Liverpudlian artist KOF is not an artist that wants to be confined to tightly specific labels, nor should he be. As a singer/songwriter and rapper, a listen to his music will tell you that his musical interests and inspirations are eclectic and overlapping. For KOF, music is not about keeping to strict genres – it’s about merging them to create a sound that makes you ‘feel something’. Read our interview below to find out more about his musical journey, Liverpool’s urban scene and whether he’s interested in more than just music.

How did you get into music?

I’ve always listened to music for as long as I can remember. My first memories where watching an ‘Earth, Wind & Fire’ concert that my dad had on video. I used to watch it every morning. After a while I knew all the lyrics and all the movements they did on stage. I would just sing along to the whole thing. That’s probably the catalyst that started my infatuation.

You’ve described yourself as an inbetweener when it comes to your music.  What influences do you draw from?

I’m influenced by so much which is why I describe myself as such. The different styles of music I listen to kind of dictate my sound. I’m into RnB, hip-hop, neo-soul, dub step, dnb, house and more, so elements of each are visible within the music I create, just not always in an obvious way. I’m also inspired by creative’s, people who have unusual ways of working. A lot of the stuff I’ve learnt over the years in terms of producing, recording vocals and mixing has come from observing how other creative’s work in their field and seeing how I can adapt and add my own style in that to see where I can take it to. I think those type of influences help to evolve an artists. It’s all about trying to take it to the next level and trying to create something different with it.

Whether recording or listening, what makes a song stand out for you?

Catchy melodies is a the main thing but I love songs that create a mood as soon as you press play. The songs I tend to keep on repeat are songs that make me remember certain times in my life. One in particular that I always mention is ‘Butterfly’s’ by Alicia Keys. It reminds me of one of my earlier relationships and everytime I hear it, it’s like I go back to that time and I feel all the things that I felt then. It’s weird but when music can make you feel something, that’s the best kind.

How do you think the urban Liverpudlian music scene has developed in recent years?

It’s got better in terms of artists who are getting involved to try an help create a scene. I’ve been doin my thing in Liverpool for a few years now and the quality of artists and music that is coming out is at a level much better than before. I think to have a scene though there needs to be much more than just artists. We’ve got some talented video directors in the form of Mr Green and The Elaborators and a few more but we lack in terms of radio stations and media that are willing to support or push on a wider scale. Unlike most of the big cities, we have no pirate radio stations to help nurture some of the talent. The main stations in Liverpool don’t play upcoming urban artists from Liverpool. I get some support on some levels from the likes of Dave Monks at BBC Merseyside or Olabean & PL when they were at Juice FM but on the whole, there is no radio support for most of the artists in the city. It’s crazy to see that my song gets played on Radio 1 and added to the A-list on 1Xtra but still gets minimum to no support on the main stations in Liverpool.

Are there any other fields of entertainment you are interested in?

Yeah I’m interested in directing and  editing. I’ve directed or co-directed most of my videos. I’m especially proud of the video for ‘Looking At Me’, it took me a while to edit it but I’m proud of the end result so it was worth it. Doing videos takes up a lot of time so it’s something I need to do in moderation. My music is my main focus at the moment.

‘Looking At Me’ is out now on Itunes. You can follow KOF on Twitter @kofmusic

Rufio Summers’  Over It EP  is just a taster of his sound and talent.  It features the laid-back vibe of ‘I Still’ alongside the soul-infused growl of ‘One-Trick Pony’ and will leave you  wanting to hear more from the singer/songwriter.  Koko Magazine had a chat with the emerging talent to find out a bit more about  his music and style.

Where are you from and how did you get into music?

Born and bred in Gloucestershire, I developed my passion for music through watching my brother make his own in his bedroom. From a young age I had a good understanding of how a song should be constructed, so with both of these factors combined, making my own music was a no brainer.

How would you describe ‘lost sou’l?

‘Lost Soul’ is a fusion of rock, soul and blues, with an element lyrical honesty. It is the honesty that makes it unique because in this day and age many artists choose to characterize a fictitious persona in order to portray and achieve a successful living. I find this dilutes the true meaning of Rhythm and Blues, hence the terminology ‘Lost Soul’.

