Jakubi
Jakubi is a Melbourne-based band composed of two brothers, two cousins and one friend whose love for producing music brought them together and whose pure talent propelled them forward. Jakubi's unique flavor stems from an irresistible combination of jangly guitars, hip-hop beats and sailing synth rhythms. Flawlessly melding the sounds of a talk box one minute and reggae-inspired guitar the next, the band's infectious experimental songs are guaranteed to get everyone dancing.
2014 saw the band touring two continents and three countries including Australia, the US, and Canada. Since the release of their first single in 2013, the band's music has been streamed on SoundCloud almost 2 million times and has amassed over 3 millions views across YouTube.
The band's latest single, "Couch Potato," earned the praise of the king of pop culture commentary himself, Perez Hilton, who says, "It's so dope! They've got a real laid-back, positive vibe that's infectious. The playful video for the track features a couch coasting down the street and was filmed by dragging the couch behind a car, a stunt that accidentally got the band featured on "Highway Patrol," a national television show in Australia.
After a whirlwind 18 months the band is excited to announce the Life's A Beach tour, an 11-date summer run through Australia. Jakubi will also release their debut EP and tour the US in 2015.
Artist Feature
Jakubi are no "Couch Potato"es. The Australian band has been working non-stop in support of their latest single, and it's easy to see how much they love it! With their constant time on the road (and jumping countries and continents!) wrapping up for a short time so they can get cracking on a new album, we talked with the band about what's next (and about how sometimes, you need to play some sports on the side of the road):
Tell the Feed The Beat community about Jakubi in one sentence: We are 2 brothers, 2 cousins and a mate that play soul, funk, rock music together.
You guys have been on the road almost non-stop lately - what has been the coolest part about getting in front of all these new fans in a bunch of different countries? Yeah the tour schedule been really hectic lately. I think the coolest part has just been the reactions we have been receiving in different parts of the world. It's crazy, doesn't matter where you go, people just wanna dance and have a good time. It's also a lot of fun getting to travel all over the place with your best friends, we've seen all sorts, and have had all kinds of experiences together.
Your music (specifically your new single "Couch Potato") is super upbeat, and you can hear all sorts of different influences in it. What types of music do you listen to, as a band and individually? Do you hear it impact the music you're writing yourselves? We all come from really different musical backgrounds which I think makes it so fun and interesting to write together. Myself and Addam played in punk bands as kids, Jesse drummed more sorta alternative rock, Jacob and Jerome had a production duo going which was more electronic based. We all like similar qualities in music for example, a great bass line or hook. I guess the one thing that bleeds us all together is the funk, we love the funk!!! Everything impacts our writing, not just music but the places we travel, the different people we meet, and maybe most importantly, where we grew up. It all helps shape what we do.
What is your biggest "must have" while out on tour? Ummmmmm…….biggest must have would have to be a soccer ball. We like to play a lot of sport. I guess you could say we are sorta like puppies haha We need to be let out to kill some energy every day. Good way to break up the drives too. Stop the bus, kick the ball for 15 minutes and everyone feels a little more alive.
With "Couch Potato" in our headphones so often, we've got to ask - when will there be more music coming from you guys?! Will we hear something new before the end of 2015? Well, that's a great question. We are currently in pre-production for an album right now. We are really excited to put out some new music! It's been hard to find the time to make it happen, but we are locking it in. If all goes to plan, you will have something new by the end of this year.