Rofi James Interview With Colby

Rofi James, the indie-pop band from Ireland stopped by for a chat!

Colby: What Do You Enjoy Most About Being A Musician?

Rofi James: It’s an amazing feeling hearing your song being sung in a crowd at a show, or on the radio. Playing live is extremely rewarding, and one of the most enjoyable parts about being a musician. It’s also extremely fulfilling putting pen to paper and writing a song that means a lot to you, and even more so when you hear how it has affected or even inspired helped a stranger during a difficult time in their lives. There can be a certain ‘magic’ in the room sometimes when a group of musicians get together and perform, everything clicking in place, an audience connecting with the band on stage, and energy exchange going from the band to the crowd and vice versa.

Colby: Which Track Of Yours Means The Most To You?

Rofi James: It’s hard to pick one song, every track holds its own meaning to us, as we were going through a certain experience at the time it was written. ‘Reason’ was written about loss and grief. That song really seemed to connect with a lot of people, some of whom even reached out to us and explained how it helped them through hard times while they were dealing with a loss themselves. ‘Sorry’ was written during the height of lockdown during the pandemic, as was ‘Berlin Wall’. Both tracks really bring us back to those days pinning for freedom and normality. Our most recent release ‘Who Am I To You’ also occupies a special part in our brains, as it’s about unrequited affection and mixed signals in a relationship which is something almost everyone has experienced at one time or another! We’re extremely excited about the new music we have on the way in the coming months, and we can’t wait for everyone to hear the tracks!

Colby: The First-Ever Gig You Played, Can You Remember It? How Was It?

Rofi James: I think the first ever gig we played was actually a spontaneous outdoor gig on shop street in galway in our teens. We started out as a band busking acoustically in Galway while still in secondary school. We played a lot of acoustic sets around town before eventually moving onto the local pubs/bars/venues in Galway and further afield.

Colby: What Do You Think Is The Key To Success As A Musician?

Rofi James: There are the obvious things like learning the basics correctly, timing, dynamics, ‘feel’ and also learning how to perform with other musicians. Playing as much as possible with other musicians is always a good idea, you will usually learn something. It’s very important to enjoy it too, if you get wrapped up in perfection you can lose the love for it. We’re lucky enough to work as full time musicians gigging regularly and enjoy performing live.

Colby: If You Wasn’t A Musician, What Job Would You Be Doing?

Rofi James: Ronan loves sports and studied journalism/radio production, so he would most likely be working in sports journalism. Joe is gifted in the realm of I.T and computer science so would be the next Elon Musk. Jamie studied sound engineering so would possibly be behind the mixing console!