What can you tell me about your up and coming studio sessions?

After working on my EP, I’m looking forward to recording with my own band
and producing fuller sounding tracks.

What do you enjoy about performing live?

There is no better feeling than performing at the best of your ability to a
large or small crowed and getting a warm response at the end of each song,
or even better, when they join in.

What can we look forward to hearing from you this year?

I want to record a fuller sounding album thanks to my band, and maybe a few feature club tracks, as I am very much into my Electro and Club music.

Download Rufio’s Over It EP

@rufiosummers on Twitter

Rufio Summers Facebook

A look back at the images that captured our imaginations this year.

‘Empire State of Mind’ Photography – Spotlight on…Guido Tamayo

The passionate photographer tells of his daring mission to shoot under a moving train READ

Snapshots: Fashion Photography by Hollie Waters

15 year old fashion photographer Hollie Waters dazzled us with her photographic talent. READ

I AM NOT Book: Preview and Interview

Michael Stuart-Daley delved into the subject of racism and discrimination in his debut book. READ

Emily-Marie Anderson – Fashion Photography

Internationally recognised fashion photographer Emily-Marie Anderson has been causing a buzz around her photography.  READ

In a year of great music, we are highlighting some of our most exciting interviews of 2010.

Allen Mask – “No ‘ice’, no ‘making it rain’ or any other cliché.  Just one man – Allen Mask – his rhymes, and his beats” - READ

Janiece Myers -”hoping to bring something different to the UK RnB scene, Janiece Myers is proving that she has the raw talent and drive to make her dreams come true. ” – READ

Nadine Charles -”Talented and soulful, Nadine Charles is a singer/songwriter from London and she’s getting ready to make her own mark on the music industry” – READ

Blackchords – “From the 1970s easy-rock sound of ‘December’ to the more jagged rhythms of ‘At World’s End,’ Blackchords exude a certain confidence and infectious enjoyment of their music.
” - READ

You may not realise it, but you’ve been seeing a lot of Lyrics 4 Lyrics’ designs.  It’s the label behind that necklace Will.i.am was sporting last night on the X-Factor final.  Based in London and Los Angeles, Lyrics 4 Lyrics is creating a following both sides of the Atlantic. With fans such as the Black Eyed Peas, Pharrell, Ciara and Russell Simmons the Lego-inspired label is making its presence felt.  Koko Magazine caught up with its creator Paul ‘Bwoywonder’ Allimadi to find out more!

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and how you got into designing?

I’m a North London based designer, I graduated in Product Design from University of Hertfordshire and started my label lyrics4lyrics with my cousin Justin Mwaka back in 2005.

Why Lego?

Many people ask me why I chose to use Lego in my designs/clothing, I say why not! as a designer I was taught to not only be inspired by things around you but also USE them.

What’s the best thing about designing?

The best thing about designing is not knowing the end result until you reach it, sure I may have an idea or concept how it should look like but it always slightly differs from the image you have in your head.

What about the more challenging aspect?

Designing for others is simple when the client is creative or has laid out a full brief, the challenge is when even they don’t know what they want and leave you with a 1 word concept i.e. “design something theatrical!”

How long does it take you to create each piece – from concept to finished product?

Each piece takes me 20-40mins, customised Lego jewellery can take much longer as I am doing it for the first time.

What’s your favourite piece from your collection, and why?

My favourite piece of Lego jewellery that I have created is and will probably always be my first creation, the Super Mario like character which I premiered.

What has been your biggest achievement so far?

Biggest achievement so far is getting my products out to the states, Europe and far east!

What can we expect from Lyrics 4 Lyrics in 2011?

More sculpture pieces, stronger more theatrical designs and hopefully more people following the LEGO brick road!

www.lyrics4lyrics.com

http://twitter.com/bwoywonder

http://l4lblog.wordpress.com

Blackchords have achieved the rare feat of creating a debut record that sounds two albums ahead of its time.  The Australian quartet’s self-titled 12-track album does not suffer from filler-track syndrome or songs that sound like part two of the track played ten minutes prior.  From the 1970s easy-rock sound of ‘December’ to the more jagged rhythms of ‘At World’s End,’ Blackchords exude a certain confidence and infectious enjoyment of their music.  They’re definitely a band to watch out for.

