We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jackie Popovec. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jackie below.

Jackie, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you share a story about the kindest thing someone has done for you and why it mattered so much or was so meaningful to you?

It’s hard to choose the single kindest thing anyone has ever done for me. My life and career have been filled with people lending a hand, showing support, and believing in me when I needed it most. But one moment that stands out—especially recently—was when Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo lifted up my band, The Vindys, and brought us on tour with them.
They didn’t know us personally.

We had the chance to open for them at MGM Northfield Casino in 2021, and after the show, I was handed a bottle of champagne from Pat’s assistant, along with a request for my contact information. In that moment, I felt her approval—not just professionally, but as an artist. It was quiet, but powerful. It felt like a blessing.

A year passed. The Vindys were deep in the planning stages for a new album, but I was questioning everything. Would the band plateau? Could we survive the endless hustle? We were getting older. Our home and family lives were beginning to pull us in different directions. I was losing faith in the future of the band.

In March of 2024, my boyfriend and I took a short getaway to Rome. That first night, we dressed up and went to a tiny, romantic restaurant tucked away down a cobblestone alley near our Airbnb. We ordered wine. Then my phone rang.
The caller ID location read Beverly Hills.

Normally, we wouldn’t dare interrupt a dinner like that—but something told me to answer.
On the other end was Pat’s agent, asking if The Vindys would join their summer tour in July.

Everything read on my face—shock, joy, disbelief. I immediately started texting the band back home. One by one, they responded with pure excitement. Suddenly, all my doubts and fears melted away. Hope rushed in. That call reminded me that we still had something to say. That we weren’t done yet.

Pat and Neil might not know what that opportunity meant to me—but it meant everything. It lifted my spirits when I needed it most. It gave me something to hold on to when I was questioning the future.

And now, it’s March of 2025, and we’re about to tour with Pat and Neil again in April. I’m grateful. I’m honored. And most of all, I’m hopeful—hopeful that The Vindys are still becoming who we’re meant to be, and that there’s still so much music left in us.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

After graduating with a degree in music production from the Mike Curb College of Music at Daytona State College in Florida in 2011, I returned home to Youngstown, Ohio, with the belief that I’d eventually need to leave in order to make music work. But life had other plans.

I came back to help my mom with her pottery painting business, and during that time, I met guitarist John Anthony. We started playing together in a cover band that gained some traction in downtown Youngstown. In 2014, we recorded a short EP and it was found by The Summit radio station in Akron. That moment was a spark—we started weaving our original songs into our cover sets and slowly built what would become The Vindys as we know it.

We saved every penny we had and released our first full-length album in 2017. Since then, we’ve been through all the ups and downs that come with being an independent band, but we’re still here—still making music, still performing for fans who know the words to our songs. That never gets old.

For me, music is personal. It’s less about fame or success and more about survival. Singing and performing are how I feel free. They’re how I process the demons and memories I carry with me. My songs are homes for those emotions, and maybe, just maybe, they help someone else feel less alone too.

When I perform, I don’t think—I just feel. I move, I sing, I let go. I think that’s what people connect with: the freedom, the honesty, the realness of it. We’ve done some really incredible things as a band—things you can easily find online—but what I hope people take away from our journey is this:

You don’t have to leave your hometown to make noise. You can build something real, something powerful, right where you are. We’re proof that a band from Youngstown can turn heads in Nashville and Los Angeles.
So if you’re reading this, consider hopping on the Vindys train. Support local music. Support regional artists. Because we’re not done yet—and we’re just getting louder.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

A lesson I had to unlearn in the music industry is the Cinderella story that VH1’s Making the Band fed me as a kid—the idea that everyone gets discovered by a record label or a big-time manager who swoops in and changes everything overnight.

While those stories can still happen, that hasn’t been my experience. No one comes to save you. No one just picks you up out of nowhere. We’ve had to work relentlessly to be seen, to build something real, and to hold on to the fans who have stayed with us through the years.

The industry is a completely different animal now in the age of technology. There are pros and cons to this new game. On the plus side, we can support our band from our hometown—without having to move to a major music city. But the downside is the sheer amount of noise. The internet is oversaturated with artists pushing their music, their content, their brand.

It’s a new era, and navigating it feels strange—especially compared to the old days of handing your demo to a record exec or manager and hoping they believed in you. Now, the belief has to come from within. You have to show up, build your own momentum, and create something that cuts through the static.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

COVID was a really difficult time for me, personally. Depression crept in when everything came to a halt—no work, no concerts, no money. The Vindys had this great momentum going, and suddenly it all stopped.

And while I wish I had Taylor Swift’s work ethic—creating two albums during lockdown—I slipped away into myself. I found comfort in working with my hands: cooking, gardening, sewing. Things I never really had time for because I was always so busy chasing the next gig or project. For a while, those small, grounding tasks soothed me.

But as the days dragged on, I started thinking deeply about what I actually wanted—if we ever made it out of that strange, uncertain time. Moments like that make you realize how precious time really is. And I knew I had to make a change.

So I quit working for my family’s small business. I let go of all the side hustles. I decided to bet on myself—for real this time—and focus entirely on The Vindys.

It was the best decision I’ve ever made.

I threw myself into the behind-the-scenes work we had been neglecting: booking shows, writing new songs, creating content, designing merchandise. I finally gave the band the full-time love and energy it deserved. And something shifted. I felt fulfilled in a way that side jobs could never provide.

We started gaining more fans. We started making more money. And most importantly, we started believing in ourselves again.

I’m so proud of what we’ve been able to build. To bounce back after COVID the way we did—it means everything.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/thevindys

Image Credits

Michalski Photo and Film