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| (Photo courtesy: Jill & Kate) |
Jill Pickering and Kate Rapier - aka Jill and Kate - have toured the world both as backing singers for Kelly Clarkson and as a duo in their own right. The singer-songwriter duo, who first met in 2003, have amassed a strong following this side of the pond with a well-received appearance at Country 2 Country in 2014 which was followed a few months later by a tour of their own.
At the end of 2015, the duo released an album of lullabies, titled simply
Lullabies. We caught up with them to chat about their latest release, the UK and more!
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You girls have a very loyal fanbase in the UK already but for those who may not have heard of you, can you tell us a little about yourselves?
Yes! We are a harmony-driven singer/songwriter duo based in Nashville, Tennessee and we've been singing together for 13 years. We are not sisters, though many people think we are! We love writing songs in hopes that they connect people to each other and that they prevent people from feeling lonely. We love coffee, wine, jumping pictures, and traveling...especially to the UK!
For nearly six years, you toured the world as backing singers for the incredible Kelly Clarkson. That must have been quite an experience.
It was so amazing. The places we were able to see, people we were able to meet, and the experience we gained from those 6 years were incredible. Kelly is one of the best singers in the world, so to sing with her every night was not only enjoyable, but also a great learning experience. We had so much fun with the band and crew who became like family...and they still are, even years later. Those 6 years were definitely a career highlight!
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| Lullabies |
You’ve just released Lullabies - an album of, as the title suggests, lullabies - and caught everyone off guard with this sudden announcement of new music. it must have been hard to keep the project a secret from both your fans, as well as one of your friends who inspired you to write the album, surely?
So hard! We felt so secretive all the time when people would ask us what we were working on. We're not very good liars! Haha! This album was so different and so rewarding for us to make. It was a gift for our friend Jenny and her new baby, Annie...but it became so much more than that. It's always fun to work on something totally different than what you would normally do.
It’s a very beautiful and very well crafted album, from start to finish. How long did it take to make it?
Thank you!! That is very kind and means a lot. The writing process took about a month. We recorded it in our office completely by ourselves which took about a week. Then with mixing, mastering, and re-production, there were about another 3 weeks. So it took about 2 months all together!
As mentioned, you were inspired to make the album because of one of your friends’ pregnancies. Where else do you find inspiration from when writing?
As we started to write these songs, we realized the words and melodies were really important. It wasn't just a "Kids' album" but songs that would lull children and adults to sleep. As we were writing, we thought about what kinds of words and themes we would want spoken over us as we fell asleep. So a lot of our inspiration came from those thoughts...asking for "love to be near" or saying that "Angels are watching over you." We often find inspiration from life all around us. We find that you have to be experience life to gain inspiration and to write. Sometimes when you are stuck in a writing rut you just need to get outside and live for a bit--life continually offers inspiration...you just sometimes need to go out and live it.
In July, you played the main stage at Country Thunder to a crowd of around 30,000. Do you ever find yourselves nervous on stage, especially with huge crowds, or is it quite the opposite?
Yes, that was SO much fun! There's always the tiniest bit of nerves whenever we have a show, but they're often excited nerves more than anything. Sometimes very intimate crowds are even more nerve-racking than huge audiences. We're not sure why that is, but that's what we find!
It’s been a little while since you last toured over here, with a handful of dates in England in 2014 as well as appearing at Country to Country that same year. I’ve heard many fond stories from your fans who got the chance to see you. Can they expect any more tours imminent (with maybe a date or two in Scotland for us Scots?), perhaps in 2016?
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| Jill and Kate and C2C in 2014 (photo courtesy: Jill and Kate) |
Ahhhh! We would LOVE to come back ASAP and we hope to! We absolutely LOVE the UK. As independent artists, it can be difficult to financially make certain things work and traveling to the UK is one of those things. We are working on getting back over there (hopefully in 2016) and we hope to make a Scotland date happen too! Perhaps we can have a wee dram together!
Did you expect such a warm reaction when you first came over, for the Country to Country festival?
It was so wonderful. The UK audience has always been so welcoming and lovely to us. We didn't know there would be so many people at the C2C, so that was a welcomed surprise!
Finally, I just wanted to talk about your blog and, in particular, one of your recents posts you’ve made, ‘When Someone Calls You Huge’. It was a very inspiring post written about what was a horrible experience and, unfortunately, it’s not that uncommon in music for women. And, of course, at the start of the year there was the whole #SaladGate issue - the music world can seem like a pretty horrible and scary world for young girls wanting to pursue a career in the industry. Do you have any words or advice for them?
Yes, it was definitely a significant part of our year last year. What we most want to encourage young girls, (and really all women) to do, is to be yourself, love yourself, and to not be afraid. There are so many haters and people who thrive off of putting others down. If you feel overwhelmed, start small. Start making a list of things you like about yourself. Ask people you trust to help you if you need help. Say positive affirmations each morning. We all need to recognize that we are unique and each have a purpose. You are loved.
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