The Aftershow: Ricky Wilson, Kaiser Chiefs

To mark the release of his band’s new record, Kaiser Chiefs’ Easy Eighth Album, Ricky Wilson looks back on their big breakthrough, the departure of drummer/lead songwriter Nick Hodgson, and why their success is really all down to Ant & Dec… INTERVIEW: Niall Doherty PHOTO: Cal McIntyre The proudest moment in my career is that Kaiser Chiefs stayed together when Nick left… “This is not in any way in detriment to Nick, but it was the maddest thing to do and also possibly harder than getting signed in the first place, us going on an odyssey of meeting people, finding producers and trying to write an album when we’d never written without Nick. It was exciting, it was liberating and no one expected anything. I was so happy [subsequent 2014 record] Education, Education, Education & War went to No.1. It was mind-blowing, but then the following week, getting a phone call saying, ‘You won’t believe this, it’s No.1 again,’ I was like, ‘Two weeks at No.1 for an album nobody thought would ever get made? Brilliant.’” When you go into the studio to record with Nile Rodgers, there’s a lot of pressure… “Because he’s Nile Rodgers. But it soon dissipates. He was more about, ‘How does it feel?’ than anything else. He wasn’t talking about, ‘Where does [the song] fit in the world?’ or anything like that, it was just like, ‘Does it make us want to dance and does it make us feel good?’ That’s how Feeling Alright came about. I’m sure there were plenty words of wisdom from him but I was asking too many questions about people he’d worked with, like, ‘What kind of sandwiches did Bowie eat?’” Out of all the amazing people we’ve worked with, I learned the most from Fraser T Smith… “I was with him in the studio and the songs came really naturally. He went, ‘Oh, you’d do this now.’ And [at first] I was like, ‘Would I?’ And then I was like, ‘Yeah, I would do that!’ As soon as you get your head into the mindset of ‘What would I do next?’, it really helps with things going forward. I know that seems like the simplest piece of advice when you’re writing something, thinking what you’d do next, but it’s really good not to have any other interference. And he was always right. I really liked the fact that he wanted to nail down songs quite quickly – that taught me a lot about writing songs.” Kaiser Chiefs owe it all to Ant & Dec… “I remember [2005 debut] Employment blowing up as a feeling; it’s really weird, it’s almost like a taste. I remember it was on the up and going on Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway, which was massive for us because we weren’t big enough to go on there; they had big acts and we were an indie band. It was weird to have us there but I think Ant liked us – we owe our success to Ant and Dec, there’s your headline! Then we went to America and when we came back, we were the biggest band in the UK for about six months. I went home to my terrace in Leeds and went to the bakery and I thought, ‘We’re big now so I better wear a hat.’ So I wore a little pork pie hat to the bakery and the guy in the queue behind me said, ‘Look at him, who does he think he is, one of them Kaiser Chiefs?’ Ha!” I’m so glad that I joined The Voice as a coach… “It was touch and go at the time. A couple of the band weren’t very pleased with the idea and it was a moment where it was like, ‘This is gonna make or break us.’ I do think it had a positive impact on what we achieved. My favourite memories of doing it were fixing up – an element of, ‘Right, I’ve got to fix up and look sharp, this is the way into TV.’ When I joined, the only three shows a band could go on were Alan Carr, Graham Norton and Jonathan Ross; everything else had gone, so being on TV singing every week, even if it wasn’t your songs, was a big deal. I had to suddenly become much more professional and I really enjoyed that, going toe to toe with Tom Jones, Will.I.Am and, in the first series, Kylie Minogue, singing a song together.” I’m not sure reality TV can birth stars now… “Everything has changed. It went through a period where you had to make it on your own in a van, then reality TV came along and everyone said, ‘That’s rubbish, you should be in a van.’ Now, you make it on TikTok; it has to happen in a bubble on social media.”

Music Week x Girls I Rate presents: Mentor Me - Shauni Caballero

A hugely experienced creative executive and a Music Week Women In Music Awards Roll Of Honour inductee, Shauni Caballero is the senior director of creative at Sony Music Publishing. She launched her music industry career in 2017 as the founder of The Go 2 Agency – a music publishing, neighbouring rights and consultancy company – and joined SMP as a frontline A&R in 2022, the same year she was named one of Complex’s 15 Black British Music Execs Shaking The System. Caballero signed record-breaking UK rap star Central Cee shortly after joining SMP, and over the last year has worked with artists including Russ Millions, Strandz, JayO, Clavish and Nippa. During the summer last year, she spearheaded SMP’s songwriting camp at Miloco Studios, attended by the likes of Central Cee, Lost Girl, Strandz, JayO, Jozzy and more. Here, the New York-based executive shares her top tips on how to build a successful career in the business... Words: Miranda Bardsley 1. Work! Work! Work! “The music industry is a small one and you want to build a reputation as someone with a strong work ethic. There are no shortcuts, you can’t skip the hard work and you want to be recognised as someone who can be relied upon to get things done. I can assure you, everyone at the top of the industry has worked incredibly hard to get there and they still work hard every day.” 2. Go with your gut “I have always signed songwriters that I truly believe in, who are creating music that I am passionate about and connect with personally. Don’t be afraid to feel strongly about a project and to voice that. As an A&R, you have to trust your creative intuition and be able to advocate for your signings in an authentic way.” 3. Focus on what matters “There’s no doubt that the music industry is a glamorous and fun business to work in, and exciting events and invites definitely come with the territory. But never get distracted from the fact that you are here to work. Focus on the work, not the parties. And always try and remember that you’re only going to be invited to the parties if you’re out there doing the work, not the other way around.” 4. Network across, not up “Never focus on who you don’t know; instead work with those you do. Most of the people I collaborate with closely are those that I met on the come up. Now they are in really good positions in the industry and it’s easy for me to call them, as we have a foundation in place that has been built over time. I always try to work closely with the younger, next generation of A&Rs, as they keep my ears to the streets – which has also helped me navigate working in New York. They are the future and will be in my position before I know it, so I do my best to listen to them and help empower them. Focus on collaborating with the people around you and build your own network out from there.” 5. Be kind to people “It is a sad thing to say, but you are always going to encounter difficult people in [your] professional life, so I cannot stress enough how important it is to try and be one of the nice people in this industry. If you are kind and open, it can only lead to good things and ultimately it makes you more approachable for opportunities. People will always remember how they are treated and it’s an easy positive – so why not be kind?”

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