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| Foster the People | |
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Foster the People at the 2011 MuchMusic Video Awards, from left to right: Pontius, Foster, and Fink
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| Background information | |
| Origin | Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Genres | Indie pop, alternative rock, indietronica, alternative dance, neo-psychedelia[1] |
| Years active | 2009–present |
| Labels | Startime, Columbia |
| Website | www.fosterthepeople.com |
| Members | Mark Foster Cubbie Fink Mark Pontius |
Foster the People is an American indie pop
band formed in Los Angeles, California in 2009. The group is composed
of Mark Foster (vocals, keyboards, piano, synthesizers, guitar,
programming, percussion), Cubbie Fink (bass and backing vocals), and
Mark Pontius (drums, percussion).[2] The group's music, described as melodic dance-infused pop and rock, spans many genres.
Foster founded the band in 2009 after spending several years in Los
Angeles as a struggling musician and working as a commercial jingle
writer. After Foster's song "Pumped Up Kicks" became a viral success in 2010, the group received a record deal from Startime International and gained a fanbase through small club shows and appearances at the music festivals Coachella and South by Southwest. After releasing their debut album Torches in May 2011, "Pumped Up Kicks" became a crossover hit on commercial radio in mid-2011, reaching number one on Billboard's Alternative Songs chart, number three on the Rock Songs chart, and number three on the Billboard Hot 100, while charting on the Adult Top 40 and Mainstream Top 40 charts.[3] The group received two Grammy Award nominations for Torches and "Pumped Up Kicks".
History
Background and formation
After graduating from Nordonia High School in the suburbs of
Cleveland, Ohio, Mark Foster, at his father's encouragement, moved in
with his uncle in Sylmar, Los Angeles,
California to pursue a career in music. Foster worked various jobs and
at night, he attended parties in Hollywood to expand his social network.
He said, "I felt like an 18-year-old Hunter S. Thompson. I was just diving into this Hollywood Hills subculture and taking it all in. I wasn't shy about taking my guitar out at a party. I wanted to be the center of attention."[4] At one time, he roomed with actor Brad Renfro.[5]
Foster struggled with drug addiction during his initial years in Los
Angeles, saying, "It got pretty dark. My friends thought I was going to
die. I was blind to it. When I was 19 years old, it got to a point where
I said, 'Enough is enough'... I saw time was just passing me by. I
wasn't being productive."[6]
Several attempts at founding a band proved unsuccessful. After turning 22, he says he was contacted by Aftermath Entertainment
about showcasing his musical talents, but the opportunity ultimately
fell through. For the next few years, Foster waited tables at a cafe
while dealing with writer's block, but he remained in Los Angeles after landing a job as a commercial jingle writer for Mophonics in 2008.[4][7] He said of the profession, "I definitely learned from the commercial standpoint what works",[6] and he credited it with reviving his confidence in performing.[4]
The music Foster wrote spanned a wide range of genres, but he had
difficulty reconciling his eclectic compositions. He explained: "I'd
write one song and it'd be a hip-hop song. I'd write another and it'd be heavily electronic.
Another would be like a spiritual, and another would be classic piano
song. I was constantly trying to pull those elements together. It took
me six years to do it."[6]
He still wished to be part of a group; reflecting on a residency he did
at a venue performing electronic music, he said, "It was just me and a
laptop. Really, it was terrible. I knew I needed a band."[4]
Foster the People was born out of a nascent relationship with drummer Mark Pontius, a film school student who left his group Malbec in 2009 to found a band with Foster.[4][8]
Pontius was impressed by the number and diversity of songs that Foster
had written to that point, saying, "Some were on the guitar, and some
were on the computer. But it was this really awesome singer-songwriter
thing with a tricked-out beat, and I felt we could go wherever we wanted
with this." The group added Foster's long-time friend Cubbie Fink, who
lost his job at a television production company during the recession, as a bassist.[4][8]
Mark Foster originally named the band Foster & the People, but
people misheard it as "Foster the People". Eventually, he took to the
nurturing image it evoked of "taking care" of people, so the name stuck.[5]
nitial attention of "Pumped Up Kicks" and record deal
Not long after the group formed, Foster wrote and recorded a song at Mophonics called "Pumped Up Kicks",
which eventually proved to be the band's breakthrough. After Foster
posted the song on his website as a free download in early 2010, it drew
considerable attention; Nylon magazine used the track in an online advertising campaign,[9] and through various blogs, it went viral.[10] The group, yet to be signed, garnered buzz with performances at the South by Southwest music festival in March 2010.[11][12]
Foster was emailed by many people about "Pumped Up Kicks", and needing
professional guidance, he contacted artist manager Brent Kredel at
Monotone, Inc. in March, saying, "Everyone is calling me and emailing
me—what do I do? Who are the good guys, who are the bad guys?" Kredel
recalled that "He went from the guy who couldn't get a hold of anyone to
being the guy who had hundreds of emails in his inbox." Kredel and
Brett Williams were subsequently hired to co-manage Foster the People,
and they arranged meetings for the band with several record labels, including Warner Bros., Atlantic, Columbia, and Universal Republic. In May 2010, the band was signed to the Columbia imprint Startime International
in a multi-album deal. The deal did not involve ancillary rights.
