Photo courtesy of the band.
At the heart of Anderson Paak’s electric live show are the Free Nationals. The Californian funk/soul quartet have been with Paak from the beginning of his artistic career, providing signature funk and grooves that have shaped so much of Paak’s sound.
The Free Nationals have long teased a standalone release of their own, although an almost never-ending tour cycle with Paak along with the immense task of releasing a debut album has made such a record in the works for longer than expected. The result? A lush, charming and downright soulful record that sounds like the product of a group that has taken time to hone their exceptional craft.
Several singles have already highlighted the diverse grooves delivered by the band. From the psychedelic sensuality of ‘Beauty & Essex’ (featuring Daniel Caesar and Unknown Mortal Orchestra) to the divine ‘Time’ (featuring Kali Uchis and the late Mac Miller), the singles have demonstrated the Free Nationals’ talent for projecting emotion and groove through funk. With a feature list that spans their closest friends and collaborators, fans have anticipated the chance to hear the likes of JID, Syd, Chronixx and T.I on the album.
While fans are keen to hear the record in its entirety from 13th December, they aren’t as thrilled as the band themselves. Jack talked to drummer, producer and occasional vocalist Callum Connor about the influence of touring, Mac Miller and Anderson Paak on the album. Be sure to pre-save the album here before it drops on 13th December!
J: Hey Callum! Really appreciate you doing this and congrats on the album dude. It's been really fun listening to all the singles and everything but to finally hear the final product is so exciting for your fans. I can’t even imagine how good it must feel good for you guys to finally get it out over the past two years.
Callum: What’s up man! You know it's kind of like a relief, a big weight off the shoulders for it to finally have a date, it’s unreal.
J: I know most of the album was made on the road and that contributed to the time it took to finalise the record. Even so, I really admire the time you guys took in making this album and the fact that you didn’t rush anything really pays off.
Callum: For sure. Yeah. Been on the road definitely affected things. Yeah, it was hard to really wrap it up.
The Free Nationals from left to right - Jose Rios, Ron Avant, Kelsey Miguel Gonzalez and Callum Connor. Photo courtesy of the band.
J: Would the record have sounded different if you guys spent less time on the road?
Callum: I mean we still made the core of it at home, but it was just like getting it finished when we were on the road. Things like all of the features and just like little tiny things but that's just why it took so long because we didn't really want to do it at a bunch of different studios or anything. It was all at that home spot and then we would get the bits and pieces while on the road. And then we just would wait till we got back to get it all out on the board.
J: Yeah. Well I think the time you put into it has really paid off. Obviously, the feature list is crazy and I know it’s all of your closest friends and collaborators. Did you guys have an idea of who you wanted to feature beforehand or did collaborations kind of just manifest over time?
Callum: We all definitely had an idea before we made it. You know we would work the songs out and then I would send it to multiple people and like the ones with Daniel and UMO (Unknown Mortal Orchestra) and then we'd like put it together and stuff and it was really cool you know being able to just arrange things that way and like see what works best and yeah it was awesome.
J: Well we can't really talk about the features without talking about the late and great Mac Miller. Now I know how close he was to you guys and is obviously so wildly adored by everyone. How long was that song in the works for?
Callum: Yeah ‘Time’. We did that a few years ago with Kali when she was in the studio over in Hollywood. And then we sent it to Mac and he sent his verse back a couple of times - he was changing it and they were mixing it. You know it was always supposed to be on a record and he was still on it and then he passed away so it was like damn you know everyone's bummed. So we decided to put that one out next.
J: I’m sure I can speak for everyone in saying that it felt so heartwarming to hear his voice again.
Callum: Yeah, I mean that song means a lot to us.
J: Obviously Anderson Paak features on your album. It must’ve been fun having him feature on your own material this time around?
Callum: Yeah. Yeah. It's pretty cool right. We’re actually going to play that song (‘Gidget’) on Jimmy Kimmel. Oh yeah. I'm sorry Jimmy Fallon.
J: Ahh there’s too many Jimmys. That hasn’t been released as a single yet either?
Callum: No it hasn't.
J: What a cool way for fans to hear it for the first time.
Callum: Yeah for sure. I mean we're just going to jam it out and it's exciting.
J: Even you feature on the album.
Callum: Yep. That song ‘Rene’ and ‘Oslo’.
J: Was that something you've always wanted to do or did just kind of come out in the studio?
Callum: Yeah, I mean I write songs and stuff. I always kind of have. I originally did the hook on it and left it there as a reference while we found something else and then going to have someone else get on it. And then I just ended up finishing it and then we just threw it on there like we'll have some of us on it too.
