Pete Philly & Perquisite

Perquisite (Amsterdam, 1982) and Pete Philly (Aruba, 1980) decided to join forces to form the producer/MC-duo Pete Philly & Perquisite in 2003 when they met through a mutual friend.

The first result of this soulful coalition was the Mindstate EP, which had it’s release in January 2004 on Unexpected Records. The Mindstate EP was very positively regarded by the international press and recieved airplay on BBC1 were it was played by Benji B. Pete & Perq continued their collaboration and in march 2005 they released their 17-track debut album Mindstate, which was released all over Europe & Japan. It contained featurings by vocalists Talib Kweli, CeeMajor and Senna as well as featurings by internationally known jazz musicians Jesse van Ruller and Benjamin Herman. UK magazine Notion Magazine proclaimed their music to be “as much 21st century soul as Hip Hop genius” and continued with mentioning Mindstate as “one of the most profound Hip Hop albums of the year”. Talib Kweli added that “musically these guys are light-years ahead of the game.”

Pete & Perq started to play with their 5-piece live formation throughout Europe and received several awards including the Essent Award, the Zilveren Harp, the Kink FM Live XS Award for Best New Live Act and were nominated for the Edisons (Dutch Grammy’s), 3FM Awards, TMF Awards and the MTV European Music Awards.

After extensive touring all over Europe and shows in South Africa and the United States, where the album was released now as well through ANTI records, Pete & Perq finished their tour in September 2006 in a sold out Melkweg in Amsterdam. Pete & Perq went back to the studio to work together on their sophomore album. During this non-touring period ‘Remindstate’ was released, the totally remixed version of the Mindstate album. The record, which was released January 2007, included remixes from several musical friends of the duo, like Seiji (Bugz in the Attic), Nicolay (The Foreign Exchange), C-Mon & Kypski, Morgan Spacek, Laidback Luke and the Metropole Orchestra and was well received by both the audience as the press.

In September 2007 their second album, Mystery Repeats, was released in The Netherlands through Unexpected Records / ANTI Records. A Belgium release followed on January 21st 2008, the European release on February 18th and the Japanese release on March 5th 2008. The album entered first position in the Dutch album charts in the week of its release and first single ‘Time Flies’ received a lot of radio- and airplay. The album received a lot of critical acclaim and major Dutch newspaper NRC Handelsblad wrote down that “Mystery Repeats sometimes almost explodes because of it’s creative energy” alongside De Volkskrant that described the album as being “even richer in sound and more diverse than their debut album.”

Pete & Perq started the Mystery Repeats tour in a sold out Melkweg with their new and improved live formation – besides Pete on vocals, Perq on laptop and cello, DJ PCM on turntables, Remco Keijzer on saxophones and flute and Kasper Kalf on bass, it now also included Ruben Hein on keys and vocals - and started to play shows all over Europe. In march of 2008 they toured around Japan and in April of that same year they toured together with Leeroy from Saian Supa Crew in Germany. In the summer of 2008 they played at well known festivals across Europe including Sziget (HU), Nuke (AT), Exit (SR), Lowlands (NL), HipHop Open (DE), North Sea Jazz (NL), Gurten (CH) and Summerjam (DE). When they got back in Amsterdam they received the prestigious ‘Amsterdam Award of Art’, the most important art award of the city, presented by Amsterdam mayor Job Cohen. At this time their third single ‘Mystery Repeats’ entered the Dutch Top 40 and became their most successful single up to this date, with the accompanying video receiving around one million hits on youtube. Pete Philly & Perquisite concluded the Dutch part of the Mystery Repeats tour in a sold out Paradiso, Amsterdam, only to continue touring abroad. Shows in the Caribbean, the USA and South Africa followed, where they played for the second time on the Cape Town International Jazz Festival.

