– Hannah Gilbey contributed with this report
Lincoln will showcase one of Britain’s best young musical talent as Rizzle Kicks hit the Engine Shed to support Professor Green on his biggest tour yet, on the Saturday December 10th.
Duo Rizzle and Sylvester aka Jordon Stephens and Harley Alexander-Sule, have already nailed the music charts with their indie come hip hop style, despite only releasing their debut single earlier this year.
Sylvester recalled how it all started: “Making music together was a series of coincidences. We both moved to Brighton when we were 10, and played each other in a Sunday football match. Then we both went to BRIT school. From there we just started the band.”
The two were catapulted to fame after submitting their track to BBC Introducing and attending BRIT School – the same place that has given us the huge music acts Adele and Jessie J.
It’s clear that they are still both reeling in the fame a little: “It’s surreal. The feeling of having a Radio 1 DJ want to play your music, it’s like no other. It’s kind of weird that getting played on Radio 1 is expected now!”
“Down With The Trumpets” reached number eight in the music charts, and a collaboration with Olly Murs on his latest single “Heart Skips a Beat”, recently hit number one. “Olly Murs is a complete legend, the song’s wicked”, Sylvester continued. “It was obviously the right move as it gave us a first taste of what a number one is like.”
They are both even more excited about sharing the stage with Professor Green. For an act so fresh onto the mainstream music scene, it is no wonder they consider it as an honour. “It feels very exciting, just amazing. We heard that he purposely asked for us!” said Sylvester.
It’s not the first time they’ve hit the main stage, and the two have plenty planned for Lincoln. “We don’t like to shy away from live performances; we tend to go quite mad on stage,” Sylvester said. “We just show that we’re enjoying ourselves to the complete maximum. We go out there and just fight and do roly-polys, and weird stuff. I think it’s hard to come away from one of our shows without thinking, maybe they can actually perform!”
Judging by their previous sets, it’s hard not to believe them. Sylvester added: “At one point I’ll be doing something gymnastic and I’m not sure how good it will be, but it will be funny!”
And with the promise of a few mosh pits, there’s no doubt that the night will be full of energy and some great music. So, how did the boys feel about becoming the latest in the list of huge music acts to hit the city?
“If you consider us an act in the same way as Fatboy Slim and Example, we are honoured as hell”, said Sylvester as they both chuckled. “We still have a lot of work to do to be seen as a big act, but we love gigging anyway. We’d love to be on the list of previous Lincoln performers, dwellers, ravers, giggers, and general craziness!”
Tickets are sold out and as the tour was originally scheduled for Saturday October 29th, all original tickets purchased are still valid for use or for refunding from the original point of purchase.