It was Popjustice who recently wrote, "Here's something one doesn't really think about much, until one day you notice it and you can't unremember it: popstars do have a habit of making things looks like such hard work. The Thing About Rizzle Kicks is that they make it all look very easy."
And, it's hard to disagree. At 19 years old, Harley Alexander-Sule and Jordan Stephens are two of the most exciting teenage talents to emerge in 2011. Friends since they were five, the duo combines an old skool hip-hop sound with a forward thinking pop mentality. Littering their lyrics with wry pop culture references and a sharp sense of humour, The Rizzles transcend the confines of hip-hop culture as both a credible and commercial act.
Comparisons to De La Soul, The Pharcyde and a Tribe Called Quest are unsurprising considering their influences include many of the artists those Daisy Age acts sampled; Roy Ayers, Quincy Jones, Jimi Hendrix, Frank Sinatra, Stevie, James Brown and a wealth of '60s soul. As well as a nod to the old-skool, the boys also embrace everything from country, ska and hip-hop, to straight up pop chord progressions and incredibly, ridiculously catchy choruses. "We've slaved to find a definition of our sound because it's more edgy than pop but its not pure hip hop either - it's somewhere in-between," ponders Harley. "We used to say indie-hop but that sounds really lame!"
While their inspirations might occasionally be retrospective (but definitely never lame), their approach to making music is anything but. Brought up on the World Wide Web, Harley and Jordan maximized their YouTube channel to its full potential. Taking on the Internet as complete unknowns, the pair implemented a dynamic DIY approach, mashing up Lily Allen's 'The Fear' with a beat blagged off Jakwob, freestyling with their friend Ed Sheeran, and creating a number of lo-fi videos for their early bootleg remixes.
With all of their videos having been produced by friend Tony Lockerbie, there's a natural synergy and growth in both the development of the music and the visual element of their working partnership. Having shot both the original and most recent video for 'Down With The Trumpets', Harley remembers how it all came together, "Jordan won £500 in a rap competition a few years back and used the cash to buy a beat off Dag Nabbit (of Foreign Beggars). We did the track, but then kind of left it alone for a year until we were going through some old tunes and thought we should try and do something with it. Toby was our mate who had this amazing camera so we asked him if he'd direct a video, even though none of us really knew what we were doing, we thought we'd just see what happened."
That video ended up being the main reason Island Records signed them at the start of the year, and it definitely paid off. Having released 'Trumpets' as their debut single in June, the pair sold over 250,000 copies this summer, hung around in the top 10 (#8) for 4 weeks and has notched up over 4.5 million views (and counting!).
Their debut album 'Stereo Typical' will see them solidify much of the autonomous attitude that made them such a ubiquitous proposition in the first place. The progressive set-list of producers, which includes Norman Cook, The Rural (Beyoncé, Jamie T), Futurecut (Lily Allen) and Ant Whiting (M.I.A.) is as diverse and distinct as their sound. Norman Cook was so impressed by the Rizzles that he made a very, very rare trip to the studio to create 'Mama Do The Hump'. "We just stared like: 'Legend'," laughs Jordan of working with Fatboy Slim. Another hero of theirs, Ali Shaheed from A Tribe Called Quest is also a fan. "We had a chat with him on the phone. He said he liked our 'steeze'. The fact that he he'd heard our music and could see that we'd taken heed of what they did was amazing," says Harley.
Playing at Jordan's auntie's house as little kids, Jordan was born in Willesden and Harley in Haringey. After losing contact around the age of 7, they were surprised to meet up again three years later, when it turned out that both of their parents had decided to move their families from London to Brighton. "He'd probably say I'm a dickhead," laughs Jordan when asked how they'd describe each other. "I love him to pieces," Harley interjects. "He's about logic and irony, whereas I'm a bit illogical I suppose, but it does balance itself out somehow." After a brief spot at the Brit school (though they're at pains to point out that rather than Music, Jordan studied Media and Harley Theatre), the Rizzle's first booking was at the Underage Festival. This summer alone they've sold out both The Barfly and XOYO, supported both Dizzee Rascal and The Streets at Ibiza Rocks, headlined the BBC Introducing stage at Reading/Leeds festival and performed at T4 On The Beach amongst others.
Having also featured on Olly Murs' number 1 single 'Heart Skips A Beat' this summer and more recently been nominated for 3 MOBO Awards, the guys couldn't be in a better position to release their 'Stereo Typical' LP at the end of this month. Although don't expect them to put their feet up once it's out, November marks the release of 'Teardrops' this year's Children In Need single that they feature on and the start of their UK tour with Professor Green.
Their album 'Stereo Typical' is out 31st October, with next single 'When I Was A Youngster' out the week before on 24th October. To carry on their collaboration with Tony Lockerbie, there will be a video made for every track on the LP.
This biography was provided by the artist or their representative.