J: Yeah I love it. So you’ll be singing at your shows?
Callum: Yeah yeah. We all kind of sing live and stuff and yeah it's pretty cool.
J: That’s unreal, how has the live show been so far?
Callum: We just played three shows. We just got back the day before yesterday playing in New York, San Francisco and Atlanta. They were benefit shows where Free Nationals played a standalone set before playing with Anderson.
Jose and Anderson. Photo courtesy of @mattjelonek
J: Obviously you guys are on the road so often with Anderson so the live experience must be a fine-tuned art to you guys.
Callum: Oh yeah yeah. Well we're still not giving it to kids like exactly how we want it but it's definitely getting there you know and we’re getting the visuals and all that so it’s a slow process but it’s getting there.
J: I’m sure being on the road with Anderson has rubbed off on you guys. What has the band taught Anderson and vice versa?
Callum: Oh man. I mean we've all kind of rubbed off on each other and that's like such a big thing you know even just since the beach stuff like Venice (Anderson’s debut album) and all that stuff like you know Kelsey and I surf and that definitely influenced him. During the Venice sessions, we all lived in this house. Me Jose and Ron in this house in Venice and so a lot of the album was done over there so that's how that kind of happened. You know we influenced him a lot. And then he was obviously an influence on us with his work ethic, he's always been very determined. He knows what he wants. And we've kind of stood behind him you know since we all went to school together.
Photo courtesy of the band.
J: Well I’ve witnessed the chemistry firsthand between you guys at Laneway Festival in Australia in early 2018. That was a crazy festival with you guys Mac Demarco and The Internet.
Callum: Oh yeah yeah. That tour was awesome it was like a little holiday around Aus. That was one of our favourites, especially with Mac and his whole band.
J: You guys were such a standout at that festival.
Callum: Yeah that was fun. I want to play that festival.
J: Yeah I'm sure you will. Well, I know on that trip you guys also met Genesis Owusu in Brisbane. And you’ve gone on to make a few tracks together!
Callum: That's the homie. Yeah. We met him out there through my homie Sean over at Kobalt. The publishing company. He was in L.A. and he came to my studio. And we cut that song ‘Wit da Team’. And it kind of went really well. And then he and his manager were stoked on it so they flew back out to LA to work on more material. They’ve been releasing those single ever since and they’re doing really well. ‘WUTD’ even got nominated for an ARIA haha. He's a good dope performer too so it's super cool.
J: Yeah I saw him a few months ago and he was unreal, Australian hip hop is going through such tremendous growth and I think he really stands out. Would he potentially support you guys next time you’re down under?
Callum: I mean that would be great. Definitely, if we come to Australia. For sure.
J: Is there any anything planned for Australia?
Callum: You know what. I thought we were supposed to do something at the end of this year, but I guess we kind of pushed it back. I’m not really sure but we come to Australia all the time so I’m sure we’ll be there soon. We’ve toured with Anderson about four times in Aus so we love it down there it’s really fun.
J: Everyone loves you here. Whenever we see you guys on a lineup I think people flock to it pretty quickly. That's no secret.
Callum: Yeah. We feel loved down there for sure.
J: The album has been such an important part of your life over the past two years. What is the strongest memory you have associated with it?
Callum: Yeah. You know there's obviously like a million little things I could say you know about this or that but I think the main thing was just that we made that record as a band you know. We pretty much made a skeleton to the whole record like within a week in the Hollywood studio. Obviously stuff was added and overdubbed and all that but it's just like a real bands record you know all of us in the room playing our same instruments. You know don’t really get a lot of that these days.
J: Yeah well you can definitely hear that chemistry and passion in the record.
Photo courtesy of the band.
Callum: Yeah you know we tried to have a cohesive sound and it just sounds like a whole record from front to back. All of our favourite records from when we were young sounded like that. You know you're playing an AC DC record or like a Beatles or Led Zeppelin song. You know when you listen to Led Zeppelin it sounds like a record. You know it's not like one song sounds like this while the other one's from a different producer you know. It’s just a vibe that we caught, you know, and when we listen back to the album it takes us back to a time in our life when just made that record, that’s what it is you know. I’m hoping people catch the same vibe.
J: Oh I’m sure they will. I do really want to congratulate you guys on a superb debut. You guys should be so happy and so relieved to finally let the world hear it like I think you guys have really pulled off something amazing here.
Callum: Thanks a lot man. I appreciate that.
J: I appreciate your time man, definitely hope to catch you soon in Australia.
Callum: For sure man. Yeah. We'll definitely keep you updated.
Listen and follow the Free Nationals here! Their self-titled debut record is out 13th December, be sure to pre-save the album here before it drops!