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A lot has happened for the Los Angeles-based quintet R5 in their seven years together. Three years after forming, in 2012, the band inked a record deal with Hollywood Records. Their first full-length album, 2013’s Louder, went to number one on the iTunes charts in 10 countries. The follow-up release, 2015’s Sometime Last Night, yielded more hit singles, contributing to R5’s 45 million – and counting – Spotify streams. While touring in support of those recordings, R5 was part of a five-part series for VEVO called R5 On R5, in addition to a feature-length presentation named R5: All Day, All Night, as shown in movie theaters.
Promotion of Sometime Last Night continues with a Feb. 27 appearance at the Beacon Theatre. R5 vocalist/guitarist Ross Lynch spoke to Downtown about that upcoming show in Manhattan, what’s ahead for the band – which also includes bassist Riker Lynch, guitarist Rocky Lynch, keyboardist Rydel Lynch, and drummer Ellington Ratliff – and plenty more. For more info on R5, click on over to www.r5rocks.com.
What do you wish more people knew about R5?
Ross Lynch: That we are a full-fledged rock band. A lot of people come to see our show assuming one thing, and then we hear them afterwards saying “Wow, I had no idea!”
What do you remember about the first gig that you ever played in New York?
R: It was a good one. The place was full of people and the energy was through the roof, and I’m pretty sure some random girls brought a bag of undergarments to throw on-stage, ’cause there were a lot.
For someone who hasn’t seen you live before, and is thinking about coming to your show at the Beacon Theatre, what should they be expecting from your live show?
R: First off, it might be tough, ‘cause I’m pretty sure it’s sold-out. Second, you should be faster at deciding if you want to come to the show. (laughs) But seriously, we would love to have you. Come and see what you’ve been missing out on.
At what point did you realize that R5 was a career and not just a hobby?
R: We always took it seriously. Never had a “plan B” or any doubt, really.
Is there a band or artist that especially inspired you to pick up an instrument for the first time?
R: Every member of the band would say someone different, and inspiration changes all the time. But I think collectively we could all blame Michael Jackson. Most bands in their 20s would probably say the same.
When people refer to R5 as a “family band,” is that something that bothers you?
R: It depends on what’s implied. INXS, Kings of Leon, The Allman Brothers, Beach Boys, Bee Gees — they are all bands with siblings/family. The list is huge. So from that perspective, no, it’s actually quite the compliment. I love all of those bands.
A few of the members of R5 have worked a lot as an actor. Has there any been any thought of doing a movie starring R5?
R: No, not as of now. We’ve been on the road for nine months now, so when we get off we need to start making more music.
A number of the songs on Sometime Last Night were written with outside songwriters. Is that process that you enjoy being part of?
R: It depends on the writer. We love to write with buddies, and we do that a lot. But we’ve also had some really bad sessions with a few, so we don’t do many “blind dates” anymore. I wouldn’t be surprised if we wrote and produced our whole next record with a few friends here and there.
Around how many songs were written for Sometime Last Night? Are there a good number of leftovers for a future album?
R: We actually had a prior record to Sometime Last Night that we didn’t release because it wasn’t in our best interest. The songs were too poppy and didn’t show any growth from Louder. We didn’t want to repeat the last process we had gone through, where we were submitted songs — we are writers. So we scrapped it all, and every time we wrote a song for Sometime Last Night, we would scratch out an old one, with a few exceptions. If a song isn’t used on the record it’s written for, it will be forgotten, unfortunately. Plus, I wouldn’t want to use an old song, because every year our opinions and perceptions change. And every song we write is better than the previous, we hope.
When you’re not busy with your career, how do you like to spend your free time?
R: We will meet up with musician friends to jam. It’s a really good time, nothing planned, just a bunch of people who share common interests making music. It’s really fun to sit in on, too.
Finally, Ross, any last words for the kids?
R: Thanks for the support. We hope you continue to appreciate the music for much longer, ’cause we are in it for the long run. Thank you.
-by Darren Paltrowitz