played an instrument, we played guitar and drums for example – now that the world of DJ’s & producers is firmly in the spotlight, that brings new idols & inspiration for the youth.
7. This brings us to our next question – what we’ve read and listened to (your songs), your influences vary from Hip Hop to Jazz. What prompted you to choose Electronic music to showcase your artistic talent?
We’ve always loved electronic music, listening to artists like Daft Punk, Boys Noize, Mylo, Cassius etc is what brought us together. Nowadays we’ve broadened our horizons, and are into many other musical styles. I think that helps with not getting stuck in one box as well, we try to draw influences from far and wide.
8. Considering that you have been in the field for quite a long time, what is that one myth or misconception about Electronic music that you would want to debunk?
I feel like the media / social media often highlights the negative aspects of the electronic music community, such as rivalries, DJ’s being divas, party animals etc, when in fact, for the most part, there a lot of love & comradery between us. Pretty much everyone we’ve met along the way has been massively down to earth, level headed & really hard workers.
9. Your music and drops are quite unique. Even though there are a plethora of EDM tracks on Internet, it’s not difficult to identify Just Kiddin track. Please tell us a bit about your creative process.
Thanks! We definitely think we’ve nailed the JK sound. All the ideas start with a bassline or chords – 80% of the time it’s just the chords and a vocal. We’ve worked with loads of producers who start writing with drums, but that’s usually the last element we add into a track.
Once we’ve laid down some interesting chords or a bassline we build the track from there and bounce the idea back and forth between us until it sounds right. I guess this approach is more like traditional songwriting where you’d write chords on a piano and then produce the track from there.
Melody/harmony is where all the emotion is at, so we spend a very long time getting this right – it can sometimes take days!
10. Congratulations on the release of Body Talk. When compared to other tracks including Indiana released by Just Kiddin, “Body Talk” is quite different in terms of sound. Please tell us about the single.
Thank you. “Body Talk” started with some chords that we played in a session, which we wrote the vocal around. The track is about not being able to hide what’s on your mind – a reflection of having control over someone.
This concept is a little dark and quite different from our other records so we wanted the production to match. The chorus melody had a bit of an 80s vibe so we decided to build that around a bassline which had a disco feel.
Although elements of the track have a dark/moody feel we still wanted it to be musical too, so added piano and guitar. The reaction so far has been amazing, with Annie Mac, Mistajam and Scott Mills supporting on Radio 1.
11. The track was released on 8th June. How has been the reception? Also, can we expect a music video soon?
If it keeps going as it has so far, we’ll defo be making a video!
12. Would you like to share with us your future projects or endeavors?
Plenty more music to come. We’ve actually just finished off a bunch of new remixes that we’re really excited about.
We’re also delighted to announce we’ve been given our own radio show on Kiss Fresh every Friday night (11pm-Midnight). We’ve always wanted our own radio show (definitely have the faces for it), so we’re crazy excited!
13. Lastly, do you have any message for your supporters?
Thanks for all the support – it means the world. Keep on Kiddin guys
You can stream JK’s new single on Spotify. To keep yourself updated with their new singles and shows, you can follow them on Twitter and Instagram.
Did you like Just Kiddin’s new single? Share your thoughts via tweet @CelebMix.
