By J.C.

TORONTO, Ont. (andPOP) – When you hear the word ?boyband?, it conjures up an image of five guys: the cute younger one, the older gorgeous one, the two that are related, and the bad boy. So why then, is soulDecision labeled as just another boy band?



The group is composed of Trevor Guthrie, Dave Bowman, and Ken Lewko. The latter took some time out to talk it up with andPOP to help clear up some questions their fans might have. Ken, quiet little Ken, whom, if soulDecision

was a boyband, would probably be labeled the younger cute one; or maybe he’s the bad boy?



“Well I mean I basically play the keyboard and I do some writing as well and I do a lot of the computer work and stuff like that.” He’s definitely the cute one.



Boyband or not, soulDecision still has it’s throngs of screaming fans, dedicated supporters and the odd crazy one. “We’ve had some stalkers following us around and stuff,? Ken admits. ?But generally, they?re just normal fans. Like one girl got us albums of our favourite bands like an old Ran vinyl album, and a Duran Duran one. One girl made us flowers out of a spongy material, things like that.”



It might seem to some that soulD’s rise to fame has been almost instantaneous, but most don’t know that the guys have been together since college, struggling to get a record deal. It is common fan knowledge that their original name was indecision, and the first place their fans ever saw them was on CBC’s Jonovision. Since then, things may have

seemed to come pretty easy to Trevor, Dave and Ken, but Ken argues otherwise.



“It’s hard to break into any country. It was easier in Canada because we have Canadian content, so you’ll get played more because you’re Canadian. We had Much Music helping us out, whereas in the States, they have no reason to play us unless the song was good. It was definitely harder. The States is a very interesting monster to face: Radio has to sell the song and then you really have to work to get onto MTV, and then once you’re on MTV, you start getting to other TV.



“We’re just trying to make sure, to be a success all around the world. With the new songs in the States, we’re starting to go to Europe and Australia. And hopefully in the next year we can go all over the place.”



soulDecision already has fans all over the place, with some thanks going to the help of their ever growing e-squad, which runs off their official site www.soulDecision.com. The e-squad keeps fans informed of changes with the guys, upcoming tours, and gets the fans involved in the band. “Any way the fans can get closer to us, I think it helps. We’re pleased with the work that’s going-on on the Internet.. A lot of fans can’t get to meet and greets [like when] we go to major cities, and [with the e-squad], fans can say ‘I liked this song’ or ‘I didn’t like this song’ or ‘I’m glad you did this’ or ‘I saw you in concert here.’ It’s just a way to drop a little line, and they don’t have to meet us.”



So in the end, how does Ken feel about being classified as a boyband?

“Sometimes it bothers us, but I think that we try to educate people, and make sure that they understand that we aren’t just a boyband. We’re actually a real band, and I think as for classifying our music, I mean we just try and classify it as good music. We don’t try and put a label on it because we’ve got elements of everything. We’ve got some rock stuff, we’ve got some pop stuff, [and] we’ve got some R&B funk stuff. So it?s just trying to write good songs and not really worrying about a classifying name.”

andPOP.com POPquiz

andPOP: If you were stranded on a desert island, which 3 CDS would you bring with you?

Ken: Tori Amos- Little Earthquakes, Duran Duran- Greatest Hits, and Dido- No

Angel.

andPOP: If you could be another member of soulDecision for a day, who would you be and why?

Ken: I’d be Dave. Dave takes everything in stride. He’s really easy

going,

doesn’t get too wrapped up in the business and things and stuff. He always

seems to be able to get a date.

andPOP: So out of the band, he’s the one that gets the most girls?

Ken: Yeah he’s got a style. He’s good.

andPOP: What is your favourite thing to do when you get on the

Internet?

Ken: Usually it’s to return all the emails I need to send back. I like

finding out new stuff. There are so many things you need to look up. If

you’re looking for something to buy or to get information, there’s just so

many ways to find it; you spend so much time looking for things.

andPOP: Do you ever go to fan sites?

Ken: Actually I do, especially if a friend tells me ‘you have to check

out

this site that someone made for you.’ And it just amazes me the time people

put into these sites, it’s just amazing.

There’s one called “Kuddle Me Ken.” It’s by a girl named Ashley and I’ve met her a couple times. And she’s just really cool. I told her how amazed I was by the work she put into it. There’s a couple cool ones, it

just amazes me.

andPOP: Who did you want to win on Survivor, and will you be

watching the upcoming one on January 28th?

Ken: When the whole Survivor thing was happening, we were on the road

and

we didn’t have a lot of time to watch it. We were usually on stage. We

heard about it. From what I know, I wanted that truck driver lady to win.

We recorded that album in Australia so it would be kind of neat to see what

they do in the Outback, but I doubt we’ll have time to watch it.

andPOP: Speaking about having time, do you still watch Star Trek all

the time?

Ken: As much as I can. I’m really upset I haven’t been able to watch all

the latest episodes of Voyager. I have all the DVDs of all the movies so I

watch those whenever I have a chance.

Did you win our soulDecision contest? Check the contest page to find out.






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