[title subtitle="images:courtesy Chris and Lolly Swicegood"][/title]
Husband and wife musicians Chris and Lolly Swicegood live in Nashville. But Chris grew up in Fort Smith, Arkansas, and the two return often to visit family and perform under the name “Chris and Lolly.”
Their music falls under the Americana/Folk/Alternative category, although there’s also a little soul, jazz and classic rock included. Chris plays guitar, piano and sings, as well as writes lyrics and music. Lolly is primarily a vocalist but is phenomenal with melody and harmony and works with Chris by coming up with great lyrics of her own.
Do South® caught up with Chris and Lolly to talk about everything from how they met to what’s the next big thing for the thirtysomethings.
DS:When did you know you wanted to be musicians?
Chris: I grew up playing a lot of instruments. But when I was fifteen I got my first electric guitar (a Fender Stratocaster) and started learning the music of Stevie Ray Vaughn, and that’s when I knew I was going to spend the rest of my life performing and writing.
Lolly: I started performing at a young age, and knew around age thirteen that it was what I wanted to do with my life. Mostly I was focused on musical theatre and Barber Shop! I know, I was really cool.
DS: Where did you meet?
Chris: Texas Christian University (TCU) in 2005.
Lolly:One day I was walking to class when I noticed this good lookin’ dude sitting on a bench, playing his guitar. There was a couple nearby, with a puppy, and Chris and I struck up a short conversation about how cute the little Chocolate Lab was. A week or so later Chris saw me on campus and asked me for my phone number! I knew right away that I had found my soul mate, but I avoided him for a few months because that made me so nervous. Thank goodness Chris is patient and persistent!
DS: How do you collaborate when writing songs?
Lolly: It depends really. Sometimes Chris will have music and we will collaborate on story and melody around his structure. Other times, like on one of our soon-to-be-recorded songs “Do You Think of Me,” I will bring him lyrics and melody and he will write music to finish it.
DS: How much time do you spend on the road?
Chris: We frequently tour Arkansas, Virginia, Texas, New York, North Carolina and Kentucky. We’ve played in Hawaii and Canada, and last year we traveled to Cameroon, Africa to play music festivals, and radio and TV shows there.
DS: What do you love about Arkansas?
Lolly: It’s called the Natural State for a good reason. We love camping, and Chris loves trout fishing.
Chris: Arkansas will always be home. It’s filled with great memories and such great people, and we got married in Eureka Springs.
DS: Tell us about your latest album.
Chris: Our latest album, Evermore, started from a song with the same name that I recorded in my solo artist days. Lolly, for some time now, has wanted to revisit some of my old music and make duo songs out of them. We just finished our first music video to it recently and are really proud of how it turned out.
DS: If you could perform with any band, who would it be?
Lolly: Off the top of my head, Tedeschi/Trucks band would be amazing!
Chris: The Rolling Stones. Can you believe those guys are
still rockin’?
DS: What would you tell musicians who are struggling?
Chris: Staying true to yourself and the kind of music that made you want to pick up a guitar or sing in the first place, is important. Success is a lot of things, and not giving up is key to being able to make the kind of music that matters to you. As long as you work hard, make yourself available, and can listen to others who have been down this long and winding road, you’ll be all right.
DS: Is there anything else you want our readers to know?
Chris: As a matter of fact, yes. Lolly is pregnant! Come mid-September, we’re gonna be a trio. We couldn’t bemore excited!
