French Kiwi Juice Explained

French Kiwi Juice
Birth Name:Vincent Fenton
Birth Date:26 March 1990
Origin:Tours, France
Genre:Nu jazz, Electronic, Rhythm and blues, French house
Years Active:2012–present
Label:Roche Musique
Associated Acts:Masego, Tom Misch

Vincent Fenton (born 26 March 1990), known professionally as French Kiwi Juice or the abbreviation FKJ (sometimes stylized Fkj), is a French multi-instrumentalist, singer, and musician from the city of Tours.[1] [2] [3] He is known for his solo live performances, where he does live loopings through Ableton Live and showcases his multi-instrumentalist skills. His self-titled debut album, French Kiwi Juice, was released on 3 March 2017.[4]

FKJ has performed at music festivals including Coachella,[5] Euphoria,[6] CRSSD,[7] Lollapalooza, and Lightning in a Bottle.[8]

Career

FKJ has been described as a "pioneer" and "one of the flag bearers" of the new New French House genre. He was originally trained in sound engineering for film at a film school.[9] [10]

FKJ achieved significant public attention after the release of the fully improvised song "Tadow" and accompanying studio recording in 2017. He improvised the song with fellow musician Masego, during a day-long recording session that took place just after the musicians met each other.[11]

In April 2017, FKJ announced that he was performing at the 2017 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival at the Do Lab Stage.

On 7 April 2022, FKJ performed on his new single "Greener" with Carlos Santana.

Personal life

FKJ was born on 26 March 1990 to a mother from France and a father from New Zealand. From a young age, he immersed himself in music from his parents' libraries, including "English rock, Queen, Pink Floyd, The Police... '70s rock, Led Zeppelin... some jazz or Nina Simone, Billie Holiday, Miles Davis... a little bit of French music, but not too much, like Serge Gainsbourg."[12]

In March 2019, FKJ married fellow musician June Marieezy[13] (who uses the stage name (((O)))) with whom he had previously collaborated, on the track "Vibin' Out".[14]

Discography

Studio albums

TitleAlbum details
Release dateLabelFormat
French Kiwi Juice3 March 2017 (US)Roche Musique
Just Piano13 August 2021 (US)[15] Mom + Pop
Vincent10 June 2022 (US)Mom + Pop Music

EP

Title! colspan="3"
Details
Release dateLabelFormat
Ylang Ylang EP12 November 2019[16] Mom + PopCD

Download

Singles

Title! colspan="3"
Details
Release dateLabelFormat
"Greener"7 April 2022[17] Mom + PopCD

Download

References

  1. Web site: Listen: FKJ - 'Leave My Home'. Clash Magazine. 2019-03-14.
  2. Web site: 2019-04-06. Looped: FKJ (French Kiwi Juice). 6 June 2017. KCRW.
  3. Web site: 2019-04-06. French Kiwi Juice - Showcase. Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris.
  4. News: FKJ's Highly Anticipated Debut LP 'French Kiwi Juice' Out Now. BWW News Desk. 2017-05-27. en.
  5. News: FKJ gets into the groove for SF show, Coachella debut. San Francisco Chronicle. 2017-05-27.
  6. Web site: EUPHORIA 2017. Songkick. en. 2017-05-27.
  7. News: Top 5 acts from CRSSD Festival Fall 2016 – EARMILK. 2016-10-10. Earmilk. 2017-05-27. en-US.
  8. Web site: Lighting in a Bottle festival offers fresh, sustainable music alternative. 2017-05-27. Daily Bruin.
  9. News: FKJ releases 'Why Are There Boundaries' as debut album release edges closer – EARMILK. 2017-03-01. Earmilk. 2017-05-27. en-US.
  10. Web site: RA: FKJ. Resident Advisor. 2017-05-27.
  11. Web site: Monroy Yglesias . Ana . August 2, 2019 . Looping Guru FKJ Talks Improvising "Tadow" With Masego & Being "A Melting Pot" . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20200714184322/https://www.grammy.com/grammys/news/looping-guru-fkj-talks-improvising-tadow-masego-being-melting-pot . July 14, 2020 . July 11, 2024 . GRAMMY.com.
  12. Web site: FKJ (French Kiwi Juice) Live Debut - Tours at Undertheradar. UnderTheRadarNZ.
  13. Web site: Vincent and June's Secret Ceremony. www.youtube.com.
  14. Web site: Fkj - Vibin' Out with (((O))). www.youtube.com.
  15. Web site: Just Piano (Release). 2022-01-24. Bandcamp. en.
  16. Web site: Ylang Ylang EP (Release). 2021-01-31. Beatsource. en.
  17. Web site: Greener (Release). 2022-04-12. RollingStone. en.