Front row: Le’Ron White. Back row, from left: Chris Noble, Che Guy, Deja Watson-Chandler, Parker Louis, Jordan Lewis, Aaron White
The Lineup
Parker Louis, guitar/vocals
Aaron White, keys
Leron White, bass
Jordan Lewis, drums
Deja Watson-Chandler, vocals
Che Guy, vocals
Chris Noble, vocals
Broad & High Presents: “Only Fire” by Parker Louis
Parker Louis:
I grew up in Akron, Ohio, and went to middle/high school in Huron, on Lake Erie. I went to Capital University and graduated in 2012 – that’s where I cut my teeth in the music scene here in town.
I had been performing with my previous project, Forest & The Evergreens, since 2013. And I would occasionally cross paths with Deja and Che, and we’d talk about linking up one day and playing music together. It never really happened, though, as those things usually go in passing.
In 2017, I was working with a good friend of mine, T.Wong, producing a record of his (The Upside Down). His group performing live at the time was Aaron White (keys), Le’Ron White (bass) and Jordan Lewis (drums), and then myself on guitar. So the four of us really connected right away.
Broad & High Presents Web Exclusive: “No Love Lately” by Parker Louis
When Forest & The Evergreens decided to take a hiatus, I knew it was time for me to sort of branch out on my own and keep writing and releasing music – but in what way I wasn’t totally sure. The timing of everything was really just spot on, and I asked Aaron to work on some music I was writing. And I happened to run into Deja, Che and Chris at a cancer benefit that T.Wong’s mother hosts every year, actually.
So I really owe this whole band to T.Wong! Ha! In short, all of those moments happened right in the same two-week period, and I knew we were onto something. Our first show was October 22, 2017.
Broad & High Presents Web Exclusive: “Vibe” by Parker Louis
Our sound is really just an amalgamation of groove and color – R&B/soul/love + energy. We always have a blast on stage. We hope our energy comes across and gives the listener something to feel, something to take with them! It’s all love. We are all over town! Wherever you hear an eruption of laughter, that’s usually us.
Each of the songs we performed for Broad & High Presents were from our first EP, All Good Things, Pt. One. They each have their own sort of generalization of a different period of a relationship – beginning, middle, end, in between love, etc.
First CD I bought myself, I think, was Surfer Rosa by the Pixies and Soup by Blind Melon. Same purchase, two great records. Which three musicians would I invite to dinner? That’s a very difficult question! Skip dinner in place of a recording session: Marvin Gaye, Erroll Garner, Questlove. I’ll play guitar, or just press record and watch. —as told to Jackie Shafer