Q&A: WILLIS on Communal Experiences and the Virality of “I Think I Like When It Rains”

Q&AMusic

Oct 17

☆ BY Britt Astrid Alphson☆

THE NASHVILLE-BASED INDIE BAND — WILLIS, composed of vocalist/bassist Murphy Billings, guitarists Edward Armstead and Trey Murphy, drummer Glenn O’Steen, and keyboardist Will O’Steen, make music for “locals.” These locals don’t have to hail from any particular place, don’t have to live on any certain street or know any of the same kids from high school — for WILLIS, the local is an essence. In short, everyone is a local.

This idea of locality, of holding community in your hands and gifting it to audiences across a slew of states, comes across in WILLIS’s yearning sound. The band tends to wilt toward the warmth of the past, to dissect experiences of former selves with sentimentality as well as the decisive clarity that comes from distance. Having been a musical unit for half a decade, WILLIS have not only come of age together in their personal lives but sonically as well. This can be traced through their music — reminiscent of folk-rock artists such as Whitney, yet infused with bluesy guitar licks and synths straight out of a Donna Summers song.

“I Think I Like When It Rains,” a tender track from the band, has gone viral on TikTok and amassed over 60 million streams on Spotify. Anchored by a sweet, bright piano melody and Billings’ vocal rasp, the song longs for teenage times: rainy days spent in a friend’s basement, conversations where you just “couldn’t find the words.” There’s over 450,000 TikTok videos using the official sound, videos such as a couple displaying their wedding photographs, the youngest kid in a family wandering around the house missing his older siblings, and Bella Hadid hanging out with hometown friends. I guess there are times we all want to walk down the corridors of the past. With “I Think I Like When It Rains,” for 4 minutes and 38 seconds, you can.

Read below to find out more about WILLIS’s recent tour, recording process for their next project, and more.

LUNA: How is recording your next album going?

WILLIS: We got a recording set up upstairs right now. We're on day three of recording for the next album. The last day of the summer tour was like three days ago. Now we're just working on the album to get ready for the next sessions, which are going to be in November. We ended the tour in Kill Devil Hills, and we were just already out here [in the Outer Banks of North Carolina], so we just got to this beach house and we've been writing since then.

LUNA: How did the tour go?

WILLIS: It was lovely. We did, like, two weeks, and then had a couple of weeks off. Then we did three shows with the Magic City Hippies, and here we are.

LUNA: How did you guys meet as a band and form into a group?

WILLIS: We all went to high school together, so we knew each other growing up. We just went to high school together and became friends there and have always, in some shape or form, been making music together since we were kids.

LUNA: Do you feel like Locals (as well as Local 2, Locals 3, and Locals 4) are all connected in a way? What was the idea behind naming them in sequential order?

WILLIS: We were really just the “local band” from Florence, and it’s like whatever city we're in, wherever our music is being played, the people listening are just locals. When we say “locals only” it’s like, come out to see us. Almost like when Thor or someone calls the Avengers, you just let everybody know this is for you. For the people that feel like they can take something from this music and apply it to their lives.

LUNA: For “I Think I Like When It Rains,” talk me through where you were when it started gaining traction and going viral.

WILLIS: For us, that song has always had its own life. I think it was kind of during COVID that it really started to take off.

LUNA: Why do you think people resonate with it so much?

WILLIS: I think it’s really nostalgic for people. To go back to a moment that we all collectively shared, you know, obviously not together, but there was a similar moment that we all share. The song takes everybody back to where they were, whether they’re 18 years old or 58 years old.

LUNA: Do you feel like your sonic influences have changed the longer you’ve been in a band together?

WILLIS: We used to spend a lot of time trying to find people to emulate. But the older we've gotten, we kind of just inspire ourselves or each other. We have what we do well, and we just bring that to the pot as a collective.

LUNA:You’re all from Alabama, right?

WILLIS: Originally.

LUNA: Do you guys feel like that has any kind of influence in your songs? I feel like when I listen to your guys’ music, there is some element of soul or blues underpinning it.

WILLIS: Maybe a little earlier when we didn't know what we were doing as much. We've been in Nashville about four years now. I'd say [living in Alabama] kind of had the reverse effect on us. So instead of falling into the sound of our area, we tend to try to gravitate towards other sounds. I think we all come from different musical backgrounds and making music together became a combination of five very different musical influences, and we've grown together over the years.

LUNA: Where do you guys see your sound going from here?

WILLIS: We found our own lane and we're just going to ride with that. You know, we're at a point now where it's like, we're doing it for ourselves. We appreciate all the love. We can't thank the people enough for coming out and that they like the stuff, that they sing at the top of their lungs and jump around on stage with us. I feel like it's a lot of pressure to kind of put something out. You just do it. And if it works, it works. I think keeping it organic as far as just our process and not trying to emulate anything or have any preconceived notions is the best way to go about writing for us right now. We just wanted to be an organic creation between the five of us and let that take it wherever it goes naturally.

LUNA: Which city on this last tour did you enjoy the most or clicked with the audience the most?

WILLIS: Somewhere out west. I think Denver was a really good show — it felt really special. It was just such great energy from the crowd.

LUNA: What does your writing process entail?

WILLIS: Sometimes we individually come to the table with a quote or chord progression, or we just sit down and jam something out and it sounds good. But we're always adding our own little flavor to it. It’s rare that someone has like a whole song written and then comes to the band with it. We all like to add a little bit to it, and that's what makes it works, is the five of us adding our own individual flavor to the song.

LUNA: Do the same topics that held your interest when you were younger hold your interest now? In terms of writing about love, coming of age, and so forth.

WILLIS: When we write the lyrics, it's really just a soundtrack of either what we’re going through now or what we’re able to reflect on in hindsight. It's basically just a diary.

LUNA: What are you guys most excited for in the next year?

WILLIS: Festivals!

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We couldn’t be more stoked to have Suriel Hess as our new headliner for our upcoming LA show 🤩 🫶 Not gonna lie, us & Notorious Noise kinda went OFF with this line up & you’re not gonna wanna miss it - ticket link in bio 🎫