After the extensive touring period Pete and Perq both felt it was time to focus on other projects besides Pete Philly & Perquisite. Perquisite was asked to compose the entire score for Dutch movie ‘Carmen van het Noorden’. The film, which was released on September 24th 2009, has been produced by Fu Works (Black Book, Oorlogswinter) and stars Tygo Gernandt and Sanguita Akkrum in the lead rolls, as well as Thom Hoffman. For the soundtrack Perquisite has worked with the cream of the crop of the Dutch Hip Hop scene, including GMB, Jiggy Djé, Turk, Duvel, Typhoon and Sticks. On the Dutch Film Festival 2009 Perquisite was awarded with a ‘Gouden Kalf’, Holland’s most prestigious movie award, for his achievement. A very big honour, considering the fact that this was his first experience with film music. Right now Perquisite is working on his official debut album which will probably be released September 2010.

Pete Philly decided to expand on production work, songwriting and composing new material as well as landing the lead role as an actor in the play Man From Nowhere. The first full length Pete Philly release is due in 2010.

As we speak Pete Philly & Perquisite just finished their final tour which they called ‘The Final Celebration Tour’. With an enlarged 13-piece live formation Pete & Perq did celebrate their music one last time in 17 different theatres around Holland. They gave their final show in a sold out Melkweg on October 29th which Dutch Magazine Oor called a ‘glorious goodbye celebration’.

PETE PHILLY & PERQUISITE LIVE FORMATION

• Pete Philly: lead vocals
• Perquisite: beats / cello
• Kasper Kalf: bass
• Ruben Hein: keys / backup-vocals
• Floris van der Vlugt: saxophones / flute
• DJ PCM: turntables / backup-vocals
• Rory van der Oest: sound engineer f.o.h.
• Tim van der Does: sound engineer / tourmanager
• Wonne Back: light technician

PRESS QUOTES ON MYSTERY REPEATS (2nd album)

“MYSTERY REPEATS BECAME A JEWEL IN ALL ASPECTS”
5 OUT OF 5 NIEUWE REVU, NL - SEPTEMBER 2007

“THIS IS THE CREAM OF THE CROP OF DUTCH HIP HOP” OOR, NL - OCTOBER 2007

“MYSTERY REPEATS IS IN EVERY ASPECT THE SUPERLATIVE OF IT’S PRECEDOR” DE STANDAARD, BE - JANUARY 2008

“A FANTASTIC, HARMONIOUSLY RICH ALBUM” ROLLING STONE, DE - FEBRUARY 2008

“FINALLY SOME REAL GOOD MUSIC.” 8.4 OUT OF 10. (FIRST HIP HOP ALBUM EVER TO CLAIM THE NUMBER ONE SPOT IN THE ‘SOUNDCHECK’). VISIONS MAGAZINE, DE – MARCH 2008

“MYSTERY REPEATS IS EVEN RICHER IN SOUND AND MORE DIVERSE THAN THE DEBUT ALBUM”
4 OUT OF 5 VOLKSKRANT, NL - SEPTEMBER 2007

“SOMETIMES THE SECOND ALBUM OF PETE PHILLY & PERQSUISITE ALMOST EXPLODES BECAUSE OF IT’S CREATIVE ENERGY”
4 OUT OF 5 NRC-HANDELSBLAD, NL - SEPTEMBER 2007

“MYSTERY REPEATS IS THE PRODUCT OF TWO VERY TALENTED MUSICIANS; DUTCH HIP HOP NEVER SOUNDED THIS RELAXED, HARMONIOUSLY RICH AND MUSICALLY INSPIRED BEFORE” 4 OUT OF 5 ALGEMEEN DAGBLAD, NL - SEPTEMBER 2007

PRESS QOUTES ON MINDSTATE (debut album):

“AS MUCH 21st CENTURY SOUL AS HIP HOP GENIUS. (…) ONE OF THE MOST PROFOUND HIP HOP ALBUMS OF THIS YEAR.” NOTION MAGAZINE, UK - APRIL 2005

“(THEY) SUCCEED WHERE SO MANY DISSIDENT B-BOYS HAVE FAILED. (…) HIP HOP LOOKS GOOD IN ORANGE.” Q MAGAZINE, UK - MAY 2005

“HOLLAND’S OWN FREEFORM B-BOY WONDERS. (…) MORE COLOURFUL UPON EACH LISTEN.” DJ MAGAZINE, UK - APRIL 2005

“WITH MINDSTATE (UNEXPECTED) DROPPED A 17 TRACK LITTLE JEWEL ON EARTH.” SKATEBOARD MAGAZINE, GER - APRIL 2005

“BRILLIANT.” 5 OUT OF 5 THE PAROOL, NL - APRIL 2005

“A MUST-HAVE CD TO SEE YOU THROUGH SPRINGTIME AND BEYOND. (..) (IT) HARKS BACK THE GLORY DAYS OF A TRIBE CALLED QUEST.”
4 OUT OF 5 THE SUN, UK - APRIL 2005

