The Buhs is an 11-piece pop group from Kansas City that fuses elements of hip hop and soul.
They formed in 2013 when trumpeter Hermon Mahari was corralling talent for a Michael Jackson tribute show. The band started with a vision of writing songs to be picked up by other artists, but has since changed its focus to keeping their own music and growing their online presence through videos.
Every member of The Buhs is involved in at least one other music endeavor. Ghost Notes, a Kansas City-based podcast KCUR is collaborating with this summer, spoke to Mahari and lead vocalist Julia Haile, who says she struggles with making enough time for music and her full-time day job.
Haile: "[Music] can be really distracting. It can take the focus off of the day-to-day things. And sometimes that’s really hard. It’s toiling between what I’m really passionate about and what I’m really good at, versus what pays my bills. I’m lucky enough that, over the years, I have been able to cater work and music to my liking. It’s always in the back of my mind. It’s like, ‘One day this is going to be all I do.’"
Mehari: "It will be. For sure."
Haile: "Hopefully. Hermon has so much faith in me."
Hermon Mehari and Julia Haile both attended UMKC's Conservatory of Music and Dance, but had different experiences. Subscribe to Ghost Notes on iTunesto hear if they think a conservatory education was worth it.