As time flies by, some of our favorite teen dreams — like Chris Brown, Usher, Justin Timberlake — have grown up before our very eyes. You can now add these guys to the list: Dustin, Patrick, Kelly, Carnell and Bryan Breeding, better known as B5. These five brothers are returning to the R&B forefront with Harmony-produced single “Say Yes.” “We’ve been working with him on multiple records on the album,” Dustin says of the untitled LP.
The group who was previously signed with Diddy’s Bad Boy Records in 2005, gained success with the singles “All I Do” and “You Got Me.” After their sophomore album Don’t Talk Just Listen, the group severed ties with Diddy. A couple of singles and one name switch later, the brothers are back to B5 and excited about their new sound and trek in the music world.
Vixen chatted with the guys about their big plans for the summer, what they’ve learned over the past few years and what fashion trends they want the ladies to wear this year. (And yes, they’re all legal.) — Desire Thompson
—
VIBE Vixen: We checked your new song “Say Yes,” and we love the song and the video. Will the album consist of R&B songs like this or raunchy records like “Cookie”?
Carnell: [Laughs] It’s not so much of the “Cookie” stuff, but it’s a mix of R&B and Pop.
What influenced you guys to come back to the music?
Dustin: We haven’t really left. We just wanted to take a step back, recollect our thoughts and how we would approach it all again.
Carnell: Just to think of our next move.
Nice. So what would you say are the big differences between your past and today? What have you learned in the past few years?
Carnell: We’ve grown so much, matured a lot. We learned the good and valuable lessons. As far as the music goes, we grew a lot in our writing and making beats. We’ve grown individually and as a group in the business.
Speaking of growing and maturing, is anyone in a relationship right now?
All: Nope!
Patrick: Throughout the years, we’ve dabbled and dated a little bit but that’s really it. As of today, no. Not at the moment.
That’s cool. You have to play the field. Plus, summer just started. Have any of your love stories or break-ups inspired the new music?
Dustin: Yeah, definitely. There’s been times when one of my brothers or myself has gone through a relationship or a certain situation in a relationship, and when it came time to record a particular song, it went perfectly.
Carnell: It helps to put that feeling into it, so when people hear it, it’s believable. When we do put out music, we want them to relate.
Bryan, since you are the youngest member of the group, how does it feel now to reintroduce yourself to the world?
Bryan: Now I’m able to do more. Now that I’m older, I view the world in a completely different way.
VV: Is there a release date for the album?
Dustin: We’re actually close to finishing, but we’re putting all the pieces to the puzzle together right now. We’re probably have something in a couple of months.
Are there any other producers that you guys are working with?
Patrick: We didn’t want to use a bunch of producers because sometimes you kind of lose your sound. Harmony’s done a great deal of body of work on the album. He kind of came together with this whole sound we were looking for. We also worked with someone else from the UK, Lucas Siecon.
Nice. There are a lot of successful boy band acts coming back to the music scene like 98 Degrees, NKOTB and Backstreet Boys. And Boyz II Men is touring right now. How do you feel about the vets and the new acts like The Wanted and Mindless Behavior?
Patrick: We give props to all the bands doing their thing, but I feel like we’re not coming back. We’re already back. Everybody has their own lane and we have ours. The business is crazy, so you have to keep pushing.
Carnell: It’s nothing but respect to all of them.
Dustin: There’s no problems with any of the bands out now–One Direction, Mindless Behavior, Backstreet, none of them. It’s all love.
Since you guys appreciate their music, what are some other artists you guys are jamming to right now?
Patrick: Personally, I’m down with the A$AP Rocky record with Skrillex.
“Wild for the Night.”
Patrick: I love A$AP and I love Skrillex, man.
Dustin: It was a really nice combo.
Carnell: Justin Timberlake’s new album. I like Macklemore right now, too. I think he’s pretty dope. I got a lot of love for Dawn Richards right now. She’s doing her thing. I’m really loving this Big Boi song, too. “Only in the A.”
Dustin: I listen to everything. I go all the way from 2 Chainz, Big Sean, Kanye West and Jay-Z to Katy Perry. My variety of music is pretty wide.I like hip-hop a lot.
Kelly: I love fun.
Carnell: I still love R&B. Brandy will always be my favorite.
Dustin: I’m a big fan of the song T.I has out right now called “Memories” with B.o.B. It’s really crazy.
You guys mentioned earlier your interest with hip-hop and EDM. Do see you guys stepping into that sound?
Dustin: I’d like to see if we can collab with Skrillex and see what we can come up with. I’m pretty sure we can come up with something dope. As far as that sound and that type of music, it’s definitely interesting to us.
Patrick: Steve Aoki is pretty dope and Afrojack. They work with a lot of artists.
VV: So what are your favorite fashion trends for the females?
Dustin: I can say one thing I’m a fan of, I love girls in spandex. It gets me every time, I can’t even front.
Patrick: Leggings and stilettos.
Carnell: I like leggings but I also like those short little tank top shirts.
Crop Tops.
Kelly: I like girls in those summer dresses, I think those are nice. I like the girls with the L.A swag, the whole graphic tank tops.
Dustin: From the whole hipster movement.
Bryan: Yeah, I like the leggings.
Dustin: Bryan agrees with me, leggings all day.
What are some trends that you don’t want your girl wearing?
Patrick: I don’t like the baggy clothes, but they don’t have to be extra tight.
So you don’t like the tomboy look?
Patrick: Yea, it’s just when it’s too baggy.
Carnell: I’ll tell you one thing I don’t like the girls that wear those Jersey Dresses, you’re too old to be wearing that.
I didn’t even know people still wore those.
Carnell: People still wear them.
Dustin: Yeah, that’s not the move right there.
So what are some of the big plans for the summer?
Patrick: We’re just working on putting out new music. We definitely want to tour.
Carnell: We’re trying to go overseas–London, Japan, Dubai. Just trying to reach the whole world.
Kelly, will you spit some bars on this album?
Kelly: Yeah, I’m working on some raps right now. There’s going to be some raps and possibly a mixtape, so we’ll see what happens. There wouldn’t be a B5 album without [my bars].
Is there anything that you wanna let your fans know?
Patrick: Since we put out “Say Yes,” the response has been overwhelmingly positive. We’re working hard to put out the best B5 album, so thank you guys. We appreciate the support.