An Interview With The Trio JRAFFE On New Music, Biggest Inspirations and More!

Get to know the trio, JRAFFE. Both based in London and Los Angeles, they recently released their new debut single “California.” It is a hugely uplifting slice of life in the sunshine, filled with massive hooks and a beat to die for. (CLICK HERE TO STREAM  and Listen to JRAFFE on Spotify and watch the video HERE)

JRAFFE is a new group formed by three artists, producers and songwriters. In the last two years, their songs have amassed over 500 million streams across collaborative releases with artists such as Felix Jaehn, Hardwell, Nicky Romero, Bob Sinclair, Jennifer Hudson, Oliver Nelson & Omi, with many more new releases coming.

Connect With JRAFFE Here:

        facebook.com/JRAFFEMUSIC    instagram.com/jraffemusic     twitter.com/jraffemusic

Learn more about JRAFFE in the following All Access interview:

Thanks for your time! What is on tap for the rest of your day?

Hey, thanks for having us. Nothing too crazy, just getting back to the studio finishing some remixes to our latest single.

Since we are now at the back-end of 2018, how has this year treated this band? What is one musical goal that you have had for this year? How close are you to reaching it? 

This year has been amazing. In fact better than we anticipated. We wanted to get our music out and be able to share it with people, which we have done and also shot a video in LA which was amazing!!

Can you recall the moment when you thought you could be in this group together? Was it hard to think of a name that you could agree on?

After our second writing session we thought, this is coming together too easily, and it’s too much fun, we should do this together full time. That came quite naturally. Naming the band was a little trickier. We were originally meant to called “Filipino Spice Box” but thought that would have been to complicated to search for. So naming the band after a universal animal was the next best idea and JRAFFE was born!

How do you think your hometowns have influenced the sound and how you all carry yourselves in this group?

I think our hometowns played a major part in who we are as individuals, but the sound of the group is influenced by a mutual love of big pop anthems with a fun 90s urban flavored undertone. I guess our youths were spent in our hometowns listening to and accessing this style of music, but it was really enhanced when we all got together.

How has your various musical backgrounds helped shape the sound of this band?

There is a great balance between the members because of different musical backgrounds. Technically all members play various instruments and sing. So the sound is quite musical. Tastes also play a big part. Besides all members loving pop music, Sam also is a fan of country music , T grew up listening to old Motown and 60’s music whilst joe’s approach is a little more left and indie which makes for a great combo and elements from our individual loves are seen in the music.Jay brings the modern edm flavour to the group.

Can you talk about some of the collaborations that you have been a part of these past two years? What has it been like working with so many incredible artists? 

Well before officially forming as a group, we were writing and producing for many different artists across the world. We have written and or produced for artists like Felix Jaehn, Nicky Romero, Hardwell, Jennifer Hudson, Ella eyre.  Collaborating mostly for thier projects as artists. But this experience was crucial in developing our skill sets as writers and instrumental in shaping and preparing us as artists.

What was the inspiration for your newest single “California”? How does it compare to anything else that you have put out?

Well California is our first single we have put out. But it was inspired again from our love of 90’s urban pop music. In particular the G-Funk sound that was coming out of Cali around that time. So it was natural to build the concept around California.

When do you plan on putting out more new music and a full album of new songs?

We have been writing all year and are very happy with the material we are making. No plans yet to put out an album as such, we would still love to give people a chance to connect to our latest single before releasing new music.

How do you go about writing your music and putting your songs together?

Well, we get in the studio and start from scratch. We each grab an instrument and start jamming. Sometimes we use a vibe or feel from somebody else’s song that we love to kick start the direction off. But we don’t have a set routine, each session is different and we always have fun, never take it too seriously. Usually spend the day laughing and I think that shows in the music.

Where do you think you are all happiest- in the studio recording new music, on stage performing or elsewhere?

I think it’s safe to say that we feel more at home in the studio creating and recording. Although we all perform and have spent a lot of time on stage. We are also passionate about performing too

Do you have touring plans scheduled for the rest of this fall and into winter?

Our latest single has gained a lot of traction in Australia. There’s talk of going out there to perform. But nothing planned as of yet.

Do you find that all of social media and keeping up with your fans has gotten so overwhelming? OR do you rely heavily on others to take care of that for the band? Which platform would you say that you enjoy engaging with the most?

We all find social media a little overwhelming. The need to constantly keep up daily gets tricky. We’d much rather just do what we love and just create. It’s a combo from others and ourselves working our social media at the moment. Instagram is certainly the easiest and most natural for us.

We are currently living through a very trying and politically charged time right now so I am curious to know how you all think being musicians and in this band still gives you the most joy in life today? Do you find that your music is an escape to all the current events?

That’s a very good question. The current events of the world are hard to ignore and often get to us personally as a group. But our attitude has always been about giving people the opportunity to escape their issues even just for a moment through our music. That’s why we always try to write uplifting and fun songs that we enjoy and not take ourselves to seriously. We hope people can also find them humorous and fun and share the joy we have had in  making it.

What musicians would you love to work with in the future? What artists have really been inspiring this group and your music since day 1?

There’s so many we would love to work with, but artists like DNCE and Pharrell and even Maroon 5 would be amazing to work with. We would love to write a song with these artists.

What do you hope is the message of your music? What do you hope people continue to take away from your songs?

The message in our minds in very clear. Fun, love, humorous and not taking life too seriously. There’s beauty in the lighter side of life and we would love to have people share our music with the same tongue in check and playful mentality.

Would you like to share anything else about your music or the history of this band to our readers?

There’s plenty fun songs in bag and we can’t wait to share them with our fans. But to those who have been asking about our fourth member “jay” the JRAFFE,  “he” or “she” will remain anonymous for now. The sex and person behind the mask will not be revealed.