Coachella<\/a> 2026.<\/p>\nThe genre-defying group sat with Newsweek <\/em>to discuss their friendship, their unique sound and their debut album WHATMORE<\/em>.<\/p>\nBuilding the Band<\/h2>\n\n
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Before WHATMORE, the collective was still in love with music, bonding throughout the years over their shared passion. “We were all instrumental majors, playing, me Jackson and Elijah played saxophone, Yoshi played clarinet, Cisco played drums and piano,” reflected Sebastiano. <\/p>\n
Even though they\u2019ve been friends for over a decade, WHATMORE didn\u2019t coalesce into a fully formed group until last year.\u00a0\u201cAfter high school, we stayed friends, but we also made music together here and there. We have features on each other’s songs,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n
That long-standing musical connection made forming a group a no-brainer, but it wasn’t instant. <\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like we were always just making music collectively with each other, so it wasn’t a huge decision, where we’re like, ‘This is the day we’re going to be a band.’ Last year, we kind of all just linked in my crib, like, ‘Oh, let’s make a couple songs for a show,'” reflected Cisco. \u201cWe made three songs at the crib, and then it kind of just started snowballing into the bigger thing that it is over time. It was a slow, exponential increase into what WHATMORE is today.\u201d<\/p>\n
WHATMORE\u2019s diverse backgrounds and prior musical experience together form a perfect storm, crafting something wholly unique. Incorporating a trio of deft but idiosyncratic emcees and an indie crooner seems like a tall task, but the members of WHATMORE see it as an opportunity.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe all come from super different musical backgrounds,\u201d August said. \u201cCisco is super in the jazz world, Seb and Yoshi live more in the kind of hip-hop, alternative R&B world. I’ve definitely been more of an indie guitar kind of alternative world. I feel like it was so fun to get to experience kind of stepping into everyone else’s world.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bridging those gaps offered a new vision for the group, which was especially crucial when recording the album.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you live in your world, it can get bananas. I feel like that’s half the battle as a musician is that. WHATMORE has just been opening up different kind of ways to work in creativity, music and different genres, and that feels f****** lit,\u201d August said.<\/p>\n
Musical Mashup<\/h2>\n As the group delved deeper into their collaborative process, they discovered that blending their distinct musical identities not only challenged their creativity but also sparked unexpected inspiration.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe artistry is so strong independently too. So, when we all come together, it’s just like a big explosion of all this different stuff, and then we\u2019re moving all the pieces around, and putting together something cool,\u201d Judah said.<\/p>\n
Moving those parts around has been crucial in blending WHATMORE\u2019s distinct personas. “Mii Music,” a standout solo track from Yoshi T. featuring WHATMORE interpolates a previous recording from August into the track to create that harmonious sound.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was a fun one, because we sampled my voice. I originally tried to sing a hook on it, yeah, and it just didn’t fit. I tried to sing a hook on it, but it just was kind of corny. It just didn’t work with the song. Then Elijah chopped it up, and that’s my voice pitch, the f*** up,\u201d reflected August.<\/p>\n
Creating those complementary sounds isn\u2019t as difficult as it sounds for the group. Whereas some struggle to define the group’s sound, to WHATMORE, it’s all the sounds of home. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s very fluid, very New York. I feel like New York is a genre. We just touch on a lot of different sounds and feelings. I feel like our music is lived in. That’s a big thing, because we kind of went to Pennsylvania to record a lot of it, and a lot of our sound comes out more the further away you go from home,\u201d Swank said.
Those unique stories were told through vignettes focused on each member of the group while introducing the album\u2019s five lead singles. Those varying singles, \u201ceastside w my dogs,\u201d \u201cchicken shop date,\u201d \u201cgo!,\u201d \u201cjenny\u2019s,\u201d and \u201cBombay (keep it alive),\u201d act as hors d\u2019oeuvres for the sonic adventure that is their album.<\/p>\n
Rapper Yoshi T. stressed the importance of sequencing the project, saying, \u201cWe wanted to make something where you never knew what was going to come next throughout the whole project.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe try to make it tasteful and not make it too brash, but also slowly lead people into some of the sounds. Especially on the first listen, starting with \u201cNever let go,\u201d kind of like the soft, slow song, going into \u201cchicken shop date,\u201d that kind of sets a meter for the spectrum of this project,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n
As their debut album hits stores and streaming services, WHATMORE is ecstatic to perform the wealth of new songs they\u2019ve been honing over the past year.<\/p>\n
\u201cI’m excited for \u2018emptyy.\u2019\u201d Yoshi T. said. \u201c\u2018emptyy\u2019 is one of the first songs we made, and it’s just the fact that it’s coming out. It went through a lot of different changes. It almost didn’t make it, even in the beginning. The fact that it made it all this way, it’ll be a good time. It’s just kind of like a good bop.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat’s a Cisco and me personal favorite, it was on the chopping block at every stage of making this album. It was like, ‘Is this gonna make it? Is this gonna make it?’ And it was the most Frankenstein one,\u201d August remarked on the track. \u201cAt one point, all four of us were on it. And then now it’s just Yoshi and Cisco on it. Yoshi and Cisco took parts here and there that were in the original, and then they put it in their voice. I think it’s kind of the first time that I’ve really, that I’ve really done that. So I’m hype and it’s a fun one. We say it’s our club banger.\u201d<\/p>\n
Forging the Future<\/h2>\n\n