Interview: Pop Punk Act Felicity Chats About Process And Inspiration

Welcome to the table,

I recently talked about Felicity‘s new summer anthem single, Levitate. It’s been getting regular rotation in my office for the last week or so and it still remains upbeat and full of an infectious energy that has not dulled.

I had a chance to sit down and talk to the band about inspiration, relationships, and the creative journey.

Anton Kromoff: Thank you for taking the time to sit down and talk with me. Before we get to deep in can you share with us the story behind the band’s name, Felicity, and how it reflects your music or identity?

Felicity: Our singer Damien (Fagiolino) was once reading Robinson Crusoe and stumbled across the word “felicity” in the text. After learning the word means intense happiness, he thought it would make a great band name since it embodies his love for music. Over the years, the meaning of Felicity has formed an identity around our lyrical content and instrumentation.

We write about experiences that everyone shares on a day-to-day basis or throughout their entire lives. We try to be relatable because we are just 5 ordinary guys making music and going through our daily grinds with life. The other side of the band’s persona is the instrumentation. We all take great pride and enjoyment in playing our music because the riffs and grooves are a blast to perform, and a huge part of the Felicity experience is seeing the live show.

Kromoff: What inspired you all to pursue music as a career, and how has your journey been so far?

Felicity: We’re a hodgepodge of backgrounds when it comes to making careers out of music. Some of us have parents who played a strong role in our musical tastes and talents with experience in the industry to guide us, and some of us simply discovered our instruments through an interest in music, the arts, and the inner desire to be creative.

What’s true for us all is that we love to perform and give fans an engaging show. We all feel inspired by the artists we’ve grown up watching and want to elicit the same response from crowds that we’ve experienced ourselves. So far it’s been a bumpy ride surviving some band member changes as well as Covid, but the band is doing better than ever these days and we couldn’t be more excited to watch our futures unfold.

Kromoff: That’s rad to hear! If you could describe your creative process when writing songs in two sentences what would it be?

Felicity: We usually start by sharing experiences and perspectives on what a song could be about, and then we collaborate to find common ground from which we can all relate. Add a little experimentation with different genres plus our producer, Andrew Wade collaborating with us, and voila you have a Felicity song!

Kromoff: I love the two-sentence questions but if you want to expand on them please feel free.

Felicity: Sometimes short and sweet answers are the way to do it. But what we will add is that being in a band these days requires as much work when it comes to content creation as it does writing actual music.

Kromoff: That makes total sense. Now as a group do you all have any specific rituals or sources of inspiration that you turn to when you hit a creative snag or need to break out of the day-to-day?

Felicity: The best thing we do to separate from the routine of being in a band is every month or so we hang out and do something that doesn’t involve music as a business at all. We’ve done activities like grilling by the pool, going bowling, and hanging out at barcades*. A band needs to find enjoyable things that everyone can take part in and set the music and business aside for a night.

Kromoff: What has been the most memorable live performance for the band, and why?

Felicity: It feels great to say that one of our most recent shows has been the most memorable. A few weeks ago we opened for The Used at a sold-out show in Los Angeles at the infamous Troubadour. It was also our first time playing a west coast show. Throw in some very welcoming fans and industry representatives, and that’s a weekend we’ll never forget.

Kromoff: Are there any particular messages or themes you try to convey through your music, and what impact do you hope it has on your listeners?

Felicity: Our strongest themes align with relationships and how we handle them. Those relationships are not always between two people. It could be a relationship with an addiction, or a job, things that we all share as humans. What we hope is that our messages bring comfort and fulfillment to our fans. Maybe it’s the relatability of our lyrics, or perhaps just enjoyment for the grooves and tunes. Everyone is searching for some form of identity and a place of belonging in life. If our music can bring people together, then we’ve done our part as musicians.

Kromoff: How do you handle the balance between artistic expression and commercial success in an industry where the right TikTok sound could change the trajectory of an artist’s life?

Felicity: This shift in the industry has given us a lot to think about when we write new music and also consider how the band will be marketed. Before a new song is finalized, we start the discussion of how the song could be illustrated with content fit for TikTok and also be thought of as an appealing TikTok sound. Making a habit of this over the last year has helped balance writing music that’s true to ourselves, while also thinking of how it will be received as a 5 to 10-second sound bite.

Kromoff: Can you give us a glimpse into your upcoming projects?

Felicity: We recently created a boatload of content formatted for TikTok. Expect a steady stream of music to come out that will have some creatively themed video clips. That’s about all we can say without giving too much away.

Kromoff: Totally fair. Are any collaborations or exciting tour adventures on the horizon?

Felicity: We never mind cracking the lid on the cookie jar. We have some collaboration tracks coming out with some very talented artists that we’ve had the pleasure of playing with in the past; Magnolia Park and Capstan to name a few. Our goal is to be releasing a steady flow of music for a good chunk of 2023 and well into 2024. At the moment no major tours are set, but as we’ve learned in the last year things can always change overnight.

Kromoff: Before we wrap up where can our readers follow you to stay up to date on what you have coming out and where they can see you all perform?

Felicity: You can find us at @wearefelicity on all major platforms; Instagram, Tiktok, Twitter, etc. We have YouTube shorts and our music is on all the big platforms. Fans should always be on the lookout for pop-up shows, but what’s guaranteed is our spring and fall special showcases. Every year we put on two concerts called Warped Winter and Nothing Butt Rock Fest. We bring together regional bands in the scene to cover artists from the Warped Tour era as well as the early 2000s rock genre. It has been a huge success and a signature Felicity experience for the last four years.

Thanks for taking the time to speak with us today!

Until next time, go follow Felicity on TikTok at least, it’s worth the follow and they are fun in the feeds.

Barcades* Only because I was asked. A barcade is a fusion bar arcade. You can drink and play arcade games. They often have snacks as well.