Wilson Phillips open up about music, their new reality show and hot boys!
It's not every day that you get to shoot the breeze with Wilson Phillips. Somehow, I managed to score an interview with the legendary trio, and I got through it without having a full-blown meltdown and/or smudging my mascara!
When their powers combine, Carnie Wilson, Wendy Wilson and Chynna Phillips are known as Wilson Phillips, the strong and talented girl group who tore up the airwaves back in the '90s. (For non-Wilson Phillips diehards, we'll take this moment to remind you that Wendy and Carnie Wilson are the daughters of The Beach Boys' Brian Wilson, while John and Michelle Phillips from The Mamas & The Papas are Chynna Phillips' parents. What up, amazing genes.) With a brand-new reality show, tour and album currently in the mix, WP are poised to reclaim a top spot both on the charts and in pop culture.
During our sit-down, me and the gals chatted it up about about everything from healthy eating (shout-out to steamed veggies), keeping it chillaxed while on tour, family time and the careful selection process that went into choosing the 12 songs on their album Dedicated. Naturally, there was lots of cursing, lots of sex girl talk and lots of TRYING TO SET ME UP WITH A TALL, CUTE JEWISH MAN! Praise be all that is good and fair, because not only did I get to interview these three amazing women, but they also tried to get me to go out with a boy they know who, apparently, is a full-on catch. Both me and my Jewish grandmother thank you, Wilson Phillips. From the bottom of our hearts!
+ Check out Buzzworthy's interview with Wilson Phillips after the jump where they discuss men, music, reality shows and more.
BUZZWORTHY: Tell us about your new tribute album, Dedicated. What can fans expect? How did you choose the songs?
CHYNNA: Where do we start? The older generations that loved The Mamas & The Papas and The Beach Boys, they'll probably really enjoy it. It’s a lot of the big hits yet some of the more obscure songs as well... We're very proud of it, and we were honored to make this record for our families. The song selection was relatively easy. We knew we could only pick 12. There were some obvious Mamas & The Papas songs since my parents only recorded four albums, but there's such a large library of Beach Boys songs to choose from so that was a lot tougher. We knew we absolutely had to do "Good Vibrations."
CARNIE: "Dedicated To The One I Love" is so solid on this record. It’s out-of-control beautiful. You’re seriously going to s*** in your pants, it's so good.
BUZZWORTHY: Why was now the right time to record a tribute album as opposed to an album with new material?
WENDY: That's a good question! We thought we were going to do an original record, but our management had the idea to do a tribute record because they heard us at a private party singing "California Dreamin'." They said, "Whoa, you guys sound so great doing your parents' songs!" And we were kind of stopped in our tracks... We didn't understand how special it actually was until we started recording.
BUZZWORTHY: Carnie, your husband [musician Rob Bonfiglio] produced Dedicated. How was it working so closely with him?
CARNIE: Overall, it was amazing. But boy, there were some moments where we really butted heads. It was silly stuff -- "I don’t like the way you said this" and "I don't like the way you said that." Honestly, it was just like a marriage. But I let go of the reigns more than I ever have. I really trusted him. Of course, when it was done I took the reigns right back! Also, and I'm just gonna come right out and say this, but watching him work, it was f***ing hot! Ugh, I was dying. Extra, extra hot.
BUZZWORTHY: Get it, girl. So, you've got a new reality show coming out, "Still Holding On," which premieres April 8 on the TV Guide Network. What can fans expect from the show?
CHYNNA: The show is really all about love, friendship and obviously there's some drama. You see us trying to make it to a sound check on time, us hanging with our kids, our husbands, it's everything!
BUZZWORTHY: You guys are currently touring: Is there anything you have to bring with you on tour? What are the must-haves?
CHYNNA: Oh, yes. Are you kidding? I can't live without my steamer. I steam chicken, veggies, rice, everything. Honestly, all you need is a steamer! You could live the rest of your life and just steam everything. I do cultured veggies, too.
BUZZWORTHY: Actually, that makes a lot of sense. Healthy.
CARNIE: Yeah, it's healthy but holy s***, the aroma! It’s basically smells like you’ve gone into a bathroom with a giant pile of s*** in it. Smells up the whole place. But she needs it so we get it.
BUZZWORTHY: Tell us about your hysterical cameo in “Bridesmaids." How did that all come about? What was the set like? Any pranks?
CHYNNA: We had no idea it was coming; it just sort of fell out of the sky! We got this phone call this one afternoon, and that was it. We were on set for like, eight hours and had to sing "Hold On" over and over again. It was great, though, because we got to hang with Kristin Wiig and Maya Rudolph. Best part is, we didn't tell any of our friends we were in the movie, and so the weekend it came out our cell phones just exploded! Everyone was like, "Oh my god, you're on the screen!”
WENDY: We’re really grateful for "Bridesmaids."
CARNIE: So grateful. After the movie came out, our iTunes sales went up like 650 percent or something crazy. Also, that song, with that group of women, and the energy of the movie paired with the lyrics -- it just fit! We were so lucky. They could have chosen any band in the world.
BUZZWORTHY: Did you guys ever think that "Hold On" would bring people so much happiness? Why do you think people are still elated by it 22 years later?
CHYNNA: There was a time when "Hold On" played on the radio so much, and then that time kind of stopped so I always figured, “Well, that was just one specific generation, and it'll just go in a musical library." But now it’s emerged all over again and taken on a whole new life.
Photo credit: Jenna Rubenstein
|