
From The Artist : Jacob and Fanny’s music video for their debut single, “Miss You,” was directed by Jillian Martin, who has shot commercials for brands like Urban Outfitters, Samsung and Sunglass Hut. The duo themselves came up with the concept: “We wanted to convey the emotion of the song, which is two people missing each other, but we didn’t want to keep cutting back and forth between us. So we decided to show us both going through our day at the same time and showing how parallel our lives are even when we’re apart.” The couple, who decided to forego major label offers and remain independent, are used to working with minimal budgets: “We just ran around LA with our best friends, stealing shots super guerilla-style. It’s out of necessity, but it’s also so much fun and we love how raw and honest the footage feels.” The concept for the song came from a true story when, at the beginning of their relationship, the couple went through a rough patch and decided to take a break. The pair were feeling sad and decided to go out and ended up running into each other that night! They got back together and never looked back. In the video, though, the conclusion is more open-ended with the couple lying face to face on their separate beds. “There are no happily-ever-afters in any relationship,” says the duo. “In real life, it’s always to be continued…”
Once people hear pop duo Jacob and Fanny’s debut EP, their union will most certainly feel meant to be or even written in the stars—but it almost didn’t happen…
Within a year of their first show at The Hotel Café in Los Angeles, Jacob and Fanny had already landed a major label deal and worked with some of the music industry’s most celebrated writers and producers. Demos recorded in their living room found their way into the hands of industry legend L.A. Reid who immediately signed the group to Epic Records. They spent the next year penning songs and recording alongside heavyweights such as John Hill, Dave Cobb, Diane Warren, Ali Tamposi, Amy Wadge and Greg Wells. However, everything suddenly shifted.
The focus of the label changed, the project was shelved, and the pair asked to be released from their deal. “I was destroyed,” recalls Fanny. “It was such a rollercoaster, I fell into severe depression. I didn’t know if I could make music anymore. I didn’t know if Jacob and I could survive as a couple.”
“It tested us on every level,” adds Jacob. “We had to be each other’s rock and rally together. ”Ultimately, what didn’t kill Jacob and Fanny made them stronger. In the aftermath they linked up with producer John Cunningham [XXXTentacion]. Recording at Cunningham’s home studio, he captured the chemistry between them. The result is the duo’s most direct and visceral music to date. Cunningham highlights each of their voices and marries traditional instrumentation with synth drops and drum programming. The sound of their independent debut EP could best be described as “Lumineers meets Chainsmokers”.
Both Jacob and Fanny bring a distinct history and scope of experience to the sound. Born and raised in Montreal, Canada, Fanny began performing at only five-years-old, busking with her musician father before fronting a punk band as a teen, playing classical piano and French horn in high school and finally moving to New York in 2011 to chase her dream. In Miami Beach, Jacob taught himself piano and guitar, devoured his father’s record collection of greats like Bob Dylan and Paul Simon, launched a DJ business in middle school and attended Berklee College of Music. Following his first independent solo album, he dropped out to go on tour.
Their paths crossed through a shared vocal coach who thought the two songsters might hit it off. They met for the first time at a cafe on Melrose Avenue after both had relocated to Los Angeles. They felt an instant spark. The pair started writing songs together and fell in love. Two years later, Jacob proposed to Fanny at the same cafe, same table, serenading her while onlookers filmed on their phones.
The duo capitalized on that spark from the first note, and it shines throughout the EP.
On the first single “Miss You,” acoustic guitar and handclaps bubble up under Jacob’s deep delivery before he locks into a call-and-response with Fanny on the shimmering and soaring refrain. “Our relationship has never been a straight line. Early on we went through a rough patch and decided to take a break,” Jacob explains. “I couldn’t endure it though. I was feeling sad and decided to go out to clear my head and ended up running into Fanny that night! We drew on that experience for the song. Being together can be challenging but being apart is impossible. We got back together and haven’t looked back since.”
On “Home,” they tell another true story over a high-energy beat of escaping hectic city life to reconnect in nature: “We often had to rent out our place in LA because we didn’t have enough money to pay the rent. We’d take our dog, drive to the mountains and sleep in a tent.”
Whether they’re talking about vulnerability on their ballad “Hold On To Me” or being each other’s accomplice on “Ride Or Die”, Jacob and Fanny put the top down on their world, giving listeners a glimpse into a true romance. “Our music tells the story of our relationship, but it also is the relationship,” Jacob says. “Our love was born from music, it inspires the work, it’s all connected.”
“We’ve gone through extreme highs and lows, but we’re madly in love and we’re telling our story,” Fanny concludes. “Everything is real. There’s no veil or anything. It starts with Jacob and me, but it’s much bigger than us. We want to uplift people and share that realness.”
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