Mi Casa frontman Joao da Fonseca doesn’t shy away from how tough the lockdown has been for him and his band.
Just like millions of musicians around the world, Mi Casa had all their live gigs cancelled, and lost plenty of revenue.
“It’s been really hard,” Fonseca said. “It’s not only about not being able to generate revenue, but about not being able to do what we love! It’s boxed inside of us, this energy. That’s been hard.
“But we have stayed focused, and found ways to carry on pushing through and still believing in the purpose of music.”
While the past year has been pretty grim for the award-winning group, it hasn’t held them back from progressing as a band and chasing their dreams.
Last week, they released their latest song, Chucks, which sees them collaborate with multi-platinum Berlin-based production duo, YouNotUs.
Despite being thousands of kilometres apart, the two music groups managed to create Chucks, thanks to technology.
“Everything was done virtually. Technology has helped us to connect in such an insane way.”
Fonseca, affectionately known as J’Something, said the collaboration has been a dream come true for the group.
“It was a virtual experience. They took the song to a whole new level. So far it’s been an absolute pleasure.”
Their collaboration with YouNotUs is the group’s first international collaboration since signing their international record deal with Afroforce1 Records/Universal Music Group.
“We were curious to find out how far we could go if we had a power team behind us, since everything we have done this far has been from an independent capacity.
“So here we are, pushing boundaries thanks to our label. The team at Universal and Afroforce have been phenomenal. They linked us with YouNotUs and had the vision for this collaboration.”
The song Chucks focuses on living well, says Fonseca.
“Chucks is about spending more time and giving more attention to living, and spending less time worrying about dying. It’s all about being super present and not giving up on our dreams.”
Fonseca adds that teaming up with YouNotUs ranks among the band's best collaborations so far.
“We’ve never really been about collaborating with names, but rather collaborating to create magic and great music. It’s not about who you are, it’s about the energy exchange.”
He says the group's latest track has always held a special place in his heart.
“It’s about making the most of every single moment because the future is not a given. Getting the YouNotUs touch to Chucks has completely transformed it and we can’t wait to see how it lifts people’s spirits.”
Asked if the group has any other exciting collaborations lined up, Fonseca said: “At the moment no, but there’s still so much music on the We Made It album that you can look forward to.”