Black Kids
is an American indie pop band from Jacksonville, Florida. The band's debut EP, Wizard of Ahhhs
, was released to critical acclaim in 2007 and was followed by the Partie Traumatic
album, which debuted at #5 on the UK Albums Chart in July 2008.
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BLACK KIDS TICKETS
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History
Black Kids, consisting of Reggie Youngblood (
vocals and
guitar), Owen Holmes (
bass guitar), Kevin Snow (
drums), Dawn Watley (
keyboards and
vocals), and Reggie's sister Ali Youngblood (
keyboards and
vocals), formed in early 2006. Previously, members were in the Christian soft-tempo ska band Honeylocust.
[1] Although they initially performed only in Jacksonville, they received national attention after a breakout performance at the
Athens Popfest in
Athens, Georgia on August 11, 2007, which led to a sudden flurry of coverage in the music press, including
NME
,
[2] Vice
,
[3] The Guardian
,
[4] and
The Village Voice
[5]. The same month, Black Kids'
demo EP,
Wizard of Ahhhs
, was released via free download on their
MySpace page. Soon after, Black Kids began working with Quest Management,
[6] the company that manages
Björk and
Arcade Fire.
[7] In October, the EP received a favorable review of 8.4 out of 10 from
Pitchfork Media, including a "Best New Music" commendation.
[8]
Black Kids participated in the
CMJ Music Marathon in
New York City in October,
[9] earning the band exposure in
The New York Times
[10] and
USA Today
.
[11] In December the band travelled to
London for a brief tour.
[12] Rolling Stone
called them one of ten "Artists to Watch" for 2008
[13] and the band was also included in the BBC
Sound of 2008 poll.
[14]
Black Kids toured the United Kingdom in early 2008, including the
Vice
Live Tour with
Friendly Fires and
Ipso Facto, a
Sons and Daughters tour, and a
Kate Nash tour.
[15] In April and May, Black Kids toured the United States as an opening act for
Cut Copy. The band played the summer festival circuit in the U.S. and the UK, including the
Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April
[16],
Radio 1's Big Weekend in May,
Glastonbury Festival in June, and
T in the Park [17] and
Camp Bestival in July
[18]. Black Kids then headlined an international tour in the U.S. and Europe from June to November.
While in the UK in early 2008 the band recorded their debut album,
Partie Traumatic
, with producer
Bernard Butler, former guitarist of
Suede. Their first single, "
I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You", was released in the UK on April 7 and debuted at #11 on the UK Singles Chart. "
Hurricane Jane", the followup single, was released in the UK on June 23, where it charted at #36. The album
Partie Traumatic
was released on July 7 in the UK on
Almost Gold Recordings, debuting at #5, and was released two weeks later in the US on
Columbia Records, debuting at #127.
In 2009 Black Kids performed at the
Big Day Out festivals in
New Zealand and
Australia. They have also toured with
Kaiser Chiefs in the U.K. and
Mates of State in the U.S. Their song "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You," was used in a trailer for the movie "
Fame."
Discography
Albums
| Year
| Title
| Charts
|
UK
| US
|
| 2008
| Partie Traumatic
- Released on July 7 (UK), July 22 (US) 2008
- Labels: Almost Gold (UK), Columbia (US)
- Formats: CD, digital download, vinyl
| 5
| 127
|
EPs
| Year
| Title
|
| 2007
| Wizard of Ahhhs
- Released in August 2007
- Formats: digital download, vinyl
|
| 2009
| Cemetery Lips
- Released in April 2009
- Formats: digital download
|
Singles
| Year
| Title
| Charts
| Album
|
UK
| US
|
| 2008
| "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You"
| 11
| -
| Partie Traumatic
|
| "Hurricane Jane"
| 36
| n/a
|
| "Look at Me (When I Rock Wichoo)"
| 175 [19]
| n/a
|
Compilation appearances
- American Teen: Music from the Motion Picture
(2008) – "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You"
- Jennifer's Body: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
(2009) - "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You"
Television appearances
- Spanking New Sessions
, MTV UK (February 2008) – "Hit the Heartbrakes", "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You", "Look at Me (When I Rock Wichoo)" [20]
- Later... with Jools Holland
, BBC (April 1 2008) – "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You" [21]
- Later... with Jools Holland
, BBC (April 4, 2008) – "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You", "Hurricane Jane"
- Friday Night with Jonathan Ross
, BBC (May 30, 2008) – "Hurricane Jane" [22]
- The Late Show with David Letterman
, CBS (July 24, 2008) – "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You" [23]
- Jimmy Kimmel Live!
, ABC (September 5, 2008) – "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You", "Hurricane Jane"
- The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
, NBC (October 17, 2008) – "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You"
- Last Call with Carson Daly
, NBC (May 8, 2009) – "Look At Me (When I Rock Wichoo)", "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You"
Honors
- Artist to Watch – Rolling Stone
, November 2007
- Sound of 2008: Top 10 (#8) – BBC News, January 2008
Albums
Wizard of Ahhhs
- Best New Music – Pitchfork Media
, October 2007
Partie Traumatic
- Best of 2008 (#4) – New York Post
, December 2008 [24]
- 50 Best Albums of the Year (#39) – The Observer
, December 2008 [25]
- The 40 Best Albums of 2008 (#22) – Spin
, December 2008 [26]
- The Top 50 Albums of 2008 (#43) – NME
, December 2008 [27]
Songs
"I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance with You"
- Top 100 Tracks of 2007 (#68) – Pitchfork Media, December 2007 [28]
- iTunes Single of the Week – iTunes, August 26, 2008 [29]
- Top 10 Singles of 2008 (#2) – New York Post
, December 17, 2008 [30]
- Best Songs of 2008 (#22) – Spinner
, December 2008 [31]
- Best Single of 2008 – The Sunday Mail
, December 21, 2008 [32]
- Top Singles of 2008 (#36) - Village Voice
, January 21, 2009 [33]
References
- Title Unavailable
- Black Kids Are Amazing
- Interview: Black Kids
- New band of the day No. 191: Black Kids
- Provincializm: Siblings Gonna Work It Out
- Update: Buzz Band Black Kids Inks Management Deal
- Black Kids Have a Manager, Gigs, No Label Yet
- Black Kids: Wizard of Ahhs EP: Pitchfork Record Review
- CMJ: Thursday (Marc Hogan)
- Play Well, and May the Blog Buzz Be With You
- CMJ lessons: Ten bands to hear today
- Black Kids Add Dates
- Artist to Watch: Black Kids
- Sound of 2008: The Top 10
- **SONS & DAUGHTERS TOUR + KATE NASH TOUR**
- Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival Announces Lineup
- T Lineup Announced
- Camp Bestival add more acts to lineup
- Official Singles Chart for the week ending September 20, 2008
- Black Kids - MTV UK
- Later with Jools Holland - Black Kids
- Friday Night with Jonathan Ross
- Black Kids News
- Best of 2008
- 2008 Review: 50 albums of the year
- The 40 Best Albums of 2008
- NME's Top 50 of 2008
- Top 100 Tracks of 2007
- Another Free iTunes Single of the Week: Black Kids' "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance With You"
- PopTracks' Top 10 Singles of 2008
- Best Songs of 2008: No. 22
- Review of the 2008: Mickey McMonagle's best bits of the year
- Pazz + Jop Singles 2008