“THIS IS DEFINITELY ONE OF THE BEST MUSICAL EXPERIENCES THAT HAS EVER HAPPENED TO ME; IT WILL STAY IN MY CD-PLAYER FOR A LONG TIME.”
5 OUT OF 5 KINGSIZE, SWEDEN - JUNE 2005

“MUSICALLY THESE GUYS ARE LIGHT-YEARS AHEAD OF THE GAME.” TALIB KWELI, US - JANUARY 2005

PRESS QUOTES ON LIVE-SHOWS:

“PP&P IMPRESSED THE MOST. THEY PUT HIPHOP TO A HIGHER LEVER BY MIXING IT WITH JAZZ AND EVEN CLASSICAL MUSIC IN AN ENERGETIC, POWERFUL, AND STYLISH SHOW.” NRC HANDELSBLAD, NL - JANUARY 2008

“PETE PHILLY IS UNDOUBTEDLY ONE OF THE MOST ORIGINAL, INSIGHTFUL AND INTELLIGENT EMCEES IN THE BUSINESS TODAY, AND HIS CONFIDENCE IN THAT SKILL MAKES HIS LIVE PERFORMANCE ABSOLUTELY BLOW UP.” BLUNT MAGAZINE, SOUTH AFRICA - MAY 2005

“PETE PHILLY & PERQUISITE SHOW THAT YOU CAN BE SURPRISING WITHIN A CERTAIN TRADITION. WITH ORIGINAL INSTRUMENTATIONS THAT ARE BEING COMBINED WITH A JAZZY GROOVE THEY PROOVE THAT DUTCH HIPHOP, UNLIKE IT’S AMERICAN BROTHER, IS STILL DEVELOPING.” VOLKSKRANT, NL - JANUARY 2008

AWARDS & NOMINATIONS:

2005:

- Winner Essent Award
- Nominated for Best Album of the year by 3voor12
- Nominated for 2 Dutch Mobo Awards: Best Live Act and Best Album

2006:

- Winner Silver Harp (Zilveren Harp)
- Winner Kink FM Live XS Award: Best New Live Act
- Nominated for 2 Edisons: Best Group and Best New Group
- Nominated for 3 3FM Awards: Best Artist R&B & HipHop, Best Album and Best New Artist
- Nominated for TMF Awards: Best New Artist
- Nominated for MTV European Music Award: Best Dutch/Belgian Act (Other nominees: Kane, Deus, Anouk, Gabriel Rios)
- Nominated for Urban Awards: Best Live Act
- Nominated for Party Peeps 2000 Awards: Best Live Act
- Winner of the Gouden Greep 2006 for Most Original Collaboration and nominated for Best Group and Best Live Act

2007:

- Nominated for 2 Urban Awards: Best Album & Best Live Act
- Nominated for 6 Gouden Grepen: Best Group, Best Album, Best Live Act, Best Song, Best Video, Best Producer (Perquisite)

2008:

- Nominated for Gouden Notenkraker: Music
- Nominated for 3FM Awards: Best Artist Alternative
- Winner of the Amsterdamprijs voor de Kunst
- Nominated for MTV Europe Music Award
- Nominated for three State Awards: Best Group, Best Live Act & Best Single

2009:

- Nominated for an Edison: Best Song (Mystery Repeats)
- Nominated for 3FM Awards 2009: Best Artist Alternative
- Perquisite wins ‘Duiveltje’ for best producer in The Netherlands
- Perquisite wins the ‘Gouden Kalf’ for best film music for ‘Carmen van het Noorden’
- Nominated for two State Awards: Best Live Act & Best Producer (Perquisite)

Website: petephillyandperquisite.com

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