Within hours Regi Youngblood, the pensively spoken, fuzzy toped, cool cat from pop sensation Black Kids will be bleating soulfully to a sold out Astoria, a feat one might only ever get to imagine as an infant jiving in front of a mirror.
With one delicious sounding UK top five album under their belt, the truly hilarious ringleader of this pop-ing good time seemed surprisingly “nonchalant” not only at the approaching (highly monumental) show, but also, to talk to CLASH. Innately cool, painfully shy or just a little tired? Talking to us about dancing, how to make friends, live shows and possible future professions, read the full interview to make up your own mind about one of pop’s rising stars.
C: Hi, I’m Tasha..
R: I’m Regi, nice to meet you.
C: So, if you were to teach my boyfriend how to dance, what dance would you teach him?
R: Um, probably some old school stuff, but really my repertoire is kind of limited I can do that one kind of (Regi makes a shuffle with his feet). It’s hard to describe. Um, what’s that one that New Kids On the Block used to do, when they used to (starts shuffling again)?
It was never a case of people standing around all gloomy we just all really have a fucking great time
C: Can you show me?
R: Ah…
C: Can you do running man?
R: No I can’t, you’d think I would be able to but I would really muck it up. But I think the thing is that I don’t teach boyfriends how to dance. (Laughs) that’s kind of who I am..
C: Do you think groove is innate to somebody?
R: Yes, I do unfortunately. Oh Actually… (Long pause) I lost my grove. For a while I was really into dance. It was those really awkward High School years when I had a girlfriend who loved to dance, but I would always be a sourpuss in the corner, and then it happened. I don’t know when but it came back to me in the end.
C: So if we were, say, at a party, what party typecast would you be now?
R: Well… I don’t.. Really…. Well, I just go to any indie dance nights in Jackson. I kind of found it’s unique to, at least to the States, in Jackson we had really great dance nights, and it was never a case of people standing around all gloomy we just all really have a fucking great time. And I’ve found that in a couple of cities, maybe in Atlanta as well, but then the further north I’ll go, there would be no dance nights and it wasn’t very fun.
C: So what type of music will help you get your groove going?
R: Stuff that’s just shamelessly fun, with no pretension about it.. I don’t know… Um….
C: What about live bands?
R: Ah.. I’ll never see them live now but I’d love to see New Order or the B52’s, yeah that would be cool.
C: What about after your own live show?
R: It’s very boring actually. I just kind of like, go into my coffin, I mean the bunk in the bus and watch Gossip Girl, and talk to my girlfriend.
C: Is she back in the states?
R: Yeah, I miss her.
C: How often do you get to see her?
R: Um, just when we go home. I’ve probably seen her about two weeks out of this year, and she probably wasn’t my girlfriend then (laughs)..
C: Leaving personal matters aside, ‘Partie Traumatic’ reached number five on the UK album charts…
R: Not too shabby, sure…
C: Um, so in a way, the UK has really embraced Black Kids, so what if any aspects of Britain have you embraced?
R: Every time we do go back home I really miss Marks and Spencer subway food, and the Wagamama, you don’t get Wagamama back home (laugh)… I always get the vegetable katsu curry or like whatever is vegetarian really. Or at Marks and Spencer, chocolate covered pecans or whatever… (laughs).
C: What about UK bands, you mentioned New Order, are there any others?
R: Yeah they’re all old school, The Smiths, Stone Roses, Suede and Cinerama, like that kind of stuff.
C: What about new bands, you have toured with some pretty ‘hip’ bands like Ipso Facto and Friendly Fires. What are your thoughts on the London ‘scene’?
R: I wish they’d let me in… (Laugh) No those guys and girls are really sweet, really lovely people. But it takes ages for us to like, actually let me speak for myself, to make friends. It just takes time for me really for me just to be myself, or sometimes I am myself and they don’t really like that, so…
Basically he’s his bitch.
C: What don’t people like?
R: My idea of humour is sometimes a little skewed, which works against me but works for my sister, she’s quite good at making friends.
C: Ok..
R: I’m exaggerating, it’s not so bad, but also with those bands you mentioned, we didn’t really get to do a lot of shows with them, we did about four and I’ve only ran into them a couple of times since then, but we did a much longer tour with Cut Copy and a pretty good one with The Virgins so we’re good friends with those guys.
C: I noticed you’re sporting a Virgin’s hoodie…
R: Yeah I really like them a lot, um, admittedly I didn’t know what to expect sharing the bus with them but, um, they impressed me on all accounts. They’re lovely people and their live shows are really tight, they have great songs and they’re fun..
C: I like the ‘Murder’ song..
R & C: (singing) ‘Murder- the way she likes. Murder, feels like…’ (laugh)
C: So apparently Barack Obama’s body man is also called Regi or Reggie. His last name is Love. Do you think you would make a good body man?
R: What, like a bodyguard?
C: No, a body man, like a right hand man, like a brother. You know, making sure he’s looking cool, has a straight tie and has clean drinking water. Whereas a bodyguard is the brute.
R: I’d be shit at that. Basically he’s his bitch. Is he paid?
C: Yeah…
R: So basically he’s just a really classy prostitute. Yeah I think I could do that! (Laughs) It just sounds like a manservant. Reggie Love? Wow, that’s nearly as good as Regi Youngblood.
C: So if not music, or a body man, what would you be doing?
R: I would probably be a pimp or a prostitute, you know? It’s a genetic thing, if my Dad hadn’t have joined the navy my Mum is fairly certain he would have been a pimp. That’s dark but that’s life. (Laughs) My mum has been working as a hostess at this restaurant for about twenty years.
C: So what would your pimp or prostitute name be?
R: Well probably nothing with blood in it, that would be bad for business, (laughs), no, maybe Brawd, Regi Brawd.
C: I heard that it’s generally the name of your first pet and the street you live on, so what would that be?
R: Dirty Harry Kelly… That kind of works I guess.
C: I think that’s a fairly good one. So, in a couple of hours you’ll be playing to a sold out Astoria. Are you excited, you seem a little flat?
R: No… I’m fine… Do I seem a bit sluggish?
C: Yeah well, I’ve only just met you but you seem somewhat sedate.
R: I guess I’m a bit tired. I’m trying to impress you and seem nonchalant (jokingly). It seems like a really cool magazine though.
C: The best! So finally, are you well rehearsed for the gig?
R: Just relentless touring, that’s the best practice I think. There is something about being in front of people night after night that forces you to progress. Audiences are so random, you can’t try and assign characteristics to audiences whether it be geographic, you know, like the further north you go the more up for it they are. We played a show in Glasgow and they were like really, ‘whatever’, but then we’ve played there previously and it’s been different. There’s no science to it.
C: What’s the most memorable gig you’ve ever attended?
R: Probably the first one I went to, sometime in the nineties I saw MC Hammer supported by Boyz II Men, so beat that! ‘Motownphilly’ back again!
