New Orleans-based band Flow Tribe went from being a high school backyard band to working alongside former Cash Money Records producer Mannie Fresh for its 2017 album.
Flow Tribe got its start in 2004 when band members K.C. O’Rorke, Chad Penot, Mario Palmisano, Bryan Santos, Russel Olschner and Blake Quick were seniors in high school. John Michael Early joined in 2005. More than 11 years later, the group is on a seven-city tour and will stop in Baton Rouge to perform at the Varsity Theatre on Oct. 31.
“I know all of the members through high school at Brother Martin in New Orleans,” guitarist, songwriter and producer Bryan Santos said. “K.C. was our class president, actually, so before I knew him as a bandmate, I knew him as our class president.”
In 2006, the band began booking gigs wherever they could. During this time, both Santos and harmonicist, percussionist and pianist John Michael Early attended the University.
“I lived on campus for all four years, just a few blocks from The Varsity, so it’s fun to check in and see what’s good on the block,” Early said.
Flow Tribe performs everything from rock to hip-hop. While its sound is influenced by the band’s hometown, it is also heavily inspired by James Brown, Early said.
More than anything, the band wants their audience to be able to dance, move and have a positive experience. They’ve performed for a variety of audiences, including college bars and black-tie events.
“We normally don’t write a setlist for shows, which gives us the flexibility to play a few tunes, read the crowd and go from there,” Early said. “We jump from genre to genre pretty quickly, and it’s all upbeat, rhythmic and danceable, so we find that gives us some appeal across the board.”
In addition to their tour and album release, Flow Tribe is building a recording studio in New Orleans. The studio has been under construction for two years and is almost complete, Early said.
While on tour, Flow Tribe plans to rent the space to other musicians for recordings and rehearsals.
Group members said they hope to release their next album by early 2017. They teamed up with Mannie Fresh to bring more of a hip-hop and dance sound to the songs they had been writing and tweaking for nearly a year, Early said.
“Our typical audience is full of fun-loving, dance-craving, open-minded folks who are down to explore new music and join the party with us,” Early said.
Flow Tribe will join funk band Lettuce on The Varsity’s stage Halloween day at 8 p.m.

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Ari Ross

Flow Tribe's John Michael Early plays the washboard during the Voodoo Music and Arts festival on Oct. 31, 2015, in New Orleans City Park.