Koko caught up with lead singer Nick Milwright to find out more their music, touring and film soundtrack.

Can you tell us a bit about your band?  Where are you from and how did you get together?
Blackchords formed in the basement of a bluestone pub in Collingwood, Victoria, (Australia) where the band was allowed to set up and rehearse in exchange for cleaning the Pub. We are based in Melbourne though I am the only member actually from Victoria. Guitarist and Drummer, Damian Cazaly and Nick Cheek migrated from the Island Nation of Tasmania and Bassist, Tristan Courtney is from South Australia.

How do you write your songs together?
In the past it has been a case of me bringing a pretty much fully formed song to the band and each member paints over the top with the melodies and parts of their own instruments. Now that we have been touring together and really getting to know each other’s style of playing we are working on creating songs from scratch.

What is your favourite song you’ve recorded and why?
My favorite song recorded so far would be “As Night Falls”. It was written specifically for an Australian feature film, and so the way that I worked and wrote this song was very different from how I have worked in the past. It was working from an external source and then relating it back to my own experiences and feelings. It was quite a refreshing way to work.  I also feel that it has the best chorus I’ve written thus far, and I’m a big fan of it!

Who are your musical influences?
There are so many and they are always changing with each brand new album that is brought to my ears. The honesty and simplicity of Musicians like, Bon Iver, Damian Rice, Feist, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, Nick Drake etc. is one side that moves me then the big sounds and craftsmanship of U2, Interpol, The Beatles, Arcade Fire, Nick Cave etc. Excites me and Motivates me to work hard and be loud! Then the records made by Doves, Elbow, Radiohead etc. really inspires me to push boundaries to find more complex ways of composing and recording…..There is such an array of incredible music out there in the world that you can never really sit still and get stuck on one style or sound.

How do your UK fans compare to the fans at home?
We’ve had some great shows in the U.K and in Australia where we have felt completely at home.

We’ve been shown some exceptional support from both sides of the world too. So all in all I don’t feel like there is much difference between them.

Where else would you like to tour and why?
My aim in this life is to play music and tour the world until I’m old can’t sing anymore. I hope that it will take me far and wide and to whatever part of the world people want to hear my music.

How did the ‘Blame’ soundtrack come about?  What is like having your music in a film?
The producer of Blame approached me last year saying he’d like to use a Blackchords track in the Film and would I be interested in writing one specifically for it. Six months later they had shot the film and and showed me the rough edit for me to get an idea of the feel and tempo of the track and I wrote and recorded the song with Tamil Rogeon and producer Nick Batterham a few weeks later. Firstly I was chuffed to just have been thought of,  then I was really excited when I saw Blame at the Melbourne International Film Festival and realized that it’s a s**t hot film!

What is next for Blackchords?
For the last 18 months we have been playing shows around Australia the U.K and France. Getting to know what it is like to tour, becoming tight as a band and building our fan base. Now we feel it is time for us to take some time out from that side of it and begin working hard on the new songs and piecing together our second album.

You can download the first three singles and an exclusive live track for free at www.facebook.com/blackchords

Join us on Facebook and Twitter

The sound of summer has arrived early in the form of pop-punk band, Summerlin.  Delivering a mish-mash of hectic beats, the Yorkshire quintet are unashamedly bold and adventurous with their music. Check out our interview with bassist Jake to find out how the band made an appearance on Radio 1 and get the scoop on what it really means to make music to party to.

What’s your favourite track on the EP and why?

Personally my favourite track is the first song ‘I Have a Future and You’re Not In It’. It’s just a straight up awesome catchy song that I love playing live.

You’ve said you make music to party to.  What’s the most outrageous party or gig you’ve been to or played at?

We played an awesome show with ‘Lights’ in London and we had such a blast. It was the first time Summerlin had been to London as a band so we stuck about and partied after. I ended up walking to our friends house wearing a full on elephant head mask. It was a weird one.

