Emily Horton meets Vox Fortura, the opera group from Britain's Got Talent who are charming the nation
Rosie Collins
Vox Fortura
When people see four beautiful black guys, insists Elias Hendricks of vocal quartet Vox Fortura, the last thing they expect is opera. Motown, yes. Soul and R&B, absolutely. But not opera.
Now, however, the highly distinctive fab four – which includes Rodney Earl Clarke from Forest Row, just over the East Sussex border – are blowing such lazy assumptions out of the water. Having recently shot to fame on ITV’s Britain’s Got Talent, Vox Fortura is determined to make classical music not just hip, but a universal language too.
You may have caught the singers’ pulsating rendition of David Bowie’s Heroes. It inspired BGT judge Alesha Dixon to describe them, controversially, as “Four sexy chocolate men, polished to perfection and simply sensational.”
After their semi-final performance, Simon Cowell declared the band had booked a place in the final. Unfortunately, it was not to be as the guys missed out in the public vote to child singer Beau Dermot and dancer Balance Unity. The talent contest was eventually won by magician Jamie Raven.
Despite this setback, Rodney (37), Tommy (39), Julius (37) and Elias (29) have won a huge amount of support thanks to their good looks, beautiful voices and magnetic stage presence.
Rodney, who trained at the Royal Academy of Music in London and is the group’s leader, has organised a conference call with his fellow singers, who are enjoying some downtime following the excitement of the past few weeks. They’re scattered far and wide.
Julius, involved in music since his childhood in Connecticut, is the first to speak: “Right now, I’m in sunny Berlin.”
Guildofrd Magazine July 2016
Whether he’s talking about the weather or commenting on his own cheery temperament, I’m not sure.
A second voice chimes in: “And I’m Elias, currently in sunny Streatham but originally from Birmingham – Birmingham, Alabama, that is.”
A performer of both opera and musical theatre, Elias starred as Simba in The Lion King.
He’s followed by Tommy, the fourth band member who hails from High Wycombe, where he got into musical theatre and acting at the Jackie Palmer Stage School. He has worked professionally since the age of 15, including a stint on TV’s EastEnders. Like Rodney, he has recently become a dad.
The mix of cultures – Rodney and Tommy’s English reserve, combined with the American enthusiasm of Julius and Elias – is infectious, and the boys joke easily with each other.
“We are still bathing in the euphoria of BGT,” Rodney says. “We are truly grateful for the whole experience. It has cemented our resolve to continue.”
Julius agrees: “Leaving the show was hard, but the momentum is continuing. We’ve just returned from a week’s recording and planning new live shows.”
The guys are clearly buoyed by their fame and obvious appeal to mainstream audiences.
“We’re cheered on by having had people on the streets recognise us and tell us that, irrespective of not reaching the finals, we have to keep going,” says Rodney. “We’re four handsome, classically trained singers bringing a genre of music, that has suffered over the years, to a much wider audience. So far, people seem to love what we’re doing.”
BGT judge David Walliams is one of them.
“I don’t think we have had anyone quite so macho on BGT,” he said. “Your voices have incredible power and depth.”
And Elias says the group has other, more surprising, fans, too.
“Not conforming to the stereotype has helped us appeal to those who probably wouldn’t ordinarily listen to other contemporary opera acts,” he reflects. “A beefy construction worker came up to us the other day asking when the album is coming out!”
Alesha Dixon was, clearly, deeply moved by the power of their voices, but what do the guys make of her ‘chocolate men’ comment, and the ensuing media fluster?
“As a black woman describing us as ‘sexy chocolate men polished to perfection’, she said exactly what we are,” opines Elias.
“It was a pun on the fact that we’re black and, at the same time, evoke the delicious, velvety taste of chocolate with our voices,” adds Rodney. “You have got to lap that up!
“There is not a lot of space in the TV studio between the stage and the judges’ area. It gave us the opportunity to really look into their eyes, and I felt that they were genuinely moved by us.”
Might a recording contract be forthcoming? Rodney is giving little away.
“We are looking forward to being signed by a label. Of course, we have contractual terms that we had to sign with BGT. There are things we can do and say, and things we can’t, so it’s a case of waiting for those who have first pick of the cherry.”
Surrey Downs Magazine July 2016
By which he probably means Simon Cowell and his Syco Music record label. In 2003, Cowell created Il Divo, the all-male, pop-opera vocal quartet that went on to sell millions of records and is still touring. Yet, if David Walliams had his way, the record deal would already be on the table.
“If I was Simon Cowell, I’d be making you sign a record contract right now,” he told them on the night.
In the meantime, however, the guys are happy to concentrate on their core mission: making opera cool.
“We recently went back to Rodney’s old school, Dulwich College,” says Julius. “We were amazed to hear the kids telling us we had inspired them. Most of them probably don’t listen to classical music on a regular basis, but they were all asking if they could audition for the group.”
“You don’t expect young black boys to say that a group of classical singers has made a difference to them and their aspirations,” adds Elias. “It was a dream to hear that. We want to get more kids involved and inspired by the classics.”
With reactions like these, the guys are determined to secure that coveted label. “There is a huge desire to see what else we can do – so all pedal to the metal!” says Julius.
And maybe, just maybe, they will yet receive that invite to sing for the Queen – an idea floated by judge Amanda Holden, who suggested that they would be “dream ambassadors for BGT at the Royal Variety Show.”
Either way, the face of opera will never be the same again.
Emily Horton
Vox Fortura July 2016
Follow the lads on Twitter @vox_fortura for news about their UK tour with G4 in September
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Read the full article in our Guildford, Farnham and Woking Magazines – The Windsor Ascot and Maidenhead Magazine (below, right) – and The Surrey Downs Magazine in our July 2016 issues
