For my double-page spread I decided that I would like to feature an interview with a band/artist, I then contacted a few various venues and band managers to try and organise an interview. I eventually managed to set up an interview with american band Boyce Avenue.
I then conducted research about the band and wrote a rough draft of some questions I may ask:
Boyce Avenue are a Florida-based band popular for their strong acoustic roots; the band consists of the three brothers Alejandro, Fabian, and Daniel Manzano. The brothers first came together as a band in 2004 when Alejandro, Fabian and their older brother Daniel reconnected after pursuing their individual educational goals.
In 2007, in an effort to share their music and ideas with the world, the band decided to start filming and posting videos on YouTube of their own songs and some covers of their favorite songs by other artists. Some of the first few videos they posted included acoustic versions of songs such as Justin Timberlake's "LoveStoned", Rihanna's "Umbrella", and Coldplay's "Viva la Vida", among many others. To date, the band has gathered over 165,000,000 views on YouTube, and the total number of subscribers approaching 300,000, making their channel one of the most visited worldwide on YouTube.
As of the end of 2009, the band had finished recording a full album of original music and had produced and financed the entire project on its own; they had also developed a plan to release the album independently through its own label, 3 Peace Records. At that time, they were approached by Universal Republic Records to partner in the release of the album and eventually decided to sign with them.
Currently, the band is touring Europe and preparing its next nationwide headline tour of the United States.
This is a link to the bands official website, featuring videos, biography and downloads:http://boyceavenue.com/
Rough sample of interview questions:
-So how are you finding the tour so far?
-Have you come across any mad fans yet?
-You’re first European tour was in October of 2009, so what would you say is the best gig you’ve ever played?
-How did you come up with the name Boyce Avenue?
-Was it hard to jump to the music industry from completely different areas of work, or have you always known music is what you really want to do?
-So how did the family band begin?
-What inspired and motivated you to get involved with music whilst still studying at school?
-Does being brothers make working together easier or do family arguments often occur?
-I read that you have had over 165,000,000 views on YouTube and you have around 300,000 subscribers; did YouTube help your musical career to take off?
-You also have over 24,000 followers on twitter, how do you keep up with all of your fans and do you feel you owe a lot to them?
-Do you have any celebrity fans?
-Aswell as writing your own music you cover songs by other artists; who would you say inspires you the most?
-You’re now signed with Universal Records, how did that come about?
-You’re new album ‘All We Have Left’ has recently been released, how long did it take to produce and do you have any favourite songs on the album?
