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People’s Champs combines the hottest dance rhythms from West Africa and South America with retro-futurist synth tones, crafting them into indie songs with Stevie Wonder-esque lyrics. With their “crazy ass genre mash ups” (Blakbook), People’s Champs’ truly original sound is equal parts Sharon Jones, tUnE-yArDs, Os Mutantes, William Onyeabor, and Prince. Critics are calling People’s Champs a “New York supergroup!” (Lucid Culture) and “Well on their way to becoming NYC’s de facto Funk and Afrobeat experience” (Deli Magazine).

With feet placed equally in Brooklyn’s thriving indie rock community and it’s renowned retro funk & soul scene, bandleader Alex Asher founded People’s Champs inspired by the idea that music is for everyone: They creatively deliver a unique blend of powerful lyrics and danceable rhythms that relate to people from all walks of life. After rocking big events at The Guggenheim Museum and The MoMA, countless NYC underground parties, and a multiple-year monthly residency at Brooklyn creative music hotspot Barbès, People’s Champs released their first full-length album — “American Dreamers” — on October 23rd, 2015 on boutique Brooklyn label 3rd Generation Recordings.

The highly anticipated album, recorded half at Converse Rubber Tracks Studio in Williamsburg and half in bedrooms, living rooms and basements all over Brooklyn, was been in the works for over two years. Produced by Ian Hersey of internationally recognized group Rubblebucket, the album features nine original tracks.

“Hostages,” the first official single from the album, made its debut in July 2015 via Wax Poetics, who say the track “starts small but sneakily unravels into something really huge.” On the track, People’s Champs muse:

“In thinking about the larger shape of the tune, we found it best to embrace an unconventional song structure — depending on your point of view, this tune might not have a verse or a chorus. Also, lyrically, we were very inspired and influenced by Persian poet Hafez’s work “We Have Not Come to Take Prisoners”. We riffed on his words to suit our melodic ideas while staying true to his message. We hope Hafez digs it, wherever he is.

Consequence of Sound had the first listen of “Keep On Fighting,” an uplifting, punchy second single that feels like “a dance party waiting to happen, always changing and always excitable” (- CoS).

“The song is about fighting for yourself and not letting your dreams go. However, it’s more so about fighting for your dreams on behalf of all the people who have made sacrifices to help you. People who put aside their own needs to help you; people who have dreamed for you and love you so much that their dream is to see you live yours.” -PC

People’s Champs is an all-star collective featuring some of the most creative and original musicians in Brooklyn. Members of People’s Champs have performed internationally with artists including Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, Lip Talk, Bajah and Dry Eye Crew, Cuddle Magic and Delicate Steve, among others. People’s Champs feature members of The Superpower Horns, the recording studio horn section for Beyoncé Knowles. They arranged the horn lines on two of Beyoncé’s top albums, her 2013 surprise album Beyoncé and her 2011 effort 4. The song “Love on Top”, featuring the horns prominently, won a Grammy Award. The Superpower Horns recently became the touring horn section for Boy George & Culture Club and participated in the Club’s 2016 international tour.