What have been the main inspirations for you music?

Girls. ha ha, as cliché  as it sounds. And music wise our inspirations include bands such as All Time Low and New Found Glory.

Having formed not that long ago, you’ve already played at a number of gigs and toured a bit too.  How do you think you’ve developed your band relationship of playing together in such a short space of time?

Every show we get better playing together and performing as a band. We had all previously been in sweet bands before and it kinda just felt right straight away performing together. The best way of developing a good band relationship is to just practice as much and play shows. Playing as many shows as you can really gets you together as a band to a point where it just clicks and you can just have fun onstage and have a sweet time.

How did the Radio 1 gig happen?

Basically on Radio 1 every Sunday there is a show called ‘Switch’ and this features unsigned bands from around the country. Our drummer entered us into it on the website and a few weeks later we just got a call asking us to be the featured band. We were all super excited.

Who do you listen to?

We listen to all sorts. Heavy music, pop – punk etc…I’m really down with Enter Shikari’s new track at the moment.

How do you think the music scene in Leeds has grown over time? To be honest the scene in Leeds is a very indie scene. Back in the day it used to be full of hardcore type bands. There are not many pop punk bands from Leeds at the moment. Its always changing. I don’t really pay much attention to the Leeds scene to be honest.

It’s quite fitting that you’re named after what is arguably the party capital of the world.  Are there any plans for Summerlin to one day perform in Summerlin?

Us boys in Summerlin!  Nah the town Summerlin is actually pretty small. We would prefer to party at the Bellagio or something in Vegas!

http://www.myspace.com/summerlin

“We play for the audience of one but for the movement of millions.” Music with a message is what Burning Tree Project is all about.

Having previosuly joined a gang aged 14 and used drugs at 16, frontman Enik Lin has described Burning Tree Project as the story of his life. He has since turned his life round and he and the other members of the band, Steven Delman, Justin Whitesel (guitar), PRD (bass/vocals), AJ Deleon (keys) and Jon Espy (drums) are playing music shaped by their experiences.

We caught up with Enik to find out more about the band’s upcoming plans and more.

How did you guys get together?

Well, around the time that I started BTP, I had just straightened out my life. I really wanted a way to reach out to kids that had gone through similar troubles and the only real tool that I had was music so I asked my friend Tim if he wanted to start a band with me. Tim has long since moved on with his life (laughs).

Your current release ‘Time and Color’ came out a year ago. How do you think you’ve developed musically since then?

Well, I’ve always been an electronic head. When we were writing Time and Color, we incorporated some of it but still held back. Everything that I’ve been writing recently has been basically everything that I wanted to incorporate before but never did.

What does music mean to you?

Everything. It’s my language. I can communicate so much better through my songs than I can standing having a conversation with you.

Where does the inspiration to write music come from?

Mine comes from life. Everything that I’ve been through, go through, what I see others going through. God, love, and life.

What’s the most important message in your music?

That there’s always a way. Life may be hard, but there is always a positive solution and to be encouraged. The only reason that I do this band is because I love you and I believe so does Jesus Christ.

Can you tell us more about ‘BTP TV’ ?

BTP TV is supposed to be our video blog. We haven’t done a very good job at updating it but we wanted to constantly keep in contact with our fans through it. Now, I have to go update it (laughs).

You have a very loyal fanbase. Why do you think you’ve built such a strong relationship with your fans?

We take time to write emails back, Myspace messages back. The reason BTP exists isn’t for ourselves but for our fans. If I just wanted to do music for myself, it would be much more chaotic. But I can honestly say on stage, “Hey, I wrote this song for you.”

Now, whether or not every song relates to everyone, well that’s a different story. But we make a very strong effort to keep in contact with everyone.

What are your current and future plans?

While I was writing new songs for BTP, I realized that a lot of the songs that I was writing didn’t fit into the BTP mould so I started my new project IAMMEDIC along with my good friend Sean Stopnik (formerly of Rock Kills Kid). I haven’t been this excited in a very long time. Expect music that will slap you in the face and make you dance.

www.myspace.com/btp

BTP on Facebook