Ricky Wilson on Kaiser Chiefs: 'We'll do it until they stop us, we'll keep going'

Virgin Radio

25 Mar 2022, 12:43

Kaiser Chiefs frontman Ricky Wilson says the band have no plans to slow down.

They've announced a new tour, and Ricky joined The Chris Evans Breakfast Show with Sky to talk about hitting the road again.

Chris asked how they decide when to tour, and said if he was in the Kaiser Chiefs he would be touring constantly.

"It's been 20 years!" joked Ricky. "We'll do it when we're allowed, until they stop us. We'll keep going. But you can't do it every day," he explained.

"We went on tour in 2019. Then something happened for a couple of years," he laughed, "but now we're back!"

They have a big tour planned for November 2022: "We've got The Fratellis with us too, and The Sherlocks."

Ricky asked Chris if he could have a tent again for Carfest, and Chris came up with a new idea for his auction.

"You could sleep on the stage because it's like a big tent, isn't it?" said Chris.

Ricky replied excitedly: "Do you know what? You should have that as an auction prize!" and Chris agreed: "Stay On The Stage! Let's do it. Lot 122, Stay On The Stage at Carfest. Not during the performance, obviously, but afterwards!"

"You plus 99 of your friends," he joked.

Chris asked about the songwriting process, and how they know they're onto a winner.

Ricky replied: "What we do is, we write a song, and then we will leave the room. Then we walk back into the room as if we're walking onstage. We then play it as if we're playing it in front of a massive crowd and we go 'yeah, that works' and that's it!"

He said there's another thing they think about when plotting out an album: "Track seven is always important for us, because historically, it was the first track on the second side of a record.

"Even though you don't really get that anymore, we'd always make that song another wake up moment."

Talking about the auction, Ricky also recalled a time the Kaiser Chiefs sold an item to a famous talkshow host.

"We went to play on Letterman, and David Letterman bought our drum kit!" he revealed.

"He came on stage at the end and said 'great drum kit. How much to have that?' Then later he came backstage and says 'seriously? How much?' and we sold it to him and donated the money to charity.

What good eggs.

For more great interviews listen to The Chris Evans Breakfast Show with Sky, weekdays from 6:30am on Virgin Radio, or catch up on-demand here.