Interview de Cherisse en anglais!
"So your school starts a drum club and within ten years you are sitting pretty in one of the best jobs music has to offer. Add into the equation the fact that you''re a young woman in what is still a male dominated game and it is clear your star is on the rise.
Welcome to the world of Cherisse Ofosu-Osei who has enjoyed a fascinating musical odyssey from schoolgirl prodigy in a hard-rocking heavy metal band through all-girl pop rock to occupying the engine room of powerhouse pop sensation Mika. And she''s still only 20.
"I still can''t believe it," she says. "I am living the dream."
It''s a far cry from the days when the Mickey Mouse drum kit bought for a five-year-old Cherisse went "missing" after just a month or so of being bashed. Her long-suffering parents decided it was better on their ear drums to hide it away. She giggles at the memory: "It''s funny but an uncle bought me my first kit when I was five. I loved it but it suddenly disappeared. My mum said it was broken."
But in her teenage years those same long-suffering parents Eddie and Suzanne indulged and supported their daughter in her chosen recreation, buying her first kit - a Pearl Forum - and driving her to and from gigs. That support hasn''t wavered today and you sense speaking to the effervescent Cherisse that they remain a huge influence on her life. "My parents have been amazing," she admits readily.
It must have been a brave decision for them, as Cherisse was out on gruelling tours whilst still studying at the North London comprehensive that helped spark her interest in rumming.
"They got a drum kit at school and started a drum club. I went along and I was hooked. I thought it would be cool and I just fell in love with drumming. I was 11."
A year later and she was playing in school bands; with the school choir; for school plays. There was a bit of stick from her peers, after all she was a girl playing drums, but her best friend Emily also took up drumming and the pair immersed themselves in their new found interest.
"We used to get up at 6am and go into school so we could practice. We loved it," said Cherisse. "We entered the Young Drummer Of The Year competition and just lived drums. It felt amazing. It just clicked in my brain. I just enjoyed it so much and I knew it was what I wanted to do."
The erstwhile singing, acting and dancing Cherisse decided drumming was the be-all-and-end-all of life. "I found I could express myself through drumming." But then life was to throw a challenge at a then 16-year-old. Tony Dolan, bassist with heavy rock band Venom was starting a new project,Mantas, and through a friend of her dad"s Cherisse was offered an opportunity to audition.
"I got a CD of the tracks and there was this insane double bass playing," she recalls. "I hadn''t really done that much double bass and spent a week learning before the audition. I had been in rock, gospel and blues bands but this was something different. I got it and I think it really helped my playing.
"We supported Fear Factory in the Earthshaker Festival, which was wicked. It was very strange because the people that came to see us were all blokes with tattoos. I was the only girl there. In fact, when the band was sound checking a security guard wouldn''t let me on stage at first. He didn''t believe I was the drummer. After the gig he came up and asked for my autograph."
By this time East-London born Cherisse, transplanted into North London at the age of eight, was having lessons with Mike Dolbear and through him was recommended for a new group, The Faders. She remains a pupil of Dolbear''s to this day, adding: "If it wasn''t for him I probably wouldn''t be where I am now."
She was recruited into The Faders, fronted by Midge Ure''s daughter Molly and signed a record deal at the aged of 17. It came in between her first and second year studying A-levels and, with her parents'' backing, Cherisse quit school for the recording studio and the road.
"We got a record deal with Polydor. It was one of the happiest moments of my life, something that people dream of. We started recording the album, went to Los Angeles for the video shoot. We released our second single, Jump, and went out on a tour of Britain supporting Kelly Clarkson. It was intense."
The album allowed Cherisse to put her own seal on the tracks. "I wrote some of the drum parts myself, while other songs were already written but I could my seal on the way I played them," she says. "I like to play for the groove, the song. It"s nice to be able to put a bit of yourself into your playing, whether it is for the album or live."
