Amiri and Rahiem Taylor facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Amiri and Rahiem Taylor
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The Taylors sing in the New York City subway in 2017
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| Background information | |
| Born | 1994/1995 (age 30–31) Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York, U.S. |
| Genres | Psychedelic rock |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriters |
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| Associated acts | Blac Rabbit |
Amiri and Rahiem Taylor are American singer-songwriters. They are identical twin brothers, born around 1994. They are best known for leading the psychedelic rock band Blac Rabbit.
The Taylors grew up in Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York. They learned to play music by listening to and copying the Beatles. After finishing high school, they started their band, Blac Rabbit. They became famous for singing Beatles cover songs in New York City Subway stations. Many people said their voices sounded very much like John Lennon and Paul McCartney's harmonies.
Early Life and Musical Beginnings
Amiri and Rahiem Taylor are identical twins. They were born in Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York City, in the mid-1990s. Their grandfather loved jazz music. Their grandmother enjoyed the Beatles' records. Even though hip hop music was popular in Brooklyn, the twins were more drawn to the pop, funk, and soul sounds from the 1960s and 1980s.
When they were in high school, their grandmother gave them The Beatles: Rock Band video game for Christmas. This game helped them start playing guitar. From there, they began to copy the Beatles by watching videos of them. They believe the Lennon–McCartney songwriting team is "arguably the greatest songwriting duo of all time."
Building a Career
After learning to play Beatles songs on real instruments, the twins started writing their own music. What began as a fun hobby soon grew into a band. After graduating from high school in the early 2010s, they met drummer Patrick Jones at an open mic event in Brooklyn. They stayed in touch and formed a band. This band became the psychedelic rock group Blac Rabbit. In December 2017, the band released their first collection of songs, called an EP, titled Blac Rabbit.
The Taylors' first time performing on the street was to earn money to visit their mother in Puerto Rico. They made about $400 in just two days. This was enough for round-trip plane tickets. After working in supermarkets for a while, and with their family suggesting they go to college, they decided to perform music full-time. They would play five or six times a week. Rahiem said, "For us, it was music or die." They often performed in the New York City Subway at the Times Square, Herald Square, and Delancy Street stations. Rahiem later shared that street performing "definitely sharpened our skills."
Cell phone videos of the Taylors' subway performances became very popular online. They received hundreds of thousands of views. On January 26, 2018, a person named New York Nico filmed them singing the Beatles' "Eight Days a Week." He posted the video on his Instagram account. In March 2018, this video was shared on Twitter. It got 58 thousand retweets and three million views. This attention made Blac Rabbit's Twitter followers grow 33 times larger. They told La Voz del Interior that "Now in the subway they recognize us much more."
Soon after their online fame, many fans asked for them to appear on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. They were on the show on March 22, 2018. Before playing "Eight Days a Week," they talked to Ellen about how much they loved seeing people's reactions to their Beatles covers. Amiri said, "When we play, usually people are expecting Bob Marley or Stevie Wonder or something." Rahiem added, "It's cool to break people's expectations and to see their faces. A lot of people walk from around the corner and they just hear the music. Then, they see us and they're like, 'Whoa, really?'" After their performance, Ellen gave them new guitars and amplifiers. They had mentioned losing a guitar at a subway station. Their bandmates, Jones and Lugo, joined them on the show. They played a cover of the Tame Impala song "Solitude Is Bliss."
As of March 2018, the twins live together in Far Rockaway, Queens. They went on several tours with Blac Rabbit throughout 2018.
Musical Style
The Taylor brothers became well-known for their Beatles cover songs in the New York City Subway. They sing in harmony. They play acoustic guitar and amplified bass. Several writers have said their sound is so much like the original artists that "you could close your eyes and mistake them for Lennon and McCartney." Some listeners even asked if their singing was prerecorded. The twins replied, "[We] wish we had the tech to dub ourselves out there!"
Rahiem says he is "the tech nerd" and "the mixing guy." He is more interested in audio mixing and engineering. Amiri is "the songwriting guy" and "has developed a great ear for chords." Besides the Beatles, the twins are influenced by artists like Tame Impala, Radiohead, Toro y Moi, Mac DeMarco, the Police, Talk Talk, and Michael Jackson. Their band, Blac Rabbit, plays psychedelic rock. Their music also includes elements of funk, surf music, and psychedelia. With the band, they perform both Beatles covers and their own original songs.
