An Interview with Lizzie Edwards of Lizzie & The Makers

All images courtesy of ReyBee PR

Recently, I had the pleasure of speaking with the wonderful, and soulfully talented Lizzie Edwards of Lizzie & The Makers. Among other things, we touch on what she’s been up to during the lockdown, her newest music, her opinion of the music scene today, and what she’s looking forward to the most once COVID-19 breaks.

If you’re interested in learning more about the work of Lizzie & The Makers, you can head over to the group’s website and dig in. Enjoy this interview with Lizzie. Cheers.

Andrew:
Lizzie, I appreciate you taking the time today. How have you been holding up over the last year or so? What have you been up to?

Lizzie:
Hi! It’s my pleasure! I’ve been holding up OK. I was fortunate enough to have a lot of outdoor gigs during the pandemic. My guitarist lives in Greenport, LI, and playing music out West with him definitely helped me stay sane!

Andrew:
Before we dive into your professional career, let’s go back a bit. What first got you hooked on music?

Lizzie:
Well, my father was a guitarist and his parents were opera singers and harpsichordists so I guess you could say it’s in my blood! I don’t think I had a choice in the matter, really. [Laughs]. I was hooked from a very young age, beginning with piano lessons and eventually singing in school shows and backup for my dad’s band.

Andrew:
Who were some of your early influences?

Lizzie:
Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, Janet Jackson, Led Zeppelin, and The Rolling Stones.

Andrew:
Let’s talk about recent events first. Tell us about your releases “Mermaid” and “Lover By Proxy.”

Lizzie:
“Mermaid” is a bluesy, soulful number drenched in mystery. “Lover By Proxy’ is more of a foot-stomping angry Rock song. Each one describes two different stages of a failed love affair. “Mermaid” questions the sudden end and “Lover By Proxy” is resentful of it.

Andrew:
What lyrical themes do you tend to explore with your music? Is your music intensely personal, or are you only telling stories, so to speak?

Lizzie:
I would say most of my music is autobiographical and intensely personal. Write what you know, right?

Andrew:
How about the production side of things? Do you self-produce, or do you bring in outside voices?

Lizzie:
We self-produced our first two albums, but we decided we wanted an outside voice for this one. We brought in former Bowie guitarist and producers Reeves Gabrels and Mario J. McNulty and it was a perfect match!

Andrew:
The music of The Makers is extremely eclectic. Do you intentionally eschew genre constraints, or is that something that just comes naturally to you?

Lizzie:
It just comes naturally. We try to be as authentic as possible and write with our true voices. It just comes out that way!

Andrew:
What are a few of your favorite albums, and why?

Lizzie:
Pink Floyd’s Wish You Were Here, Bonnie Raitt’s Streetlights, and Ronnie Woods’s I’ve Got My Own Album To Do. They are great albums from start to finish! I have a lot of favorite tracks on each one.

Andrew:
What other passions do you have? How do those passions inform your music, if at all?

Lizzie:
I’m definitely passionate about David Lynch and everything he does. Both Greg and I are huge Twin Peaks fans and we wrote this album with that series in mind! These are the songs we would play if booked at the Bang Bang Bar.

Andrew:
In your opinion, what is the state of the music business these days? Should artists be hopeful? Scared? Both?

Lizzie:
Well, I think it was already bad and now COVID has made it worse! It is very difficult to be gainfully employed as a musician – even if you are somewhat famous. With platforms like Spotify out there, full-time musicians are definitely an endangered species. We have to have two, sometimes three side jobs in order to continue making our art. Touring is the best way to support yourself, but Covid has made that problematic! But, I remain hopeful that we will have a musical renaissance once this pandemic is in our rear-view mirror.

Andrew:
Last one. What’s next on your docket? What are you looking forward to most in the post-COVID world?

Lizzie:
Our album is slated to be released this fall, so I’m definitely looking forward to that! I’m looking forward to touring and traveling in general once it’s safe again. Hopefully, we can tour in support of the album, but we have to make sure it’s safe to do so.