Kid British, often styled as KiD BRiTiSH, were an English 6-piece music group, hailing from

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. The band was composed of Adio Marchant (vocals), Simeon McLean (vocals), Sean Mbaya (vocals/guitar/keyboard), Dominick Allen (vocals/rhythm guitar), Mykey Wilson (drums) and Tom Peek (bass guitar). Former members were James Mayer (vocals), Tom Peek (bass) who both left due to personal reasons. Adio Marchant has since developed his own

indie pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and sub ...

side project called Bipolar Sunshine. His debut EP, ''Aesthetics'', was released on 18 June 2013, and the single ''Rivers'' was

iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...

free single of the week, in the week commencing 14 July 2013.

History

Kid British came into existence when Sean Mbaya from

Prestwich Prestwich ( ) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester, England, north of Manchester city centre, north of Salford and south of Bury. Historically part of Lancashire, Prestwich was the seat of the ancient parish o ...

(who worked as a producer under the name Kid British) worked with a band called Action Manky - made up of schoolmates Adio Marchant from

Chorlton Chorlton may refer to: Places * Chorlton, Cheshire East, in Cheshire, England *Chorlton, Cheshire West and Chester, in Cheshire, England *Chorlton-cum-Hardy, in Manchester, England **Chorlton (ward), an electoral ward of Manchester, England **Chorl ...

and Simeon McLean and James Mayer from

Withington Withington is a suburb of Manchester, England. Historically part of Lancashire, it lies from Manchester city centre, about south of Fallowfield, north-east of Didsbury and east of Chorlton-cum-Hardy. Withington has a population of just ...

- all joined forces in 2007 to form the band, initially known as Kid British & the Action Manky, but soon shortened to simply Kid British.Mugan, Chris (2009)
Kid British - New Kids on the block
, ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'', 6 March 2009, retrieved 13 April 2010 The band signed to

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. In the United States, it is ...

in May 2008,Kid British Chat About Influences and X-Men
, FemaleFirst, 14 January 2009, retrieved 13 April 2010 signed a long-term publishing deal with EMI Music Publishing in June,Kid British conclude publishing deal
, ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...

'', 21 June 2008, retrieved 13 April 2010 and released their first single "Elizabeth" (7" vinyl only) on the 'Another Music Another Kitchen' label in the October of that same year.Kid British to rock Introducing
,

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

, 11 June 2009, retrieved 13 April 2010 Their first Mercury release followed in the form of the ''Leave London'' (10" vinyl & digital download) EP featuring the tracks "She Will Leave", "Lost in London" and "Elizabeth", which was promoted by ten "guerilla gigs" in one day at various London tube stations, which led to the band playing an impromptu version of one of the tracks from the EP in front of Mayor

Boris Johnson Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (; born 19 June 1964) is a British politician, writer and journalist who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He previously served as F ...

when they found themselves in the same train carriage.Geddes, Clarke (2009)
Kid British for Tube Station Tour: band to play ten stations in London
, '' Clash'', 19 January 2009, retrieved 13 April 2010Kid British confront Boris Johnson during London tube 'gig'
, ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'', 21 January 2009, retrieved 13 April 2010 The four core members were joined in the band by musicians Tom Peek (bass guitar), Dominick Allen (rhythm guitar), and Mikey Wilson (drums).Lester, Paul (2008)
new Band of the Day No. 352: Kid British
, ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', 18 July 2008, retrieved 13 April 2010 The band received regular airplay from

BBC Radio One BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

Chris Moyles Christopher David Moyles (born 22 February 1974) is an English radio and television presenter, author and presenter of ''The Chris Moyles Show'' on Radio X. Previously he has presented ''The Chris Moyles Show'' on BBC Radio 1 from 2004 to 20 ...

and also played support slots with The Enemy (2007),

The Specials The Specials, also known as The Special AKA, are an English Two-tone (music genre), 2 tone and ska revival band formed in 1977 in Coventry. After some early changes, the first stable lineup of the group consisted of Terry Hall (singer), Terr ...

(2009) &

UB40 UB40 are an English reggae and pop band, formed in December 1978 in Birmingham, England. The band has had more than 50 singles in the UK Singles Chart, and has also achieved considerable international success. They have been nominated for the ...

(2010).Petridis, Alexis (2009)
Kid British: It Was This or Football
, ''

'', 17 July 2009, retrieved 13 April 2010Savage, Mark (2009)
Talking Shop: Kid British
,

, 3 July 2009, retrieved 13 April 2010 The band released the single "Our House Is Dadless", which samples the

Madness Madness or The Madness may refer to: Emotion and mental health * Anger, an intense emotional response to a perceived provocation, hurt or threat * Insanity, a spectrum of behaviors characterized by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns * ...

track " Our House" on 7 July 2009, peaking at number 63 in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

in its first week of release.Kid British
Chart Stats, retrieved 11 April 2010 The band's ''It Was This Or Football First Half'' EP reached number 67 in the UK in its first week of release, dropping out of the top 75 entirely the following week. The mooted ''Second Half'', originally advertised within the liner notes of the 'First Half' as being due for release in September 2009, remains unreleased, and the full twelve-track album that combined the two was not commercially released, although promotional copies were issued.Smith, David (2010)
Kid British: It Was This or Football
,

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...

, 18 January 2010, retrieved 13 April 2010 In February 2010, the band announced that they were recording new tracks for the album and that it was now planned to be released in Summer 2010. The band released the single "Winner" on 28 June, less than 12 hours after the England football team's 4–1 defeat to

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

at the

2010 FIFA World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

, which resulted in their elimination from the first round of the bracket phase. It was their first release since being dropped by Mercury Records. It failed to reach the top 100 of the singles chart, but was featured in

Electronic Arts Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry and promoted the d ...

