BRIXTON, LONDON TRIO KID APOLLO RETURN WITH NEW SINGLE “PLANSFOR2”

“best new music”
i-D

“a sweeping, lo-fi, inner city R&B treat…really very good”
Dork

“intimate and cerebral… drowsed in individuality and character”
New Wave Magazine

“skilfully curated R&B”
The Line Of Best Fit

“kid apollo bring a compellingly fresh sound to meet charmingly shrugging vocals”
Notion

“startlingly emotionally assured and, at times, terrifically heartrending”
The Pit LDN

“visceral, introspective lo-fi R&B”
GUAP
“murky hip-hop production, alt-R&B textures, sluiced through with system-focussed electronics”
CLASH

Brixton, London based trio kid apollo have shared their first music of 2023, with new single “plansfor2“, signalling the release of a new project due later this year via Sweat Entertainment.

“plansfor2” follows their widely celebrated 2022 EP ‘u the real star here‘, and recent live dates with Lord Apex, Jeshi,dexter in the newsagent and a full UK tour in support of Frankie Stew & Harvey Gunn.

Produced and written by kid apollo and mixed by Joseph Hartwell Jones (FKA Twigs, Olivia Dean, FLO), “plansfor2” utilises old gospel samples (which became a direct influence on the trio’s songwriting for this song) combined with pitch-shifted samples of vocalist Jimmy’s own voice – recorded on an iPhone before being inserted into the final mix.

Gliding between alternative R&B and meditative lo-fi pop, “plansfor2” finds lyricist/vocalist Jimmy addressing intimacy and distance, post-pandemic.

Speaking more on the creation of “plansfor2” and its lyrical meaning, vocalist Jimmy said:
“It’s about your plans falling through with someone time and and time again and that feeling that you get when you sort of realise it’s just gonna keep on happening.”

“For plansfor2 we really got into finding old gospel samples and they became a very direct influence on the track, the whole ending section being a build up of chopped up old samples.”

Consisting of twin brothers (and producers) Felix and Theo Ratigan and singer/producer Jimmy HM, kid apollo create visceral, contemplative, experimental R&B, tackling the anxieties and over-stimulation of teenage life in London. Embodying warmth and sorrow and brimming with unsparing honesty throughout, their music typifies the all-too-familiar teenage pangs of heartbreak and uncertainty.

kid apollo have been making music together for the entirety of their young adult life. As kids at school together in Reading they came together over a shared love of UK hip-hop and began making beats on their laptops. At a time in life when expressing yourself can be awkward, music became an outlet for feelings and a bonding experience for a tight-knit friendship group. Countless hours of making music with the pure intention of creating led them to where they are today.

Referencing Frank Ocean, Bakar and Dijon among their influences, their move to London saw them embed themselves them in a network of fellow songwriters and producers, including peers such as dexter in the newsagent.

Like their peers, kid apollo feel pressure to conform and chase trends but they know it’s a shortcut to nowhere. “You have to do your own thing and trust your talent,” says Felix. That trust, born from the tight bond between three super creative best friends, is the guiding light for kid apollo. All they need to do is follow it.

With wide acclaim from press (i-D, COLORS, Notion, CLASH Magazine, The Independent, The Line Of Best Fit, GUAP, New Wave Magazine, Wonderland, Dork) and strong radio airplay (BBC R1 and BBC R1 Xtra), to Spotify naming them in their Class Of 2022 lists for RADAR: First Listen, Our Generation and Fresh Finds UK/IE playlists, kid apollo continue their ascent, which doesn’t look like stopping anytime soon.

kid apollo‘s new single “plansfor2” is out now via Sweat Entertainment. They play Dot To Dot in Bristol and Nottingham in May.