KC and the Sunshine Band excited to meet Filipino fans

KC and the Sunshine Band

The mere mention of the name KC and the Sunshine Band probably won’t ring a bell right away. But play their songs and the response you’ll likely get is, “Ah, so it’s them!”

This is especially true for the younger generations who didn’t get to experience their music firsthand back in the ’70s and ’80s, and have only heard of their material when sampled by current hip-hop artists or through video games like “Dance Dance Revolution.”

“It’s always been very interesting. The music is known, but the name of the band, not so much, you’re right. So we’ve been trying to reassociate the name with the music,” Harry Wayne “KC” Casey, the musician behind the American group whose groovy hits fuse funk, dance and R&B, told the Inquirer in a phone interview.

Those who enjoyed the disco generation, however, will surely recognize KC and the Sunshine Band’s heap of hip-swaying hits, including “Get Down Tonight,” “Give It Up,” “That’s the Way I Like It,” “Shake Your Booty” and “Please Don’t Go.”

The now 15-piece, Grammy Award-winning act, which has five No. 1 hits and sold 100 million records throughout its 40 years in the business, will hold its first Manila show—mounted by Ovation Productions—on Sept. 14 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum (call 9115555).

Excerpts from our interview with KC:

What are you looking forward to in your first visit to the Philippines?

I’m very excited to come because I’ve always heard that my music has been very popular there, and it’s one of the places I’ve never visited. I’m looking forward to finally meeting the fans!

What’s it like playing with a big band?

I love it—it’s the best!

The band has undergone a number of lineup changes. How do you make sure that the spirit of the music stays the same?

We work very hard to keep our stuff as close to the original music as possible, you know? But unfortunately some of the original people are not with the band anymore to play with us. We just have to figure things out. It’s important to stay faithful.

What do you think makes your music enduring?

I think the high energy. And just  the fact that they bring happiness to people.

What are your thoughts on disco and R&B music these days?

I think it’s great, those genres are finally coming back. And I hope the music becomes even more melodic again.

You’ve said in the past that you were at your loneliest during your peak.

I look back to it as a very lonely time in my life and I’m glad I don’t feel that way anymore. Now I feel that I’m part of something; that I belong to something.

Tell us about your new song, “We Belong Together.”

It’s a song I wrote about love, equality and unity. People have the right to belong to someone no matter what they believe in, especially with how the world’s going today. We all need to share love and find love; we belong together, we shouldn’t be divided.

What’s next for the band?

Our plan is to go wherever our destiny takes us—I believe things are already prescripted. Hopefully, we’ll just keep making music and touring until I can’t do it anymore. Anything else that happens is a bonus. And right now, we just love what we’re doing.

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