Since Christina Chriss formed Kaleido in 2011, the female-fronted pop/rock band, featuring Chriss (vocals), Joey Fava (drums), Cody Morales (bass), Ronnie Rosolino (guitar) and Jamie Allen Burnham (guitar), Kaleido has reached nearly every milestone needed for a Detroit band to make it in the city. Now, with a new album in the works, a supportive fan base in KaleidoFam and a tour on the horizon, the band is ready to take things to the next level.
There are a lot of local bands that have been around a lot longer than Kaleido, yet they haven’t reached your level of success. What are you doing that they aren’t?
Christina: I don’t think there’s a secret. I knew the second I created the band that it was going to be successful. To succeed, you have to be ready to commit yourself 1,000%. If you don’t, then you’re not giving yourself completely to the project. We work as hard as we can. It never stops. I eat, sleep, and breathe music.
I also think success is about setting up a team who is as devoted and wants it as bad as you do. You’re only as strong as your team and you have to make sure you’re surrounding yourself with positive, good people.
You were given the opportunity to be a solo artist. Why’d you turn down that offer and form Kaleido instead?
Christina: It was one of those things that I didn’t have to think too hard about. A few years back, I had management in LA and was working a lot out there. Eventually, I was faced with the ultimatum of walking down the path of a solo artist or starting a band. I thought to myself, “Everyone is telling me to be a solo artist but I just really want to start a band and I really want to do it in Detroit.” So, that’s what I did. I came back to Detroit, started Kaleido and it’s been a nonstop, rollercoaster ride ever since.
I noticed that Kaleido rocks a ton of Detroit gear at every show. What’s it like being a band from Detroit?
Christina: It’s really cool to come from Detroit because there is so much history here. Detroit gets shed in a negative light a lot; and it’s funny because when people actually visit the city, they’re surprised by what they find since they were expecting the worst.
We want to rep Detroit everywhere we go. When we went to Vegas, we were all wearing “Made in Detroit” and “Detroit vs. Everybody” clothes. We’re very proud of where we come from and we make it a point to let everybody know.
This city has an awesome music scene, but it’s no secret that many musicians make the move to bigger markets like Los Angeles and New York City to further their careers. Why hasn't Kaleido done that?
Christina: I’m not a homebody type, but there’s something about Detroit that has kept us here. Detroit has a lot of hunger which makes it motivational for us. I like to work in those other places, too and do business there but everything we have, we’ve built here.
Plus, we have a world-class team in Detroit, like our management with Mikey Eckstein and Embarco Entertainment. It’s a hard-working group of people. With such a great team and how everything is going with the band, why leave?
Your fans are about as supportive as I’ve seen, to the point where they named themselves, KaleidoFam. Tell me about them.
Christina: Our fans are amazing. Jay Hudson compared them to Slipknot fans, who are probably the most dedicated fans in the world. KaleidoFam is just as big of a force. They call 89x and make them play our music. They organize contests amongst themselves. If I could offer advice to other bands, it’s meet your fans after you play a show. These are people who are coming to watch you and they want to know you. They want to feel like they’re a part of the project.
KaleidoFam is like our family. We’ve gotten to know them and it’s become very personal for them and us. It’s such a broad group of people that can’t be pinned down to one demographic. They all interact with one another and it’s become a community.
You’ve referred to you and the guys in your band as the “Justice League.” How do you think being so tight-knit will affect you as you move forward?
Christina: Here’s what I think is cool. We’re like a family and we’re used to each other. We know each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and we’re really good at bringing out the best in one another. Moving forward, the fact that we’re so tight is going to make everything easier. It’s not like some bands where they go on tour and suddenly they’re 5-deep in a hotel room trying to figure out how to make it all work. We’re already done that.
You’re recording new music for your next album. How has this time around been a different experience from your first album, "Kaleido"?
Christina: Our first album was all self-produced. On this upcoming release, we’re working with some world-class people including Chuck Alkazian at Pearl Sound in Canton. We also, have a Grammy-award winning producer, Emile Haynie who is based out of New York City and has worked with artists like Bruno Mars, Lana del Rey, Kanye West and Eminem.
The last album was mostly about sharing a positive and inspirational message. Does the album you’re currently working on have its own theme?
Christina: The songs are definitely more mature as far as subject matter. They’re a little sexier. The first record was an introduction to the band. These new songs are more situational but still relatable. I think people will see we’ve come a long way in a short amount of time.
Besides finishing and sharing this new album with your fans, what’s next?
Christina: There’s so much on the horizon. We’ve been blessed to do some amazing shows over the past year. We just opened for Kid Rock in Las Vegas which blew everyone’s minds. Being from Detroit, that’s huge. Aside from showing our fans how we’ve stepped up with our music, we’re about to go on our first real tour. It’s a small Midwest tour where we’ll be playing with Shinobi Ninja from Brooklyn. We played our first show ever with them and to be able to go on the road together now is exciting.
It’s going to be cool to get to experience our first round of touring. This is what we’ve wanted for a minute and now we get to do it.
To find out more about Kaleido and see tour dates, check out their Facebook page.
