ALT BLK ERA: No Bad Vibes Allowed

“No bad vibes allowed” is what elder sister Nyrobi responds when asked to describe ALT BLK ERA. This eccentric duo hailing from Nottingham break the mould of what you expect from the alt scene, having not even listened to this style of music before starting to create tracks in the lockdown.

Sisters Nyrobi and Chaya Beckett-Messam come from a musical family, so when lockdown started their daily pushed them to be creative through music, and it all spiralled from there. “We kind of fell into it, really,” the younger, Chaya, explains. At only 19 and 16 respectively, Nyrobi and Chaya have already performed at Boomtown, Reading & Leeds and even Glastonbury, a feat some artists spend their whole lives aiming for, but for this dynamic duo, it’s just the beginning.

But how did ALT BLK ERA get such success so quickly? Nyrobi, responsible for rough vocals and rapping, hails their success to refusing to fit in a box. “People say genre is dead but it’s true. We dabble in too many genres from operatic, to rap, and from pop to metal, we do what we want, you can’t contain us, and I think that’s what people enjoy so much.”

When asked to describe themselves, Nyrobi answers, “I think we’re a gateway to alt music, with our mix of genre.”

“We’re high energy and emotional, but we’re authentically us no matter what genre we’re creating,” Chaya adds. “What you see is who we are,” Nyrobi agrees.

With their music being such an eclectic and varied sound, the question of their musical influences was not an easy one to answer. “I wouldn’t say we have direct influences, but we do have a lot of inspirations. There’s no one artist who I could pinpoint,” Nyrobi explains. Chaya adds, “A lot of people don’t believe us but we didn’t know much about rock or metal before we started making music. We sort of stumbled onto the scene.”

“Oh yeah, we didn’t know who so many people were, so many of our listeners were so shocked when we admitted we didn’t know who PAPA ROACH, or EVANESCENCE, or IN THIS MOMENT were until we had people saying bits of our music sounded like them,” laughs Nyrobi. “But we know now!” both insist vehemently.

Circling back to their inspirations, Nyrobi eagerly listed THE PRODIGY, ASHNIKKO and STROMAE as their top three, citing that “THE PRODIGY just had this insane stage presence that I can only dream to have, they’re legendary.”

When asked about how they’re handling being part of a scene they never had much experience in or knowledge of, Nyrobi answered with an earnest smile “We’re honestly learning and exploring as we go, and so many people are so supportive of us, and we’re grateful to them and we’re grateful to be able to be a part of and learn more about the scene.”

Earlier this year, the siblings released their debut EP, Freak Show, consisting of five genre-bending tracks to give their audience the full breadth of who ALT BLK ERA are. On Freakshow, Nyrobi eloquently takes over to explain. “For us, the Freakshow EP is us telling the story of alternative people from their own experiences.” Whilst they weren’t on the music scene, the siblings explain they have always felt like they didn’t fit in. “We wanted to mix that sadness, confusion and angst and the joy of finding somewhere to fit in.”

A lot of their online fanbases claim ALT BLK ERA represent the groups in society that are constantly marginalised, from their young age, their ethnicity and their gender. With the ‘feminine rage’ movement growing momentum, Nyrobi was eager to insist that “even though we do have a lot of feminine rage, we also have feminine sad, but also just general rage. We rage for everyone belittled.”

The duo loves to meet people after shows, having toured with ZAND and DELILAH BON already, two eccentric trailblazers in their own right, ALK BLK ERA insist they want to “create a safe space at their shows,” Chaya explains. “We want people from all backgrounds to enjoy the music with no bad energy.”

It’s clear that there is a give and take between the siblings, with the elder being much more bolder and talkative, and the younger being much more reserved – but ever the wise one. When this was brought to their attention, both laughed and insisted it’s because they’re related. “We are so blunt with each other, we don’t sugar-coat anything, I might be the louder one but if Chaya needs to say something, she will,” Nyrobi insists. Their closeness, naturally, affects their creative process. “We give each other the tough love you couldn’t give to someone you’re not related to, she can’t lose me, I’ll just go knock on her bedroom door!” The elder sibling laughs. 

Having headlined Rock City in their home city as teenagers, a bucket list venue for many, Nyrobi insists that this is still just the beginning for ALT BLK ERA. “There’s so much happening for 2024 that we can’t talk about yet, but we can promise new music for sure.”

ALT BLK ERA are wise beyond their years, with this youthful eagerness that has them raring to take the industry by storm, they are ones to watch for sure.

Freak Show is out now via self-release.

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