Q&A: Daisy the Great Rocks Out on Tour with The Vaccines and The Kooks
INDIE ROCK OUTFIT DAISY THE GREAT is currently in the midst of a whirlwind North American tour, sharing the stage with legendary bands The Vaccines and The Kooks. This isn't just a gig; it's a chance for the rising stars to learn from the greats and further propel their own dynamic sound onto the national stage.
Fronted by the powerhouse duo of Kelley Nicole Dugan and Mina Walker, Daisy the Great is renowned for their electrifying live shows that seamlessly blend established favorites with electrifying new tracks. Their meticulously crafted setlists cater to both longtime fans and those just discovering the band's infectious energy.
Beyond the music, meticulous planning and a collaborative spirit are the secret sauce of Daisy the Great's touring success. Dugan, ever the organizer, ensures smooth sailing with detailed itineraries, while Walker's artistic talents shine through in unique merchandise that reflects the band's playful vibe.
The band prioritizes exploring new cities, seeking out local support acts, and fostering a welcoming community at each venue. Their genuine connection with the audience fuels their live shows, creating a space for shared experience and joyful expression.
Fueled by artistic growth, a commitment to fan connection, and perhaps a secret stash of gas station dilly slices, Daisy the Great is making this tour an unforgettable experience. Their captivating live show and infectious energy are sure to leave audiences wanting more, solidifying their position as a force to be reckoned with in the ever-evolving world of indie rock.
LUNA: You're embarking on a North American tour with The Vaccines and The Kooks. How does it feel to be hitting the road with such iconic bands, and what are you most looking forward to about this tour?
MINA: We’re so excited! We haven’t toured America since last spring so we’re so excited to play again with such great bands and meet new people and play to a new audience :) also very excited to see familiar faces from tours past.
LUNA: Touring can be both exhilarating and exhausting. What are some of the preparations you've made to ensure smooth sailing on the road, especially with multiple shows lined up?
KELLEY: Oh totally. We’re actually tour managing ourselves so we’re pretty deep in on the preparation side. I've definitely been flexing my organizer bunny muscles the past few weeks. I made a really big itinerary for us with all of the show info and where we’re staying and how long our drives are and what time we have to wake up and leave each city. We’re on this tour with our sweet band members Nardo and Matti and we’ve all taken on different jobs to help it all run smoothly. We’re a really good team and I’m always really proud of us and how we pull it off. We also try to find some nature stops to explore along the way to shake up the sameness of the highway drives. Mina’s been looking up grocery stores on the road so we can get good snacks. And we mapped out our set and made lots of lists so we hopefully don’t forget to bring anything major!!
LUNA: Performing live offers a unique connection with your audience. How do you approach your live performances, and what do you hope fans take away from your shows?
MINA: Performing live is how we started as a band and the live show is at the core of our music. We like to create very dynamic sets and we want every show to feel like its own special thing. It’s so special and also scary cuz anything can happen so we try to rehearse as much as possible so the songs feel like they are living in our bodies so all we have to do on stage is have fun and be honest. We hope fans can walk away from shows feeling like they are more connected to themselves and the music and everyone in the room.
LUNA: Your recent EP, Tough Kid, has been well-received. How does performing these new tracks live differ from recording them in the studio, and do you plan to debut any new music during the tour?
KELLEY: Thanks so much we love that EP, it felt so good to record. A couple of the songs are reworks of songs from our 2022 album All You Need Is Time. Reworking them has definitely re-inspired our live performance of the songs even when we play the original version - we can bring little secret bits of the new flavor to the original arrangement. The other songs on the EP are Looking U Up, Tough Kid, and our cover of Sleigh Bells’ Rill Rill. They’re all so much fun to play live, and actually we recorded Rill Rill because we’d been playing it on the road and it was so much fun we decided to put it on the EP. And yes!!! Very excited to say we will be playing some new songs on this tour. We’ve been writing a ton since we got back from our Europe tour last Fall and it’ll be the first time some of them have ever been heard. We’re so excited.
LUNA: Touring often involves adapting to different venues and audiences. How do you tailor your performances to connect with diverse crowds while staying true to your musical identity?
MINA: We like performing all of our music so it’s really fun to put together different setlists for different shows. This tour we get to play a lot of big venues to a lot of new faces and we’re opening for some energetic bands and our set is 30 minutes long so we decided to make a very energetic set. We’re playing three new songs that we just wrote as well that we’re super excited about.
LUNA: The tour includes headline dates after your run with The Kooks and The Vaccines. How do you approach headlining shows compared to being part of a larger tour lineup?
KELLEY: On the support run, we’re coming in as very grateful guests on the Kooks’ tour - we’re really excited to meet new fans and we feel super lucky to be able to introduce our music to people who might not know us yet. That said, I’ll add — we know you when we see you out there longtime Daisy fans!! thank you for coming to our support shows too, you make us feel at home :’) But in general for the support dates we are building the best show we can to have a lot of fun and give everyone a sense of who we are. It's like tapas.
The headline shows on the other hand feel like we’re the hosts of the night and we are building a space for our fans to come and be together and share in the music with us. We have a bit more room to play because our sets are longer as well. We’re also really psyched to have local support musicians in each city opening the show for us, we just announced them on our socials and we think you’ll love them. Can’t wait.
LUNA: On the road, there are bound to be memorable moments and unexpected challenges. Can you share any memorable or humorous tour anecdotes from past experiences?
MINA: We’ve been touring together for so long at this point that we’ve kind of developed our own language. Our sense of humor has gotten very weird. Kelley pointed out the other day that 80% of what we say is something we *thought* we heard or saw, instead of whatever was actually happening. I can’t think of one single example right now but that’s all we talk about. Something we thought. We’ll be like “oh you said ____ I thought you said ______”. We also love to eat the gas station pre packaged pickle slices. Dilly bites.
LUNA: Touring can also be a time for growth and reflection. What lessons have you learned from previous tours, and how do you apply them to make each new tour even better?
KELLEY: One thing we learned in our first few tours was how to take care of ourselves on the road and what we need in order to be able to do it. I need coffee and I need a little morning walk and some occasional alone time for sure. We also try to prioritize getting to see even a little bit of the cities we’re passing through. It’s a long time on the road but it really recharges us to get to explore the city and grab a bite somewhere or get a little trinket to remind us of the day. I also feel like every tour gives us more confidence in ourselves. The headline tour we went on last year was so life changing, honestly, I will never forget everyone singing our songs back to us in those rooms. I feel really lucky and I think we’ll be coming to the next tours filled with excitement and gratitude and joy because we’ve been having so much fun. We’re also just growing up all the time and it’s really sweet to see how we learn and evolve and bring those new facets of ourselves to the music and to the live shows.
LUNA: As you prepare to perform at Hollywood Palladium on March 21st, what can fans expect from your live show, and do you have any surprises in store for them?
MINA: I made some special merch for this tour that I’m super excited about. It’s a purple shirt with a drawing of me and kel as marionette dolls inside of a big jaw. I’m also super stoked to be playing new music that we just wrote on this tour :)
LUNA: Looking beyond this tour, what are your aspirations for Daisy the Great in terms of touring, connecting with fans, and continuing to evolve musically on stage?
KELLEY: We mentioned a few times that we’ve been writing — that’s what I’m most excited for, I can’t wait for everyone to hear what we’ve been working on. It’s been so much fun playing with the band and having some time to let our creativity run full steam. And I’m sure there’s more touring in our future, we love our fans and getting to play the music with them in the room is just the best of the best. They’re so cool and sing so loud, it’s awesome. More soon :)
