20 Questions: HIGH HØØPS (Jordan Arts)
New Zealand producer/singer/boy wonder, Jordan Arts, after making a name for himself as half of Kids of 88, continues to impress with his new solo project “HIGH HØØPS”.
We got him to sit down with your questions and see a little more of what makes him tick…
www.soundcloud.com/highoops
1. You are given $1,000,000 what is the first thing you do?
Freak out. I’d probably be really smart with it so my grandchildren’s grandchildren could benefit! Invest. Or…get it changed to coins so I can fill up my Palm Tree shaped pool to live the Scrooge McDuck lifestyle i’ve always dreamt of.
2. If the band ended tomorrow (God forbid) what would you hope to do for a career?
English Football Manager / Videographer.
3. Is there one song you play in your set or even in your spare time you enjoy the most? Why?
A song called Keep Your Love Close, it was one of those songs that felt right every step of the way. Which isn’t always the case. It’s the song i’m most proud of and want the world to hear.
4. What’s the first thing you do when you get home from tour?
Shower. Groom. Trackpants. Order a Pizza. Fire up a movie in bed only to fall asleep for a solid day.
5. Are your parents musical?
No. Enthusiasts, but only a few bar chords on a rusty guitar. My Opa (Dutch grandfather) could blitz a Mandolin and strike some tangy notes on a Banjo and taught me the basics of guitar and piano.
6. What’s your musical guilty pleasure?
Cheesy 80’s slowjam RNB. See - Blackstreet ‘Deep’ or Silk -’ Freak Me’
7. What’s the one thing you can’t leave for tour without?
Macbook/Canon 5D Camera and Football Manager on the iphone.
8. Were your parents supportive of your commitment to music at first or did they take some convincing?
They noticed I would tap on every surface of the house when I was about 7 and for my 8th birthday they got me a drum kit. Greatest supportive parents I could have ever wished for.
9. Do you have a musical hero?
I always seem to go back to Jimi Hendrix, or the Beatles. It was just a time of complete head-first originality and something we’ll never hear again. Trapped in time, but golden forever.
10. Do you have any other interests, talents or hobbies we might not know about?
You probably would’ve gathered now that i’m a complete Football nut. I also really love the science of a great coffee and have a love for moving image and art.
11. Do you have any pet peeves? Grammar. Bad spelling. Slow drivers. Burnt toast.
12. What was the last movie you watched? Sleepwalk with Me.
13. What was the last book you read? Fourfourtwo Magazine. How to grow Succulents.
14. When was the last time YOU felt like a fan?
Lupe Fiasco crashing the Big Day Out afterparty in Sydney Australia. He kicked the minimal house DJ off and played Michael Jackson for a solid hour with his sunglasses on in the dark club and danced with all the guests.
15. Do you collect anything?
Records. Mostly nothing over $5. Gems for cutting up for samples. Religious Candles. Vintage lenses.
16. What’s more important…passion or skill?
With passion will come skill. If you want it bad enough you’ll always learn. I don’t think i’ll ever stop learning.
17. Do you think social media has changed fan/artist interaction for better or for worse?
Different. It’s easy to setup a band page and get it out to the world but also makes for more overnight successes that are gone with the wind of a Wednesday afternoon.
18. What did you want to be before you wanted to be a musician?
I wanted to write scores for Cinema or be a football player. I can hum most of the cinema pieces from Home Alone, Back to the Future and The Sandlot.
19. Where on your travels have you felt the furthest from home?
New York (I live in NZ) - I loved Brooklyn but couldn’t deal with the no Horizon line in Manhattan and felt trapped in the rat race. That, or Tokyo. It’s as if you’re on the Truman Show - very surreal but in the most fantastic way.
20. If you could be anywhere in the world right now, where would it be?
Orange County, kicking back at the LBG store, sipping on a tallboy of FourLoko and playing FIFA.
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