Teen Rock/Pop Group Burnham Signs With Island Def Jam Records, and Tours With Justin Bieber
BURNHAM (l-r): Alex, Andre & Forrest
With their infectious Ryan Tedder-penned and produced debut single “Catch Me If You Can” impacting radio, Vermont-based siblings Alex (18), Andre (16) and Forrest (14) Burnham—collectively known as Burnham—are already getting immediate comparisons to the Jonas Brothers. While their sound is based on three-part harmonies and indelible hooks, Forrest, the group’s lead singer, says “Our name is different, we’re younger and we’re more rock/pop than just pop.”
Thousands of young girls across the U.S. will soon get a chance to decide for themselves. The brothers were recently confirmed as the opening act on the second leg of teen star Justin Bieber’s “My World” North American tour. This 35-city stretch will run from September 14 through December 23.
Bieber isn’t the only major pop name Burnham is associated with these days. Personally signed to Island Def Jam’s Teen Island label by chairman Antonio “L.A.” Reid, the trio is the newest addition to a roster which, in addition to Bieber, includes Kristinia DeBarge (“Goodbye”), Jessica Jarrell (“Almost Love”), Aaron Fresh (“Spending All My Time”), Khalil (“Girlfriend”), and School Gyrlz (“Something Like A Party”). Burnham’s debut album, due this fall, was produced by a diverse crew of A-listers, including Tedder, Brian Kennedy (Rihanna, Jesse McCartney), Benji Madden (Good Charlotte), James Bourne of Busted (“Year 3000”) and the New York-based Norwegian team Espionage (the duo of Espen Lind and Amund Bjorkland, whose credits include Train’s “Hey, Soul Sister” and Beyonce’s “Irreplaceable").
With their good-natured sibling rivalry, each of the three Burnhams bring something different to the table. Alex is the designated riff-meister and Forrest is great at finding melodies, while Andre, also known as M.D.(music director), organizes the rehearsals and comes up with lyrical ideas. Burnham has crafted a debut album filled with catchy rock/pop anthems. Besides “Catch Me If You Can, it will include the Espionage-produced “Look Like Her” (“I have been waiting all my life/for someone to come and put things right”), “Thank You” (a collaboration with Kennedy) and the power ballad by Burnham that helped get them signed, “Slow Dance.”
Their lyrics are laced with themes that are universal and ageless: romance, betrayal, young love and, of course, girls. “I never actually believed they had cooties, but up until a few years ago, I used to think that they should have their side and we should have ours…but now I’m a BIG fan,” says Forrest, whose vocal heroes include U2’s Bono, Coldplay’s Chris Martin, and The Killers' Brandon Flowers. “Girls are okay, but very confusing!”
“We started writing our own songs about three years ago,” says Andre, “but collaborating with these great producers has allowed us to take our songwriting skills the next level.” Forrest adds, “It was three of our own songs, ‘Slow Dance’ and ‘Goddess,’ which will be on the album, and ‘Headspin,’ which hooked L.A. Reid in. But working with big guys like Ryan, Brian, Benji and Espionage has helped us get to a whole new place musically, become better writers and bring our better selves to the writing and recording sessions. Some of the outside songs we left as is, but others like Ryan’s, we changed a few lines. As a whole, the album shows that we’re hard working and have perseverance. We’re really enjoying the fact that we’re getting to live our dream and fulfill our life calling of making music.”
The three brothers got the performing gene from their mom, a UCLA music major who studied opera, and their love of rock from their dad, who shared his record collection with his boys on a nightly basis. Alex, Andre and Forrest began playing together seven years ago, when they took over their family living room and converted it into a jam space where they honed their skills playing for four to five hours a day. “When we plug in and start playing, we lose all sense of time,” Forrest says.
The boys started out by learning to play their instruments at a local music school in Vermont. At the time the two older boys joined the ensemble, there were no singers. Andre said, “Forrest will do it” and the rest is history. “It was either this, or go play in the sandbox,” he jokes about joining his older brothers in the band. “I’m very competitive, but most of the time I’m joking and being sarcastic. From what I can tell, they don’t mind me getting a lot of the attention. In fact, they’re cool about it. They know their place,” Forrest laughs. “But seriously, we’re all equal.”
After almost five years of performing live at local clubs, regional festivals and parties, a friend hooked them up with NY-based producers Andy Marvel and Freddy Shehadi, who set up several showcases with various major record labels. With two major label deals on the table, the brothers—with Alex on guitar and Andre playing bass and keyboards--did a final showcase for Reid. The veteran executive wouldn’t let them leave the room until he signed them—not even after Forrest beat him at pool. “I happened to be on my game that day both vocally and with a pool cue,” says the young singer with a smirk.
While Burnham’s initial audience is most likely teenage girls, Andre is quick to point out, “The Beatles’ fans were teenage girls when they first started out… Just give us another 40 years.” “When we first started playing, it was for fun,” says Alex. “And now it has developed into an insane amount of fun.” “We’re normal kids doing things that all kids do. We just happen to have a record deal,” says Andre.
Forrest adds, “We definitely set goals for ourselves. One of them was to get a record deal and we’ve done that. Now our goal is to make great music that is timeless and to reach as many people as we can. We just want to play and sing songs about girls that the kids can relate to. We’re all looking forward to touring with Justin because our favorite thing is playing live. I love the pressure to get every detail just right and the challenge of reaching out to the audience, making an impact on them and making sure our stage presentation is up to par. The big thing is that we’re here because we kept doing what we love and didn’t give up even when the road got bumpy. We love to tell other young musicians who are trying to make it: if you love it, keep doing it, but if you don’t, stop.”
Jonathan Widran is a free-lance music/entertainment journalist who contributes regularly to Music Connection, Jazziz and All Music Guide. He can be reached at Few522@aol.com.