Foster controls publishing of the songs in North America, while a
separate 2010 deal with Sony/ATV Music Publishing controls publishing outside of North America.[9]
After Foster the People signed their record deal, Kredel said, "The
focus was to stop everything and not work on any marketing or touring,
but to make an album that backed up 'Pumped Up Kicks.'" Wishing to avoid
burnout, Startime allowed the group to pace themselves and not rush an
album that would cash in on the popularity of the song. Isaac Green of
Startime said, "You can't control everything, but you can be meticulous
about the music." From July to September 2010, the group wrote new
material that would appear on their debut album, and they chose Paul Epworth, Rich Costey, and Greg Kurstin to co-produce the record with Mark Foster.[9] In September, "Pumped Up Kicks" was released as the group's debut single.
nitial tour and music licensing
Without much experience as a live act, Foster the People were booked
in October 2010 to play several club shows "to help them get their sea
legs." Booking the group proved difficult, as concert promoters
were hesitant about an artist without previous touring experiences.
Foster the People promoted these concerts by emailing fans who had
downloaded "Pumped Up Kicks" from their website about the shows. In
early 2011, the band was booked to perform in a much sought-after tent
at April's Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. Meanwhile, the group continued to grow its fanbase with a month-long residency of concerts in January at The Echo
nightclub in Los Angeles. According to booking agent Tom Windish, by
the group's third show at the venue, "there were hundreds of people
trying to get in outside... It was an obvious turning point that could
be measured in numbers." The residency also drew the attention of music
supervisors in attendance who would later help the group license their music.[9]
Foster the People issued its first commercial non-single release in January 2011, a self-titled EP featuring "Pumped Up Kicks", "Houdini", and "Helena Beat" that was intended to hold fans over until their first studio album, Torches, was completed. Fans who purchased the EP through the iTunes Store
were able to apply it towards the purchase of their full-length debut
album. The EP drew the attention of organizers of March's South by
Southwest festival, as well as executives looking to license music for
upcoming season finales of television series. Columbia senior director
of creative licensing Jonathan Palmer said, "The plan helped us a great
deal to set up more opportunities rather than chasing the release date.
So by the time we put the record out in May, we had already placed
several songs." Half of Torches' songs were licensed—among them are: "Pumped Up Kicks" (Gossip Girl, The Vampire Diaries, Friends with Benefits, Entourage), "Houdini" (Gossip Girl); "Helena Beat" (The Vampire Diaries); "Don't Stop (Color on the Walls)" (Suits, Nissan Motors commercial); and "Call It What You Want" (FIFA 12). Palmer commented, "I haven't seen this kind of a range of song licenses from one album since we worked the first Ting Tings
record three-and-a-half years ago. That was an album where we licensed
nine or [all] 10 songs on the album. We're kind of in a similar
situation [with Torches]."[9]
Breakthrough of "Pumped Up Kicks" and release of Torches
Beginning in January 2011, many alternative radio stations began playing "Pumped Up Kicks", including Sirius XM satellite radio's Alt Nation channel and Los Angeles terrestrial stations KROQ-FM and KYSR.[9]
Mark Foster credits Sirius XM's airplay with the song's success,
saying, "Alt Nation played our music before any other radio outlet in
the country."[13] On January 29, the song debuted on Billboard's Rock Songs chart and a week later, it debuted on the Alternative Songs chart. In May, the track debuted at number 96 on the Billboard Hot 100, and later that month, the group released their first full-length studio album, Torches. The success of "Pumped Up Kicks" and appearances on many late-night talk shows, including Last Call with Carson Daly, The Tonight Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, and The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, helped the record debut at number eight on the Billboard 200.[9]
To promote the album, the group undertook a concert tour in the US and
Europe for much of the second half of 2011, with most dates sold-out.[4] By the time the group took a break in December, they had toured for 10 consecutive months.[8]
"Pumped Up Kicks" proved to be a crossover hit,
charting across several different radio formats; in addition to peaking
at number one on the Alternative Songs chart in June and number three
on the Rock Songs chart in July, the song broke into the top 40 of the
Hot 100 in late July and appeared on the Adult Top 40 and Mainstream Top 40
charts. Columbia senior VP of promotion Lee Leipsner said, "It was one
of the only alternative bands I remember in a while that you could
actually dance to. And the fact that the record has a groove and
rhythmic feel to it—not heavy guitar-based at all—gave us a wide
opportunity to cross the record." He credits the song's crossover
success and push into the top 40 to a June presentation of new music by
Tom Poleman of Clear Channel.
