KT Tunstall joined the Chris Evans Breakfast Show with Sky to talk about becoming a Virgin Radio DJ from next week and Jon Fratelli joined the show to talk about the release of playing live after lockdown and announcing their handful of intimate September gigs exclusively on the show to raise funds for struggling record shops and their road crew.
Jon Fratelli On recording the songs for the Virgin Radio UK YouTube channel:
“It’s been so long since we've played, we just wanted to have as much fun with it as possible. We did that last week and honestly, it really was the most fun I've had in two or three years. All the people in the room are musicians that are used to spending all of the year playing live so there was this massive release. I’ve been saying this for the last few weeks, when everybody's allowed back into venues and to go and watch music it's going to be off the chart. It’s going to be really incredible and I can't wait to experience that.”
Jon Fratelli On the intimate gigs they’ve got lined up in September across the UK:
“We’re playing eight small venues around the country, but they're venues that have some relation to local record stores in those towns and cities. It's partly to just go and play but it's also an exercise in trying to help those record stores because any profit from it will go to the stores and will go to our road crew. We’ve had the same crew - some for 10-15 years - so we're trying to do something that helps both sides and that seemed like the perfect arrangement. Gigs are a two-way thing and that excitement you get from an audience really is why you play and when all that pent up energy comes out it's going to be chaos.”
The singer-songwriter KT Tunstall joined the Chris Evans Breakfast Show with Sky to talk about becoming a Virgin Radio DJ from next week live from the US and flying the flag for International Women's Month with her collaborative new single.
KT On listening to The Fratellis talk to Chris earlier too:
“I love what Jon said about the world needing that positivity because I think when you write something like that, some part of you goes, oh is it kind of too unrealistic? But if it's at the right time you know that people will really appreciate that song."
On teaming up with the talented musicians Lolo, Nikki Vianna and Devyn De Loera for a new empowering musical offering:
“So I had this really mysterious collective called the Highland Park Collective - which obviously just made me think of great whiskey, so I was all up for it. They said we're doing this song for International Women's month and would you like to be on it with three other amazing girls and I was bang up for it. They've magically put this together, me and the girls have never met each other. We sent each other congratulation emojis over Twitter when it came out and it's just a banging song, it's such a good, fun tune.”
On following Texas star Sharleen Spiteri in the Drive Time chair:
“I know Sharleen well and I know her better from standing right in front of Michael Bublé at Car Fest just having the best time ever. Sharleen says it how it is. We actually met when we were judging The Ivors and I'm very glad that there were no cameras in those meetings or recording devices - we were having a great time.”
On prepping for her first drivetime show at Virgin Radio next week:
“I’ll be very well-caffeinated. I love thematic songs in terms of what you might get each day that I'm on the radio and so I’m definitely going to be doing a Pacific Coast Highway Route One air punch anthem them - it's going to try and transport you to California. I just love when people text in. So and so from Milton Keynes says yes... I’m very excited about that part of it."
KT Tunstall is hosting drive time from 4-7pm, from this coming Monday 29th March until Friday 9th April.
