Clean Cut's interview and performance at Okeechobee Music Festival
Okeechobee Music and Arts Festival celebrated its 5th year anniversary in Okeechobee, Florida, attracting music lovers from all over the world. A camping festival geared toward nature, art, music and togetherness. The weekend featured a diverse lineup of musicians across various genres, including indie, electronic, hip hop, and more. This year's festival was no exception, with over 100 artists performing on multiple stages over the course of four days. One of the standout acts of the festival was Miami-based band Clean Cut, known for their unique blend of indie rock and electronic music.
Hailing from Miami, Florida, Clean Cut burst onto the music scene just over a year ago, quickly establishing their signature sound of pop-funk fusions with groovy beats that incorporate elements of hip hop and R&B. Their unique blend of genres sets them apart, earning them a spot on the "Grand Artique" stage at the festival after winning a contest held at the well known Miami venue, The Ground.
Grand Artique
Moments before their performance, I caught a glimpse of their high energy and excitement with a sprinkle of nerves in the air. They were focused, yet excited. Clean Cut hit the stage strongly as they launched into a lively hour-long set that drew in the crowd, keeping them dancing and grooving to the beats that gave life to the small space.
The band's chemistry and camaraderie shone through as they effortlessly remixed throwbacks and original, released, and unreleased songs, that transitioned smoothly in and out of each other. It seemed like we were witnessing a few guys having a jam sesh as they playfully switched instruments between songs, confidently showcasing their juicy rhythmic Miami lounge vibes. In this interview, we sat down with Clean Cut to learn more about their background, influences, and experience performing at Okeechobee.
I got to sit down with the band and this is what they said
The first thing I would like to ask is, how did you feel after your performance yesterday being this is the first festival you’ve done together?
Guerrero: “It was fantastic! The response from the crowd was phenomenal, they fed us energy that we aren’t used to, even with the gigs back home. Being at a festival was just a completely different feeling for us and we’re ready for the next one pretty much!”
How did the concept of the band come up?
-Holmes: “We’ve known each other for years through college and from different bands. Giacomo was in Slow Coast, I was in a band with Sebastian and Kalil called Soul Pacts and various bands that were down here. I think through desperation and Covid we were like ‘hey we really wanna make something happen’ so Giacomo actually hit me up and we started talking about it. Then we got Sabastian when he was living in LA to come back down here and start making music. Then when we got Kalil and it all gelled together because the chemistry was all there. We’ve known each other for so long.”
-Giacomo: “The three of us started writing songs in my moms house because there were no gigs to be played at that time because covid was rampant. Guerrero had just come back from LA and there was definitely a missing link that was blaring. Once Kalil came into play it was a combustion. It just all made sense for us.”
-Guerrero: “When we started conceptualizing what would be Clean Cut we had these kind of pillars of standards, basically just rules or things that we live by. How we wanna manage the business and what we wanna accomplish. A lot of it has to do with brotherhood, love and good quality music. Treating each other with respect.”
-Kalil: “A funny story– when I linked up with the band they were already together, they had this name ‘Clean Service’ and I was like ”people are gonna be calling us to clean homes they aren’t even gonna know we’re a band” so I met them half way and said “how about CLEANCUT” and that’s how we got the name. Our music works in the same way, someone will come up with an idea and someone else will be like ‘let’s add this to it’ before we know it we’ve entered something that the original person didn’t even think was possible.”
Do we have big things coming, what should we be looking out for in the future?
-Kalil: “We’ve had plans to apply to more festivals, even something like Lollapalooza. We want to elevate our brand as a band, doing stages that are more geared toward where we wanna be. We also have a tour coming up with the Floridians.”
For more information and to help fundraise for their tour click here: EAST COAST LOVE AFFAIR TOUR.
Coverage by Viviana Franco // Instagram: @viviana.ttl and Gina Beltran
Contact for us for Advertising! If you would like to feature your event, art, music, venue, or business on SoundBite Magazine, send an email to soundbitemag@gmail.com for features and promotional inquiries.
For upcoming events and artists features, follow SoundBite Magazine on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.