With the belief pop music was dying, Cherisse and her fellow bandmates decided to pull the curtain down on The Faders. Then she got a job with Swedish "pop, folk, country, rock" act Calaifa, supporting Simply Red on a UK tour of stately homes.
The day after that ended, she was called for a chat with Mika. At that stage the global hit "Grace Kelly" was yet to be unleashed on an unsuspecting public and she didn"t really know much about the soon-to-be-superstar.
"I had a chat with Mika and his management. I hadn"t an idea about who he was, but I looked at his Myspace and thought he was cool. I was offered the job and the first gig was in Ibiza. It was a blast. Just amazing. "It"s a great feeling, which can be quite hard to describe. You don"t really stop and think about it really. You"re too busy. The schedule is absolutely ridiculous. But I know how lucky I am."
While Matt Chamberlain laid the tracks down for Mika''s album, Cherisse has been encouraged to do things a little different live. "Mika is great," she says. "He gets you involved. You are part of Mika, not just session musicians. You are made to feel like you belong. Matt''s parts were great. He is a great drummer with a great feel. I play his parts but give them my feel. There are some bits we do live that aren''t on the record. I even get to solo."
So does being the engine room for a number one artist, with gigs in Japan, Denmark, France, Spain, and high profile appearances at T4 On The Beach and elsewhere in Europe and the UK, mean Cherisse has peaked? Far from it. She maintains lessons will help her in her quest to be an even better drummer. "I am 20, and I feel I have a long way to go with my playing. I will probably still be having lessons when I''m 50," she jokes. "I am still developing. When you''re on the road with a hectic tour schedule you don''t always get the chance to practice. I love it when I get home and can go for a lesson. These are the years when you are meant to be developing most."
Endorsements with Zildjian, Roland and Vic Firth have come a calling, more proof that the modest Cherisse can mix it with the best of them.And she has been quick to seek out fellow drummers on tour, talking about set ups, approaches to drumming. Playing a simplistic one-up, one-down kit, with a ride, two crashes, hats and now an 8in splash, she recently enjoyed a lesson with Thomas Lang, he of the super-sized kits.
Cherisse, brought up by a father into soul, funk and hip-hop, and a mother into The Beatles and Led Zeppelin, enjoys a wide spread of musical influences. Snowboy''s 24 For Betty Page is a personal drumming favourite. "Go out and buy it," she urges. "It is just brilliant." Her fantasy gig would be with John Mayer - "He''s a fantastic guitarist" - or Prince, who has helped promote women drummers by his use of the likes of Sheila E, and most recently Cora Coleman Dunham. "Sheila E was an inspiration for me," reveals Cherisse. "She is sexy and glamorous. She is a brilliant player. All that and high heels. Now I am becoming a bit of a role model for other girls wanting to take up drumming. A mum came to me the other week and said her daughter had taken up drums because of me. That was a lovely feeling. There''s no reason women should be drummers. It doesn''t matter who you are, but if you can play a basic two or four, then that''s all that''s needed. "Some drummers try and show off with long solos, but I''m all about the groove."
Cherisse talks of being lucky, but without the ability would not have landed a series of prestigious jobs. She is dismissive of her future, simply enjoying the moment. And what a moment. "Mika is unbelievable live," she says. "He is classically trained and his vocal range is ridiculous. He''s got to be one of the most exciting artists live and he''s really nice. He wants you to be involved, listens if you''ve got ideas. It''s very rare you get real ''stars'' these days, but that''s what he is and I love being part of it. "I even get my little drum solo, which is cool. You should always try and put your own personal stamp on the music. Everyone has their own groove. With Mika I play Matt''s parts the way I would play them and the way I feel is right. Mika encourages that. It''s a brilliant job."
And who knows, John Mayer or Prince may just be watching."
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Mar 13 Nov 2007 - 16:50
! Je savais qu'elle était jeune,mais je pensais pas qu'elle avait seulement 20 ans ! ^^
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