Interview: The Foreign Exchange

This Friday Grammy-nominated duo The Foreign Exchange will make their first ever appearance in Austin at the ND, bringing with them their uniquely inventive mix of hip-hop, R&B, and electronica. Originally from Holland producer/programmer Nicolay puts a distinctly European spin on the soulful melodies of vocalist Phonte, having earned the praise of such legendary DJs as Jazzy Jeff and King Britt. Local journalist and SLACKER Magazine contributor Andrew Miller recently spoke with Nicolay about The Foreign Exchange’s interesting beginnings, their connection to The Roots and expectations of performing in Austin.

The Foreign Exchange seemed to form overnight through a partnership that was literally worlds apart, can you give me some insight on how the group started?

The group itself is comprised of two individuals, Phonte and myself. When we first got together it was a virtual thing because I was living in Holland and Phonte is from North Carolina. We “met” on the forums of the website for the Roots, which is Okayplayer.com in 2001-2002. It was a very active community of like-minded individuals catering to both musicians and fans. We only knew of each other as frequent visitors of that particular message board and would find each other in the same topics sharing similar opinions. It wasn’t until we shared our respective musical minds that we discovered each other as artists. Phonte actually discovered my music, he thought it was refreshingly different and suggested he do something over my tracks. Our whole first album was done before we met each other in the flesh.

So you just sent him your tracks over the Internet via email and he would record his vocals over your music?

At that time, there weren’t a lot of programs to help us with our process. Nowadays you have things like Megaupload, Gmail, Rapidshare, but at that time it was all in the growing stages, so we relied a lot on Instant Messenger just sending tracks back and forth. I would send Phonte anything from instrumental tracks to fully composed songs and he would record the vocals at his place and send the vocals back over to me from his computer so I could put it all together at my studio in Holland and I would finish the mix. In all reality we still make songs the same way. We have more tools at our disposal now but in essence we have always done it that way. We have always had our own studios.

How often did you guys tour together?

We started touring more and more but we were a studio project first and foremost partly because of the distance. We never thought about albums or shows, we truly were in it to have fun. As the success grew, we felt we wanted to get more out of it through touring and releasing more albums. When I moved to the States in 2006, coinciding with our second CD release, we were able to do a lot more in terms of photo shoots, shows and was the opening for us to transform into a live band, which we did in 2008. We come from a hip hop tradition but we always felt there was a lot more at play with us and never wanted to do the DJ/Rapper thing, but for us we wanted to use a full live band for our live shows. In a live setting we are eight people on stage with a backing band, and live vocals. For us it was a way to reinterpret our music for the stage. Every year it seems like we do more shows which was never the plan, but it has been a happy accident.

I can tell that your music is influenced by hip-hop but what inspires you when writing?

I am definitely a music student, so I have always studied music with a lot more interest and detail than some people around me. I remember as a kid not only liking music but knowing why I liked it, for instance the drums did something really cool, so I have always been inspired by any genre of music that would appeal to me. I have never been the type of person to shut certain genres out because they are foreign to me. I try to take a little bit from all music I listen to including sounds that are happening in the world around me.

 I hear a lot of similarities between you and The Roots, do you look to them as an influence? Have you played a show with them?

Yes, we have played with the Roots many times. Questlove is a friend of ours and it is funny you mention the Roots specifically because there are a lot of ties between us and the Roots traditionally from day one. Phonte has worked extensively with the Roots and was on their last record and will be on their new record. When we were nominated for a Grammy, we flew down to LA and played a showcase with me on piano and Questlove decided to jump on the drums and jam with us. We often get compared to the Roots and I am honored at the comparison. For us it is a matter of tapping into your talents and for us it means taking it to the stage and playing with people we admire.

How did it feel when you heard the news that you were nominated for a Grammy?

It was a very surreal experience. We both dealt with it in different ways. Phonte is the type of person that lives by the motto “I’ll believe it when I see it” and went back to sleep after he heard the news and it wasn’t too impressed. It wasn’t until later that the news sunk in with him. As for me, I had an immediate reaction and couldn’t believe it. We didn’t go about the process the way others did. We just submitted our material ourselves and left it up to the music. The thing I was most proud of was the fact that it was something done from the strength of the music. It was a very humbling moment, but I feel there is still a lot more to prove and our best work is still in front of us.

Have you been to Austin before?

I have never been to Austin before. I know Phonte has, but I have never been to Austin. We were supposed to play SXSW this year, but it didn’t work out in the end and I was pretty sad. I have heard a lot about the city and I am looking forward to it. I know it is a musical city and I can’t wait.

Are you looking forward to seeing or doing anything specific in Austin?

Coming face to face with the fans in Austin. Something I enjoy most about touring is getting in contact with the people and seeing the effect of the music on the fans in real time. Every city is different and there is something unique about every city and every crowd. We are coming full force and think the shows are going to be phenomenal.

Advance tickets are available for $18 through Jive Tickets or for $20 at the door. Don’t miss this special night as The Foreign Exchange perform with a live band consisting of Zo!, Sy Smith and Jeanne Jolly. Check out the track that earned them a Grammy nomination, “Daykeeper,” below.

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