Honey Co. Interview

 Honey Co. Interview / USD Radio / Feb 5, 2021

Alannah Winston is a fourth year student at USD. She’s originally from Kansas and she has teamed up with her cousin Tyler Bertani who has studied Worship Ministry at Hillsong College’s International Leadership program. Together they form the sonic lovechild of SZA, Syd of The Internet, and Frank Ocean. 

Question: How did you create Honey Co.?

Answer:

Alannah: It all began well over a year ago, I was working on a project called Blue Honey with Teachers with Guns which is a band that was founded by USD alumni in 2019. They made Blue Honey into a T-shirt design that I wound up buying. Cut to the next year, I decided I needed a new stage name, something with a ring to it—because Alannah was no longer cutting it. A year later, I was still wearing the same Blue Honey T-shirt. That, coincidentally, was the same year I started working with Tyler. We recorded our first song and played it for her mom, my aunt, and her response was something along the lines of, “oh my, your voices sound just like honey.” And that was the only sign that we needed. 

Question: Who are your biggest influences as Honey Co.?

Answer:

Alannah: My biggest inspiration will always be SZA, period. I’ve been in love with her sound since I first heard it, and continue to fall deeper in admiration especially with the recent Good Days release. But as far as direct musical influences go, Lauryn Hill, to me, is the pinnacle of poignant writing and groundbreaking lyricism. So I’d say Lauryn, but add in a bit of Beyonce, because no one commands a stage while also bringing social issues to the table like she does, and no one looks that good while doing it.

Tyler: I can’t believe Alannah hasn’t mentioned this, but we both also really look up to Frank Ocean, because his sound is nothing if not unique and so unquestionably authentic. It is something you can’t help but relate to all-the-while needing to allow space to process what is being said, both literally and sonically.

Question: How important is representation in music to you and how do you incorporate it into your work?

Answer:

Alannah: Representation means absolutely everything to me. We take every opportunity to include humans of all genders and backgrounds into our creative process and who we write for. Growing up for me looked like yearning for music that I could actually hear myself in, that sounded like the records I’d only hear in the confines of my parents’ basement. I feel that as a duo, who is also related, we tapped into a cheat code of sorts. We are able to not only support and affirm each other, but also hold each other accountable to represent our message with clear intent, and be there with each other every step of the way to ensure that we do well by the people we represent, and are able to do that without fear. 

Question: How has being women in the music industry affected your creative process?

Answer:

Alannah: I think both of us can approach it from a bit of a different angle so I’ll just speak for me.

Being a woman, being a Black woman, and being a queer Black woman, have all completely informed the artist that I am. And that is something that I didn’t quite notice at first, because in the beginning it was just the two of us, doing this for fun, and at that point nothing seemed to go that deep. We knew what we wanted to say and knew we had the autonomy to but there was a ton of pressure to, you know, feel smaller than our peers who were men. Asserting ourselves in that kind of arena, where our legitimacy was often questioned, took some getting used to but we knew we were there to work, to create, and we made sure that would be acknowledged. 

Question: What is your advice for other students wanting to balance their career with their passion?

Answer:

Tyler: I won’t lie, it does take sacrifice, and it does take saying no to things in order to say yes to others. But you have to take a step back and think “okay, I’m going to schedule this out. I’m going to plan it out so I can give this the shot it deserves”, and then do it. I would encourage you to, to pursue it

at whatever capacity that you can. You have to believe in yourself and love yourself and know that you’re doing it for you. And that’s all that matters. 

Question: What are your long term goals?

Answer:

Tyler: Touring in general, but especially a world tour. We want to be able to penetrate a bunch of different spaces and get our take on music and culture out there. Maybe some Honey Co. Care Packages with our own blend of tea. Stay tuned.

Alannah: Yeah, the two of us would like to put together the Honeycomb Music Festival so that we are able to invite a ton of different artists and our friends who are also pursuing artistic ventures. We ultimately want to be able to empower each other and the creatives around us because it took a select group of people that were constantly empowering us to get where we are now. I will say our objective is to always do that, to lead by example, and to give people back all that we’ve been given. 

Be sure to catch the new Honey Co. single, SNOOZE, on all platforms for more Alannah and Tyler! 

Marley Davis-Hewitt / Station Director