Nana Kruger and Tez Thompson met each other seven years ago at the Conservatory of Amsterdam, when they were 15 years old, and their musical connection was instant. They have been creating and performing together ever since. Despite their own projects and several collaborations with bands like Zuco103, they always find their way back to each other. With soft melodies, warm harmonies and sincere lyrics, NanaxTez invite you into their unique musical bond. Before their session at Hidden Gem Studio in Amsterdam, we had a moment to reflect on their history, process, and dreams.
T: We are NanaxTez, and we're going to be doing some of our own songs today. Actually, mainly our own songs that we wrote many years ago. We do have a new one today that we'll be playing for you. But yeah, these are songs that we wrote when we were still getting to know each other musically.
N: When we were 15, actually.
T: Yeah,16 is when we started writing some of these. So it's a while back for us. Way back.
N: So I feel like what we do is kind of a mixture of all the things that we really enjoy. So for example, Brazilian music, but also really the R&B harmonic side of that. And the melodies and harmonies that kind of live on their own, as well as together. And that creates a really interesting soft sound. He's doing the pop department for piano and vocals, actually. And I just graduated in jazz. So combining our thing and making that a thing that suits the both of us is really interesting and really special. And besides that, we're good friends, so that helps.
How do you feel in this current chapter of your life, in your music, in your art?
T: Yeah, I mean, we were talking about that earlier because things are going to be a little different now, because Nana will be living in New York in a couple of months, and I'll be graduating next year as well. So we're not going to really have the same dynamic that we did before, but... N: Yeah, it feels like unfinished business, I guess. But in the best way, actually.
T: Hopefully it'll never be finished.
N: No, I think that's also the goal, right? And also, me going away doesn't mean that I won't be here and that we won't see each other and play with each other. I feel like music is too important and the connection is too strong to let distance get in the way of that.
Are there any upcoming dates or releases in store for NanaxTez in the near future?
T: That's a good question. Do we have any more performances coming up before you leave? I feel like actually this is the last one.
N: This might be the last one for real. Because yeah, I'm leaving in less than two months. So we've done a few big gigs in the last two months. And then this was supposed to be the last one. And I mean, I guess we're really talking about releasing.
T: Yeah, we would like to release this session and also the previous session, so that we have an acoustic rendition of these songs. Because we just wanted to show what we sound like live. To have that on record since that's really our pure sound. So that's what we're gonna be releasing soon together.
Tijmen de Nooy Photography
Is there a message you’d like to convey in your music?
T: Yeah. I mean, I think we speak, we do speak a lot from personal experiences. And through the genres that we explore and the harmonies, and how we interpret them, I think we always have very strong like themes of love and and also it can be quite emotional.
N: Definitely. Yeah.
T: And it can be in an intense way, but we also have songs that are about the circumstances of how you can get lost within your own emotions, or your own head, or your love. You know what I mean? But I think we always find it important to convey that that's okay to get lost within those emotions. And that's also what we like to represent in our music as well.
N: And I feel like we write about toxic love the most, which is really interesting. It's a theme. But what I really love about writing with you is that I realize a lot of things during the writing process that I might not have realized if I didn't write the songs that we write together. So it's also kind of a therapy thing. And speaking from the heart always.
T: It's definitely a way for us to process our own journeys.
How has the sound of NanaxTez been shaping up over the last 7 years together?
N: It's really interesting. I feel like we started out with a lot more standards and jazz because we met in the Junior Jazz College of the Conservatory. So that was kind of what we were both busy with. But besides that, the R&B side really attracted us to each other. And not a lot of people in the CVA were doing that. So you, for example, were really my first R&B soulmate in this sense. So I feel like we used to do a lot of R&B and then we started writing more.
T: I started writing more and I think lately the Brazilian influences have been stronger than before. That's also because I think, instead of performing standards, we would switch over to bossanova because people would still recognize them, but they would be a lot more fun for us to play.
N: And a lot closer to that R&B sound and melody and harmony. So I guess...
T: Yeah, that's us. Evolved.
N: We changed a bit during that process as well.
T: Yeah, for sure.
N: The evolution of NanaxTez, yes. It's not our final form yet. No, unfinished business.
T: That's right.
Do you have any dreams for NanaxTez in the future?
T: I mean, I know that we would both really like to tour the world together because that's always been an ambition of ours. We've talked about that a lot. It's been a while since we talked about that because I think we're more focusing more on short term goals now that we're in the more legitimate part of our career. But yeah, that would... Right? We still wanna do that.
N: Yeah, taking each other on tour and stuff, you know, like we're both artists in our own way, but when we come together, it's a whole new artist thing. And combining those two is kind of what makes us us. So doing that on tour together would be great. And finally releasing an EP.
T: That's probably the first priority. It's about time.
Is there anything else you’d like to share?
N: Dream big, very cliche, but dream big and keep the soulmates, musical soulmates and connections close because they matter a lot. And having a friendship out of that, it's a unique bond, it's a unique connection that I don't have with anyone else actually. So it's very special if you find that, hold on to that because it's important.
T: That's a good one for sure. I agree with that. Keep people that inspire you close.
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