Choppin’ Game With Jay King [Club Nouveau]

It’s been nearly nineteen long years since your last LP Everything Is Black — So, where have you all been?

We have been working on new music, doing live dates, each of us have worked on our own solo projects, dealing with family matters and living life.

And, what exactly have you all been up to, both personally and professionally speaking, during this lengthy musical hiatus?

We have each been developing as artists, writers, creative and spiritual people.

With that being said, what prompted you all to take so much time off between CLUB NOUVEAU records?

Music and creativity takes time. To be honest, we felt like whatever we would do wouldn’t matter because the industry got younger and went in a different musical direction than we were in.

Your first re-introduction back into the music game came in the form of your latest single “That Ain’t Love” — Tell me about this particular track?

Well, we think it’s a throwback to soul and R&B music. It tells a different love story than I think we’ve heard, because it speaks to loves dysfunction from the man and woman.

How did it actually come to fruition?

I [Jay] started working on the musical direction for this Club Nouveau project in 1999, and this was one of the musical tracks I started developing into a song — working with H.R Crump on the music and Procton Bonnell [III] with the lyric — and I had the hook and melody [“That Ain’t Love”] already in place, but not the direction. So, it took a while to develop the verses for the male [Samuelle Prater]…After I had the male part in place, I started talking to Val [Watson-English] about the female part, and it took us a year or so to get to that part. So, we had the male part about 2 years before we wrote Val’s part; it took a while for this song to come together.

“That Ain’t Love” comes courtesy of your long overdue, sixth studio collection; CONSCIOUSNESS — Conceptually, what does that title represent both to and for you all?

We are at a very crucial time in the history of humanity, and we believe the only thing that’s going to get us through these times is our love of God, love of humanity, love of self and our spiritual consciousness.

How then does album number 6 either differ and/or compare to previous CLUB NOUVEAU efforts?

It doesn’t differ in the sense of we always have a message in our music, it doesn’t compare because each of our albums have been different and unique in our approach to what we want to say and the vibration we want to put out in the universe, but we do believe it’s our strongest and most complete message, as it relates to our spirituality and our individual personalities.

As an extension to that last question, how have you all [CLUB NOUVEAU] either changed and/or evolved since your whole inception into music?

We’ve obviously matured, have gotten older and recognize the gift we’ve been given to do music as a profession, but we also understand the responsibility of what we create, what we say and how/who we influence.

Longevity, what do you all attribute yours to?

We come from an era where the song was important, and if created correctly could be considered a classic and we have quite a few of those songs. What we’ve learned is if the music you create and the songs you write have a long life, so will your career.

Do you all have any other outside/additional aspirations, maybe even completely away from music? 

I love the game of dominoes! If I could travel around the world as a professional domino player, I would! I’m sure Val and Sam each have other aspirations outside of music; they are both very creative, unique and interesting people.

To date, what has been your biggest career moment(s)?

It has to be being nominated for and winning a Grammy, but there have been many…”Rumors” (recorded under the moniker of its first incarnation Timex Social Club) going #1 on the Billboard R&B charts, “Lean on Me” going #1 on the Billboard Pop Charts, the Life, Love & Pain album going platinum…Just to name a few.

On a more serious note, are you all happy with the current state of R&B/Pop? And, where exactly do you all “fit in” when it comes to the overall sound-scape of today’s musical trends?

I [Jay King] think R&B music has succumbed to technology somewhat. There are very few R&B records where there are sessions that include live musicians playing a song from start to finish. Today, not all, but most sessions, if they have a live player or two, will have them play certain parts and then copy and paste or sequence those parts into the song they are playing on, which I think takes some of the feel and emotion out of the song and music. That’s why a lot of the music you hear today is like a hamburger…Good while it’s hot, but if you don’t get it hot off the press it’s old! Hit songs never get old or outdated, that’s why you can hear [Marvin Gaye’s] “What’s Going On,” today, 44 years later, and it still sounds great; probably better than most everything you’re hearing today. Lots of plasma flowing through songs of that era, (and) that’s what live musicianship brings to a song; feeling and blood [plasma] — That’s why these songs still live strong today.

…Where we fit in is tricky because we’re recording new music, in a new music business where the industry doesn’t see us or groups like ours as viable, so we have to know who we are and where we fit it and it may not be in the box the industry has set as a standard, but it doesn’t mean we don’t fit it. We fit in with our audience and the people that still buy our music, purchase tickets to see us perform, visit our website, Facebook page, request us on Twitter, leave comments about our music on YouTube or continue to say, “I like Club Nouveau, I wonder what they’re up to?” And, we have to customize our marketing, promotional and advertising efforts to this group, build a strong foundation, get these folks to engage with us on every level and prove that we still have an active audience that will support us on every level, and that’s when will see how, why and where we “fit in” with the music industry, because those types of movements fit you in and get the attention of the “powers-that-be” of the industry because they see you moving the needle without their narrow thinking mind processes, and that’s intriguing which in some way fits you in…Go figure :/

Looking ahead, say five or maybe even ten years from now, where do you all see yourselves?

We are going to record an album every year moving forward. We see our audience growing, touring consistently and creating new music for our fan-base.

As for the immediate future, what’s next for CLUB NOUVEAU?

We have a new CD, Consciousness, available on our website: www.clubnouveau.me. It can only be purchased from our site, so if people want to get it they can either order it there or if they see us out live 🙂

Is there anything I left out or just plain forgot to mention?

Please connect with us at: www.clubnouveau.me [Website], www.facebook.com/theclubnouveau [Facebook], @theclubnouveau [Twitter],

Any “closing” thoughts for our readers?

We are choosing to distribute our music exclusively through our website because we can’t and often don’t make money from CD sales because of the high distribution fees. We are charged 30-40% of the wholesale price, charge backs manufacturing, advertising and promotions, reserves money held by the labels just in case you owe them, which can be held as long as two years in some cases and because we aren’t paid as the music we create is sold, we are paid either quarterly or bi annually and that’s only if we are recouped, meaning if there’s nothing owed to the label/distributor, based on the aforementioned charges.

…No one talks about this aspect of our business; some because they aren’t aware or don’t understand, others because they don’t want you to know how hard this business is and they want to keep up the “airs” that everything is fine and they are making a lot of money from CD sales, but the truth of the matter is very few artists make money off of CD sales. Most artists make their money from live performance dates, tours, special appearances, merchandising, reality TV, etcetera.

…And, a lot of the younger acts aren’t even getting all of their money from these revenue streams because they — the Music Industry — have in place now what is known as the 360 deal, where they get to make money from every aspect of your career, whether it’s music related or not.

…Artists work hard, bare their musical soul to the public and open themselves to a lot of scrutiny, ridicule and gossip, whether warranted or not. If you are going to support an artist, his or her music and their career, please do it as a patron of the arts. In other words, don’t throw them away because they didn’t do exactly what you wanted to do or because you didn’t like the new music. Give them a chance to be creative again or re-listen to what’s been created, you might have been wrong.

…I remember hearing Marvin Gaye’s Here, My Dear record and loving it, but it was panned by music critics, radio programmers, music retailers and the like, as one of the worst albums of that year [1978]…And disco was on fire, but years later — 1992 — it was called one of the most brilliant pieces of music ever recorded. It has gone on to sell in excess of 3 million units. Unfortunately, Marvin wasn’t here to watch the transformation of the people that said the brilliance he created wasn’t worth the wax it was recorded on, eat crow and change their narrow minds because “it wasn’t what was happening on the radio or on the music scene,” dare to be different, individual and a non conformist…Support the arts for real!

By: Todd Davis