' tie-in World Cup video game. In 2011 they released an EP called "''Northern Stories''" as a free download, they also did the 'Northern Stories' tour around

Stoke-upon-Trent Stoke-upon-Trent, commonly called Stoke is one of the six towns that along with Hanley, Burslem, Fenton, Longton and Tunstall form the city of Stoke-on-Trent, in Staffordshire, England. The town was incorporated as a municipal borough in 18 ...

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population, ...

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

Carlisle Carlisle ( , ; from xcb, Caer Luel) is a city that lies within the Northern England, Northern English county of Cumbria, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, Scottish border at the confluence of the rivers River Eden, Cumbria, Eden, River C ...

Oswestry Oswestry ( ; ) is a market town, civil parish and historic railway town in Shropshire, England, close to the Welsh border. It is at the junction of the A5, A483 and A495 roads. The town was the administrative headquarters of the Borough of ...

. During the early part of their career they worked with famed sound engineer and producer John Pennington, who has worked for many bands since leaving Strawberry studios including

Moby Richard Melville Hall (born September 11, 1965), known professionally as Moby, is an American musician, songwriter, singer, producer, and animal rights activist. He has sold 20 million records worldwide. AllMusic considers him to be "among the ...

. During the last three years of their career they took on Pete Poweron Smith as their sound engineer, Pete has written and produced as Big Arm, done sound with

A Certain Ratio A Certain Ratio (abbreviated as ACR) are an English post-punk band formed in 1977 in Flixton, Greater Manchester by Peter Terrell (guitar, electronics) and Simon Topping (vocals, trumpet), with additional members Jez Kerr (bass, vocals), Martin ...

and now does sound for Lewis Watson,

Bipolar Sunshine Adio Marchant (born 24 September 1987), known professionally as Bipolar Sunshine, is an English singer and songwriter from Manchester, England. Previously the co-vocalist with the band Kid British, he embarked on a solo career in 2013. Career M ...

and Mayer. Back with a new line-up, on 24 June 2012 released an EP called ''You Can't Please Them All'' on

LAB Records LAB Records (pronounced lab) is an independent record label operating from Manchester, England, and founded by Mark Orr and Nathen McVittie in 2007. The company also has a creative and distribution division, LAB Exposure, as well as a New York-b ...

with a headline tour due to follow later. On 27 March 2012, it was confirmed that Kid British would support

The Stone Roses The Stone Roses were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Manchester in 1983. One of the pioneering groups of the Madchester movement in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the band's classic and most prominent lineup consisted of vocalist I ...

at their

Heaton Park Heaton Park is a public park in Manchester, England, covering an area of over . The park includes the grounds of a Grade I listed, neoclassical 18th century country house, Heaton Hall. The hall, remodelled by James Wyatt in 1772, is now only o ...

concert in

on 29 June 2012. It was confirmed on 29 June 2012 that Kid British will be doing an intimate UK tour called 'You Can't Please Them All' with six dates taking place.

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

and the last date being at their hometown of

. A statement was released along with their final ever Kid British video for the new single "You Against The World" on 17 September 2012 that they were going their separate ways. Having to cancel three of their dates on the You Can't Please Them All tour in

and

due to personal reasons. Kid British played their final gig in

in December 2012.

Musical style

With their witty social commentary and lively performances, Kid British were often compared to the likes of

, Blur and

The Streets The Streets are an English music project led by vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Mike Skinner. The project has released six studio albums: ''Original Pirate Material'' (2002), ''A Grand Don't Come for Free'' (2004), ''The Hardest Way to M ...

. The band combine indie rock, ska and hip hop. Arwa Haider of ''

Metro Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to: Geography * Metro (city), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urba ...

'' described their sound as "a very modern mishmash of styles – indie rock, r'n'b, rap, ska revival – and bring a cuddly blokeishness to their jaunty tunes".Haider, Arwa (2009)
Kid British smells like team spirit
, ''

'', 20 July 2009, retrieved 13 April 2010

Discography

Album

*''

It Was This or Football ''It Was This or Football'' was the intended first album by the British ska/Independent music, indie band Kid British. The album was originally scheduled to be released via Mercury Records in two halves, like a football match – this idea was ...

'' (2009),

Mercury Mercury commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg * Mercury (mythology), a Roman god Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Merc ...

EPs

*'' Leave London'' (2009), Mercury *''iTunes Live: London Festival '09'' (2009), Mercury *'' It Was This or Football - First Half'' (2009), Mercury *''Northern Stories'' (2011) (self-produced) *''You Can't Please Them All'' (2012), LAB

Singles

*"Elizabeth" (2008), Mercury *" Sunny Days" (2009), Mercury *"

Our House Is Dadless "Our House Is Dadless" is the third single by British ska/indie band Kid British. It was released on 4 July 2009 on digital download and entered the UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the ...

" (2009), Mercury *"

Winner Winner(s) or The Winner(s) may refer to: * Champion, the victor in a game or contest *The successful social class in winner and loser culture Film * ''The Winner'' (1926 film), an American silent film starring Billy Sullivan * ''The Winner'' ...

" (2010), Modern English *"Until Monday" (2012), LAB *"You Against the World" (2012), LAB

References

External links

* {{Kid British Musical groups from Manchester English ska musical groups English hip hop groups Musical groups established in 2007 Musical groups disestablished in 2012