MUSIC: Rascals

Remember at school, when you got asked what you wanted to be when you grew up? The Week does. We wanted to be a zoologist because we thought it sounded brainy and we liked animals. Our sister wanted to be a fairy, but was quickly talked out of that.

Rascals lead singer Kay Willz, who The Week is on the phone to this week, didn't want to be a zoologist or a fairy – not that we know of, anyway.

He wanted to be a rapper and knew he would be, one day, even back then.

While many teachers would have scoffed and told him to go to uni and do something sensible, Kay had one who supported him, and didn't mind too much when he missed lessons to work on his music. Which was pretty cool, he says.

And it looks like music was the right career path to follow, if his work with the band in the past year is anything to go by.

Signed to Virgin Records in February 2012, Rascals went on to support Conor Maynard and Kendrick Lamar and are now preparing for their biggest headline tour to date.

It starts in Leicester tomorrow, so expect the four lads from Bow, East London, to be making quite a bit of noise.

"Energy," shouts Kay, when we ask what the show will be like. "We need to open it properly so hopefully – no, definitely – we're going to get there and give it 100 per cent. One hundred per cent energy. We try to make it big."

Emerging from the underground in a blaze of glory in the world of MCs, R&B and grime, Rascals have had support coming in thick and fast from the likes of DJ Target, Mistajam, Zane Lowe, Huw Stephens, Professor Green and Wiley, the latter being one of the band's biggest influences.

"We're from Bow, so there were all the people in our area, like Wiley, Tinchy Stryder, Dizzee Rascal and Roll Deep," he says. "We'd see them around and then the next thing they were on our TVs. It made us realise we could do it. Artists like them made it easier for us to come out."

Kay has known the other Rascals since he was about nine, and they've been making music since he was 12. He's 20 now.

"We've grown up together and music was like a second nature, and that was for most people there. If you weren't doing music, people would look at you like you were an outsider.

"For all of us, music was everything. I went to college but I wanted to do that for myself. After, I knew I would be doing music.

"I never actually thought about what I would do if it didn't work out. I always just gave it 100 per cent and believed.

"When it came to applying for uni, people were telling me to sign up, but I didn't. I just had faith.

"When we got signed and our old teachers found out, they were all e-mailing us, saying 'well done.' I was like, 'I told you, I told you we'd do it'.

"If I'd gone to uni I wouldn't have been able to give this 100 per cent. We dropped everything and just worked really hard for this."

Now they're reaping the rewards.

"I like to stay humble and live the same," says Kay. "I just want to do something with music every day, we all do. I never like to have a day without doing something with music and being productive.

"Our album should be out at the end of the year and it's nearly finished now. There's no deadline at the minute so we're just trying to better the songs.

"I see it as in 10 years time, if someone wants to find out about me, they want to search for our album, then it will always be there. So I want to make sure it's something I'm proud of.

"We don't want to have just one hit and then in two years time, no-one remembers us. We want to be around for a long time. We want to make real music that people genuinely like.

"That's the aim."

info

Rascals are on at the Shabang! night at the O2 Academy, Leicester, tomorrow.

Doors open at 10.30pm. Entry is £5. Over-18s only.

www.o2academyleicester.co.uk