Ahead of her performance at Changing Lanes Festival in Sydney, we catch up with Naomi Wenitong of The Last Kinection.
Who are you and were might we know you from?
I am Naomi Wenitong, you may know me from The Last Kinection.
A story you’ve probably told far too often… but where do you come from? (How did your band form / What made you start playing the music we’re listening to now?
My musical journey has been a strange one, some might even say a little bit “back to front”. I started out in the commercial pop duo “Shakaya” at quite a young age, we signed to major label Sony, our first album was completely original material, our second wasn’t quite…I came to a point where I realized that I didn’t even have full creative control, and that defied my whole passion and purpose to write these songs.
So I then, made the conscious decision to take off my heels and all that shit coz I wasn’t musically finished yet, I said f*#k it! and dove into the depth of the oz hiphop underground to work with my older brother Weno and one of my best mates dj Jaytee. Where I am right now, I really feel the truth can and will be heard and no one will control how I will do it. We’re now a part of the Elefant tracks fam and it all feels right because everyone’s heart is in it and that’s the most important part.
Changing Lanes Festival is all about supporting FBi. What does FBi Radio mean to you?
To me, FBI is the link between commercial and independent artists, FBI doesn’t discriminate against artists associated with major labels or money etc… They just play and support good music. I really feel that FBI is necessary for all Australian music to move forward and a reminder of what music is really about 🙂
What can we expect from your performance at the festival?
You can expect 100% from us, and if that’s not enough, we’ll throw in another 10% haha… we will be performing a few new tracks off our new album as well.
What are YOU expecting from us / the audiences?
I’m expecting the audience to hear our message, and learn from it, listen to the beat, and bounce to it, and then take us home to introduce us to your friends by buying an album 🙂 haha
Choose a band who’s also on the lineup that you like, and tell us why you like them.
I love the daily meds! I finally saw them at a show and they we’re mad!! Billy Rose in particular blew me away, great singing and rapping skill, watching how she slides into singing, straight after a rapping verse was brilliant… and I know how hard that is.
Have you played a festival before or is this the first time? If not the first time, what have your festival experiences been like in the past?
All of my festival experiences have been mad, It’s great exposure to a wide range of people, and festival audiences seem to always be in the best mood, I have never seen a fight in the audience or anything like that.
What would be your #1 festival tip for a punter?
Bring the good vibes, drink lots of water (even between beers haha) make sure your ph. is charged and even if it is, point out a location to your mates that you will all meet if any of you get split up or lost hehe… oh but the #1 festival tip would be… check out our show!!! haha
Your year highlight so far, as a musician?
Aww man there are so many highlights I’ll be here for days if I name them all so I’ll just honestly say that I’m so thankful to be blessed with this passion and drive but even more amazed that I have the opportunity to share it with you all.
What’s next for you/your band? (opportunity to plug shit!)
We’ve just mastered our new album ‘Next of Kin’.
Without sounding like an idiot, I cant wait to share it with whoever wants to hear it haha… So we will be releasing the new album, plus a tour, we will be performing at the Deadly awards held at the Sydney Opera House late September.
More info:
http://www.lastkinection.com
http://www.facebook/thelastkinection
