Linking up to champion the eclectic nature of football, SoccerBible and Farah joined forces to create the ‘Unity’ capsule collection. For the launch shoot we rounded up as equally an eclectic mix of artists, and among them were Everyone You Know.
The SoccerBible x Farah ‘Unity Collection’ was launched in celebration of the unifying power of football and fashion, as well as the game's unique ability to bring people of all nations together. To give it the showcase it deserved we gathered some of the top musicians in the trade, and that included calling on some familiar faces in Harvey Kirkby and Rhys Kirkby-Cox, aka Everyone You Know.
EYK boast over 52 million worldwide streams, a 15-date (sold out) UK tour, a festival debut at Reading & Leeds and their 12 track EP ‘Just for The Times’ is out next month. Despite all this, if you don’t know them personally, you surely know people like them. In short, they’re simply two lads from the South East with a thing for music. No bravado, no social media stunts, no glitz, no glamour, just Harvey making the tunes and Rhys doing the vocals.
For a band based in the ordinary, though, EYK’s sound is anything but, a youth spent listening to everything from 90s hip-hop and R&B to jungle, house, and Britpop resulting in a unique mesh of styles that’s entirely their own. On the shoot, we took time to sit with the brothers to discuss the importance of unity in what they do whilst sharing that collective appreciation for where football meets fashion and the bond that crosses the game with music.
What does Unity mean to you guys?
Harvey: For me, when I think of Unity and music, the first thing that comes to mind is 90s rave culture where people were so far apart in terms of tastes and interests but then brought together by music. Music is the thing that can bring people together, whether you’re on the other side of the world and never met someone before, music can instantly break down those language barriers. Football can do that as well. Two people can support the same team but have nothing else in common yet they can feel united by the love for the game. That’s my interpretation on what unity means to me.
Football has the power of bringing people together. How have you witnessed that first hand?
Rhys: It’s got to be the international competitions. Looking back at say the 2018 World Cup, that just brought the whole nation together. Everyone was out celebrating, everyone was together. On the club level it’s different because of the rivalry and tribal nature of it but when those international tournaments swing around, like the Euros, this year, it brings everyone together.
Summer tournaments, the sun out, England in the Euros – it’s going to be a good time isn’t it?
Harvey: 100%. I cannot wait for it. When I think back to what our routine looks like on a match day during a tournament, there will always be a family BBQ, everyone comes round then once the game is done we’ll head straight to the pub and have a few beers. It becomes a full day of it. It feels like a big occasion and you don’t normally do that when say England are playing in a qualifier. For the big tournaments, it’s almost like a tradition, the whole country gets together. You can get stuck into the whole occasion.
What have you made of football over the last year or so, it’s going to be such a party when we can go all in on the experience of watching football again isn’t it?
Rhy: A lot has happened to effect football all at once. On the pitch, things like VAR have really changed the Premier League. It’s taken a lot of emotion out of the game and those celebration moments. The fans not being at games doubled down on that and completely took all the emotion out of stadiums, quite literally. Having VAR introduced to the game and fans taken out of the game at the same time was like a real punch to the game. It’s all had an effect. We need the summer and a party to put it right.
Tell us about what you make of where football meets fashion? Which players do it well?
Harvey: There’s not all that many players that come to mind when it comes to those who look mad off the pitch. People like Bellerin always look the part and he does his thing. You can’t help but think David Beckham is still doing it well. He always looks the part. I feel that football and fashion are mixing so much right now though and in such a good way. The kits and the designs behind them are so much more wearable. The Italia 90 shirt is like 30 years old now but still looks amazing. That is very much a fashion item you could wear to the pub on a day when England aren’t playing.
Rhys: Yeah Becks. What a guy. You see so many players go down the road with all the Balenciaga stuff on and they’re in that whole ‘drip’ scene. I’m not really about that myself. I’d agree, I’d still take a Becks’ over some stuff you see players in these days - he’s always looking sharp.
What did you make of the Farah Unity collection?
Rhys: Loved it, man. It’s top drawer, a perfect bit of me. I like that you can dress it up and dress it down. Some of the jackets you could wear casually but you could also put a roll neck underneath and it looks smart too. Really into it.
Harvey: Farah is a brand that we’ve always liked and had an association with. I remember growing up, our old man used to wear Farah. It’s a brand that resonates culturally. We’ve always gravitated towards it. We’re massive football fans too so to have SoccerBible and Farah come together to collaborate, it’s the best of both worlds. We loved it.
How has the experience been during lockdown and making music? It’s going to feel good to get new music out there - how are you feeling about that?
Harvey: Buzzing. We’ve just wrapped up an unofficial album. A long EP. We’ll have that out this summer between June and July. It’ll be nice to have a fresh body of work out this summer that we can then go and tour once the pandemic is over. Really excited about it. It’s been two years in the making, this body of work and it’s all completely fresh.
Rhys: It will be nice to have something we can put out there that time stamps this period we’ve all been through. We can look back and say we’ve made these tunes through a very difficult time for everyone and they can be a positive for us that has come from a pretty bleak time. Being able to tour it will be everything going full-circle. We want that so much.
When you think of your music in a football environment or a party environment. How much do you think about those occasions – for example, could your new EP provide an ideal soundtrack for the Euros?
Rhys: I think it’s bang on. On our latest single, “Higher”, it just feels like a proper stadium tune. I feel like it would be perfect for when players are in the tunnel and just about to come out onto the pitch. It’s a stadium anthem.
Harvey: You have to head into the music making process, imagining where your music is going to be played. For us, we always think about the output. Are we making something for radio for people to hear on the move or in the car or are we making something for a rave and a party. We’re always looking to make out and out bangers but the approach does change and we do think about it a lot. Rhys is clever with his lyrics and football chants do inspire is too. We’d love to have one of our tunes adopted by fans and them to create their own chant from it.
Rhys: That is the dream. Once fans start singing our stuff on the terraces, that’s it for me. That’s the real dream.
Talking of dreams. If England have a good Euros, what would the party look like for you guys?
Rhys: Ah mate. I swear to god, if England do well and win, I will fly to Vegas to celebrate it.
Harvey: Even if we don’t get all that far into it, I’m just looking forward to being able to go back out to stadiums and have a drink in a pub without having to think about social distancing and all that. To all be together again, watching the football in the sun. There’s nothing better.
The Farah x SoccerBible collection launches on 27 May and is available on farah.co.uk as well as Citadium and ASOS.
