We were lucky to catch up with Hannah Zale Carly Gibson recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Hannah Zale , thanks for joining us today. One of our favorite things to hear about is stories around the nicest thing someone has done for someone else – what’s the nicest thing someone has ever done for you?

One of the kindest things anyone has done for us is let us take our time. Our bandmates Dustin and David Williams (brothers not related by blood) let us be free to wait for the right opportunities, the right songs, the right studios. They don’t threaten to leave for a more intense band experience, they don’t shame us for not producing at high speed. They show patience and care to our process and that makes all the difference to sustainability of a musical group. So much of our career as The Pussywillows has been filled with pressure to perform and release and promote, but during the pandemic, we decided as a duo that we didn’t want to be those people anymore. We didn’t want to be the people who no longer enjoyed load ins, rehearsals, or venue experiences. We didn’t want to put that pressure on ourselves anymore. We decided to intentionally do less in order to live more. The pause helped us regain and rediscover the magic that music brings. We couldn’t have made that big choice without the kindness and support of David and Dustin; and each other.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Carly Gibson and Hannah Zale have joined forces and they are already leaving their mark on the Georgia music scene as Indie/Alternative Rock supergroup, THE PUSSYWILLOWS (TPW) exploring their self-proclaimed “Tarantino feminism” sound. Individually, these women are exceptionally strong performers and songwriters; together, they are positively formidable. The Pussywillows, in short, are: sweet and savory; sultry and fresh; pure.

The Pussywillows are perfect harmony in motion. Balance is their greatest quality; they weave among one another’s melodies seamlessly. At times during their set, listeners cannot tell who is singing which line, creating an almost subconscious, fascinating game. Their music is beautiful yet haunting. Though sometimes soft, the music always returns the listener to a hard beating pulse surrounded by nasty electric guitar. These best friends push and pull each other and their audiences through intricately constructed sonic spaces. They showcase carefully cultivated lyrics that both evoke and provoke listeners into a daydream wherein they can simultaneously catch cotton candy by sticking out their tongue and stomp proudly through alligator infested swamps in high-heeled leather boots. Hannah and Carly, rounded out as a band by Dustin Williams on bass and David Williams on drums, possess sass and class and a little something special.

See videos and media interviews from the women on thepussywillowsmusic.com! Follow @thepwillows on Instagram and check out their full catalogue anywhere you listen to music “The Pussywillows.”

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

The creative mission and goal for The Pussywillows is kind of 3 parts. One, to inspire critical thinking and soulful connection in every listener. We want people to think for themselves and feel for themselves when they listen to our music. We want to make people ask questions and dance at the same time.

The second mission is to debunk the “girl band” connotation – we don’t like the characterization as a “chick rock band.” We feel this judgment doesn’t describe our sound or any bands’ sound. Although we absolutely lean into our feminine divine power and the band name itself its pretty in your face female, we do not subscribe to the ideas that girls can only play 7 chords and that we should only write heterosexual love songs and that we show our boobs off for every photoshoot. We want young people to know that women in music aren’t just “women in music” – we are people in music with equal skill ability and equal business savvy that deserve equal respect.

Thirdly, our goal is a bit self-serving. The Pussywillows mission is to create a small corner of the world for us to express our authentic selves without holding back. A place to be our bold and unedited self. Our goal is to show integrity and unconditional love to the muses in our minds; to learn each day how to be a better sister to one another and how to support another person’s needs.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

We have had to do a lot of de-programming the past decade together. Growing up, we all learn so many bizarre ways to be and survive in the world. Unlearning those habits is really tough. One lesson we had to unlearn is that we should always be in motion. We genuinely believed that the ONLY way we would make it is if we never, ever, never stopped grinding. We thought we should always be writing and playing shows and posting photos with clever captions and networking at industry events and trying so hard. Trying so damn hard all the time is the lesson that culture and society want you to practice so they can prey upon your fatigue and desperation. If you are stopping to smell the pussywillows, then you might have time to think about something else that the man doesn’t want you to be deeply gasping or grateful for. We have learned to stop. Wait. Be and let be.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://thepussywillowsmusic.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepwillows/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thepwillows/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCW6RL2Kdok-7zLUpW0itEDQ
• Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/53QV8c0bfJdQws3i8mgjoH?si=HVAQi-zJRlyrhi22zSFtpw

Image Credits
Kara Hammond – Ears and white shirt shots Ed Lee – Live show shot All others (orange and leaves) – Alphonso Whitfield