According to Leipsner, "After we showed our presentation, we had so
many Clear Channel major-market programmers come up to us and say, 'The
record I want to play besides Adele
is Foster the People.'" "Pumped Up Kicks" peaked at number three on the
Hot 100, spending eight consecutive weeks at the position. According to
Nielsen Soundscan, over 321,000 copies of Torches have been sold in the US.[9] "Pumped Up Kicks" finished 2011 as the sixth-best-selling digital song of the year, with 3.84 million copies sold.[14]
The band was named in a lawsuit filed by Brandon Dorsky on May 24,
2011 alleging a breach of an oral contract between him and Foster, and
that Dorsky had named the band.[4] The case was settled for an undisclosed amount in July 2011.[citation needed]
Foster the People appeared as the musical guest on the October 8, 2011 episode of Saturday Night Live, playing "Pumped Up Kicks" and "Houdini". Kenny G appeared as a guest performer on the latter song.[15][16] At the end of the year, the group received two Grammy Award nominations: Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for "Pumped Up Kicks" and Best Alternative Music Album for Torches.[17] At the awards ceremony, the band and Maroon 5 performed with The Beach Boys, one of Foster's childhood idols, in a medley of songs to celebrate The Beach Boys' 50th anniversary.[18]
Reflecting on Foster the People's sudden rise to success, Foster said,
"For so many years, it was slow, playing in front of rooms full of 10
people and trying to get your friends to come... And then all of a
sudden, it kind of took off. It's been a fast incline, so we've had to
just work really hard, keep our heads down and just stay grounded. At
the same time, we've had a lot of fun during the process."[17]
The group toured throughout 2012 but planned to dedicate part of the year to writing and recording their second album.[19]
Foster said, "Hopefully we'll have a song or two out by the end of the
year... I'd like to get the album done pretty quickly but we're not
going to put something out until it's ready... I'd say in 2013 it'll be
out."[20] By the time the group's final US tour for Torches concluded in Las Vegas in July 2012, the group had played 295 shows in the previous 16 months.
Personnel
Two live musicians, Sean Cimino (guitar, keyboard, synthesizer, and
backing vocals) and Isom Innis (keyboard, synthesizer, piano, maracas,
percussion, and backing vocals), also tour with the band.[22] Cimino is credited with guitar on the track "Waste".[23]
Zach "Reazon" Heiligman (sampler, MPC (Music Production Center),
programming, digital percussion, SFX, other production, minimal backing
vocals) appears to have been a member of the band until early 2011;
however, he shares co-writer and additional production credits on "Miss
You" with Mark Foster. Heiligman, an MC and songwriter, is a close
friend of Mark Foster as well and worked with him on a hip-hop project.
Discography
Main article: Foster the People discography
- Studio albums
- Torches (2011)
- Extended plays
- Foster the People (2011)
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Nomination | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | MTV Video Music Awards | Foster the People | Best New Artist | Nominated |
| "Pumped Up Kicks" | Best Rock Video | Nominated | ||
| Q Awards | Foster the People | Best New Act | Nominated | |
| "Pumped Up Kicks" | Best Track | Nominated | ||
| SharkOne Awards | Foster the People | New Artist of the Year | Won | |
| WEQX Award | "Pumped Up Kicks" | Song of the Year | Won | |
| 2012 | 54th Grammy Awards | "Pumped Up Kicks" | Best Pop Duo/Group Performance | Nominated |
| Torches | Best Alternative Album | Nominated | ||
| 2012 BRIT Awards | Foster the People | International Breakthrough Act | Nominated | |
| NME Awards | Foster the People | Best New Band | Nominated | |
| "Pumped Up Kicks" | Dancefloor Anthem | Nominated | ||
| mtvU Woodie Awards | Foster the People | Woodie of the Year | Nominated | |
| Billboard Music Awards | Foster the People | Top New Artist | Nominated | |
| Foster the People | Top Rock Artist | Nominated | ||
| Torches | Top Rock Album | Nominated | ||
| Foster the People | Top Alternative Artist | Nominated | ||
| "Pumped Up Kicks" | Top Rock Song | Won | ||
| MuchMusic Video Awards | "Houdini" | International Video of the Year - Group | Nominated | |
| "Helena Beat" | Most Streamed Video of the Year | Nominated | ||
| Teen Choice Awards | Foster the People | Choice Rock Group | Nominated | |
| "Pumped Up Kicks" | Choice Rock Song | Nominated | ||
| MTV Europe Music Awards | "Foster The People" | Best Push | Nominated | |
| 2013 | 55th Grammy Awards | "Houdini" | Best Short Form Music Video | Nominated |
