Rising Stars: Meet Ill Peach

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ill Peach.

Hi Ill, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
We met in high school in concert choir. We were both the nerdy kids that loved choir, acapella jazz group, and theater. So, we had a small flame ignited for the arts. How we came together and started actually making music was so random, and we’re not sure why it became a thing. But it really pumped off when we made an EP for this German artist, a connection that was made through one of Pat’s college professors. After that experience, we both were sucked into songwriting and felt like that path was paving itself for us. The rest really unfolded into a series of hidden trap doors. When one door closed, it always seemed like another one opened. Ill peach wasn’t really even a thing until the pandemic. It seemed once the industry subsided and we could just think and have nothing but space and time, it became really clear, and all the noise of “trying to fit in the industry” fell away. And we’ve been trying to hold onto that mindset ever since. Keep doing us, ignore trends, and put out really great music. 

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Jess: The best way to describe the music industry is it’s like a rollercoaster. You will find extreme highs and extreme lows. But you can take so much from the low periods to grow off of. If it were a cakewalk it probably wouldn’t be fun. Hahah. It would be way easier, but it’s the discomfort that brings about the creativity. I don’t think any true artist ever was perfectly content and never endured some form of struggle. 

Pat: There’s a few sides to it, I guess. On the one hand, it’s incredibly gratifying to make something out of thin air any day you want cause you don’t have a 9-5, and at the end of the day, you can listen to or watch something that you’ve made. But then you are your own boss, and you’re the one advocating for yourself the entire time. Nobody’s gonna fight for your art or what you believe in more than yourself. And you might get buttered up along the way, people saying, “You’re the shit,” but at the end of the day, it’s like, well, look at how many hard tickets we sold, or can I pay my bills this month with the music I made and the shows I’ve played. That can be a hard reality because it’s incredibly unpredictable. You’re seeing songs that were made 20 years ago by a band that’s retired have a TikTok viral moment, and then all of a sudden, they’re selling out their entire tour. It’s wild out there. 

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
We have been defined as grit pop, alternative, indie pop/rock, etc. etc. All in all, we just make the music we like to make and try not to place ourselves too firmly inside a box. We put a lot of focus on our visual representation. One of our main collaborators is Lucy Sandler. She has helped really dial in a visual tone for Ill Peach, a world we are still exploring and expanding on. Currently, we are working on our second album and gearing up for some shows. 

How do you define success?
Jess: That’s an interesting one to always think about. It’s really weird to create art but also have to find a way to pay rent and your bills. The definition of success is different for everyone, but for me, it’s that I can just be sustainable. Keep making good music and be able to live off it. It would also be really cool to tour the world, haha. 

Pat: Geeze. That’s something that I battle with constantly. Because we’re in this era of always looking at screens that are feeding us information and a view into other people’s lives, it’s so hard not to compare your life or your success to everyone else’s. So, your perspective on that is always changing. I have to constantly remind myself that it’s just me and myself in this thing. Did we make the best version of this song, and did we do everything we could to complete our vision? And when the music is out, and you’re proud of it, that’s a good metric to hold yourself to. I care about moving people with music, and if it feels like you’re doing that, then it’s successful. Sure, do I want to sell MSG? Hell yeah, I do, and we’ll always strive for that, but if that’s the only thing we’re chasing, we’ll literally go insane. 

Contact Info:

• Website: www.illpeach.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/illpeach__/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCryTuqT3g7uFKeDQ4gBo8sg
• Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/79E3M2o4FRthRViQXaCWDt

Image Credits
Jack Alexander