Hey Monday – Interview

They’re signed to both Columbia Records and Decaydence; the latter happening to be one of the biggest and leading recording labels in the scene. They’ve collaborated with William Beckett and Butch Walker for their songs in their latest album, Hold On Tight. They’ve toured with acts such as The Academy Is…, We The Kings and The Cab in just the past year. And now, they’re currently part of Fall Out Boy’s amazing line up for their “Believers Never Die Part Deux” tour. It seems as though the band, Hey Monday, is taking over the scene –if not, the world– faster than you can name the rest of the days of the week.

For a band that has accomplished so much within just the past year, they sure are a humble group, never letting the fame go to their heads. EastScene was privileged enough to have a quick chat with frontwoman, Cassadee Pope, on the phone before their soundcheck in San Jose, CA. Although the conversation lasted less than 15 minutes in total, it was evident that Pope was mature despite her age and took the responsibility of being a frontwoman quite seriously. “The guys have all kind of made [the frontwoman] and trust me to be that person; so I just try to set a good example and be myself. There’s definitely something I want to represent and there’s a way that I want to be. I am myself but I also know how I want to be seen by other people.”

While some artists use this phrase excessively to the point that it becomes a cliché, Pope actually means it and lives by it. When asked if there was anything they weren’t willing to do or to compromise, Pope gave a recent example. “In the original treatment for [the music video] ‘Homecoming’, it said ‘Cassadee kisses the boy’. That’s something I would not do. My first priority is music, and I’m not pressured to be an actress or kiss boys; so I said no to that.” Indeed, knowing and staying true to one’s self are both incredibly important if one is to survive in the music industry. Furthermore, one must also be broad-minded and realistic. “If there’s one thing about current music trends in scenes that I could change right now, it would be the narrow-mindedness. I think a lot of people think it’s not okay to like pop music, or that it’s not okay to make it. So, it kind of comes off like you’re trying too hard to do something different when really, you could just do what you feel or what you love –and that’s probably more real than what you’re doing. I think some people try too hard.” She also reflected on how making music should not be viewed as a competition. “Everyone’s trying to do the same thing, which is to make music. I think MySpace is an awesome site for bands. It makes things easier. It helps you get your band’s name out there. [However], just because someone hears your band and checks out your MySpace profile, it doesn’t mean you’re going to get signed. To get discovered, it has a lot to do with luck. Of course, you definitely have to have the talent; but sometimes, you just have to be at the right place at the right time.”

Staying true to themselves and their music, and with a little bit of luck, it wasn’t long before Columbia’s A&R noticed their talent. “Mike and I went to a music conference in Atlanta, and we gave him an old demo that we had.” Before they knew it, Pete Wentz was also involved. “As they were listening to our demo in that office, Pete was in there. He heard it, really liked it and wanted to sign us. But since Columbia was already interested, Decaydence and Columbia did a joint contract for us.” Being part of Decaydence’s new roster, next thing they knew, they were touring with the crème de la crème such as The Academy Is… and Fall Out Boy. “We’re the youngest group of kids on the tour, but they don’t treat us like that. Everyone’s respectful. They treat us like we’re all friends. It’s kind of crazy, because we’re all still huge fans!”, said Pope.

On tour, they would try to go out as much as they can during their spare time. In fact, the day before this particular interview, they had the day off and spent it at Six Flags. Furthermore, they all have scooters they can use if ever they wanted to leave the tour bus for a little while. “[Touring] in general gives us so much energy. There’s always something that’s going on to keep everybody up, running and alive. [Besides], we all don’t really need much sleep. We’re all used to going to sleep really late and waking up early”, revealed Pope. That’s definitely a given, since touring with bands that have notoriously mischievous jokesters (such as Gabe Saporta and the All-American Rejects) make it difficult to not have a good time. On that note, Pope recounted a prank that was recently pulled on them. “They filled our water bottles half with vodka and half with water. Then, Fall Out Boy and All-American Rejects came on stage for our last song –for ‘Homecoming’–, and they had brooms and mops. They were mopping and sweeping the stage, going in between our legs! And then that’s when they started taking Elliot’s drumset piece by piece; that was really funny”, gushed Pope.

Humble yet firm, young yet mature, hardworking yet fun, it is no wonder that this band is quickly grabbing everyone’s attention, including that of Pete Wentz’s. However, it doesn’t take a Pete Wentz to know that this band will be successful in whatever genre they take on, as long as they stay true to themselves and their music.