Tony Cummings pitched some questions at the JEWELS' Kae Wilkins and Pete Campbell.

Jewels

Tony: Judging from your publicity photo, Jewels seem to be less a group and more a small choir! Who precisely is in the group and what's Jewels' history?

(Kae Wilkins) Everyone in the publicity shot is in the band ! We are more of a family than a choir - 'cos the guys don't sing, yet ! The members are Leon Small (music director, drummer); Pete Campbell (manager, bass player); Geoff Kennedy (finance director, guitarist); Owen Downer (producer and keyboard player); Glen Easy (asstistant manager, keyboard player); Nicholas Campbell (keyboard player); Kae Wilkins (vocals, songwriter); Shaninne Blackett (vocals) and Lee-sa Burrell (vocals). The band came about by Glen recognising that Lee-sa could sing. Glen, Pete and a couple other musicians then started messing about in the studio with material written by Lee-sa, then this expanded to a few friends and Kae. Before we knew it things started to gel and then formally became Jewels about three years ago.

Tony: There's been a bit of a buzz about Jewels and you've won a number of awards. How come you've started your recording career with a single rather than an album?

(Kae Wilkins) We are glad about the buzz! It is always interesting to see what God's gonna do next, what doors he's going to fly open next. We are all filled with anticipation. We have financed the single ourselves. The objective was to test the marketplace before going for a full album. The market has been very complimentary of what we have produced and we have learned from the experience. We are about ready now to wade!

Tony: The UK gospel scene seems to be far too London orientated. Is it a disadvantage working out of Wolverhampton?

(Pete Campbell) Yes and no. We have concentrated a lot of energy on developing our local surroundings to build a fan base, but we have ministered in Manchester, Stoke, Bristol and other places in the Midlands to name a few. We have now started to hit London and whilst it is a hard area to break into, with the right approach we are beginning to succeed.

Tony: What has been the highlight gig that you've played so far and why does it stick in the mind?

(Kae Wilkins) We recently played at Raise The House III in Croydon. This was great for many reasons, one being that we were allowed to minister in the Jewels way - lots of passion - and we were accepted in such a warm way (plus the refreshment was the best ever - thanks to the cooks). This event has also generated a lot of interest in us to do other gigs in London. The other key moment was winning the BBC WM Gospel Awards for Best Group. This was totally unexpected.

Tony: What plans do you have for the future?

(Pete Campbell) Complete the album, minister all over the world, get signed to a gospel label and get into the mainstream.