What: Redfoo and the Party Rock Crew
When: Friday, 6 p.m.
Where: Beban Park Social Centre, 2300 Bowen Rd., Nanaimo
Tickets: $40 at The Queen’s, ticketzone.com and 250-754-6751
Redfoo and Sky Blu of pop-rap group LMFAO enjoyed a remarkable run of success five years ago that put them on stage at the Super Bowl with Madonna and atop the charts with one of the biggest hits of the past decade.
Of course, the L.A. duo had nowhere to go but down.
Redfoo (Stefan Kendal Gordy, son of Motown founder Berry Gordy) and his nephew, Sky Blu, announced a hiatus from the group in 2012, which gave way to solo careers for both members.
Redfoo has been the more successful of the pair, with two hit videos (Let’s Get Ridiculous, 54 million views on YouTube; and Juicy Wiggle, 39 million) and one certified smash (New Thang, 227 million) as a solo artist.
“He always had ideas and stuff that he wanted to do,” Redfoo said of Sky Blu, during an interview with the Windsor Star.
“The electro was more my thing. We’re 10 years apart [in age], and I had done hip hop all my life. I was like: ‘I need something new.’ But to Sky, I feel like hip hop was still new. So now, he has more of a hip-hop project going on. We’re both independent now. We both have our own worlds.”
The popularity of LMFAO was, in part, due to their infectious energy, which lent itself to wildly watchable videos for Sexy and I Know It, Sorry for Party Rocking and Party Rock Anthem, the latter one of the biggest-selling singles of 2011. The combined YouTube viewership for the three videos is nearly two billion.
“I’m an improv-er, and a freestyler,” Redfoo said of his unique, running-man dance style.
“But these are movements that just happen. Every song makes you move different.”
The music of LMFAO — an easily digestible blend of house music, bubblegum pop and instructional dance steps — defined club music in the early part of the decade, thanks to the unmistakable style of the group’s creative spark. Redfoo now has a fashion line, Party Rock, and a record label of the same name.
“I don’t understand why I would wear something because other people think it’s the ‘in’ thing,” he said. “When I started wearing animal print, nobody was wearing it. I said: ‘I don’t like stripes. I want to wear some animal print.’ ”
Redfoo is touring internationally in support of his debut solo album, Party Rock Mansion, which features plenty of party-friendly pop.
He is solely responsible for the majority of the album, having written, produced, performed, recorded, mixed and mastered the album.
He’s also required during the tour that brings him to Nanaimo’s Beban Park Social Centre on Friday to hold down the party end of things in public.
“I go to the club, I just want to chill out, you know? I’m not drinking tonight, just having some water, gonna play tennis in the morning.
“And then some people come up: ‘Hey, what’s up! Shots! Shots! Shots! Let’s drink some shots!’ And I’m like: ‘Naw, I’m cool, man.’ And they’re like: ‘Aw, man — I thought you was the Party Rocker!’
“Then I go: ‘OK, I’ll have one shot.’ And the one shot turns into 10 shots. I’m party rockin’ and I’m having fun — but I’m oversleeping and playing tennis drunk the next day. So, sometimes that happens.”
