Today we’d like to introduce you to Speaker Girl.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Speaker Girl is made up of Max Kougher, John Wise, Colin Dunning, and Gavin Malone. Raised in the greater-Memphis area, we happened to have a lot of the same influences from when we were kids with bands like: Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix and The Experience, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Nirvana, Radiohead. Their power felt addicting, and as each of us discovered more music and went to concerts we had to find a way to get involved. Max, John, and Gavin did that by picking up an instrument and learning how to play. Colin went to music business school at The University of Memphis to find his way through the business side.
Over a roughly 5 year span we all met in random friend-of-a-friend type of connections and eventually built personal relationships that led to Max, Gavin, and Colin living together. In this house a “practice space” was created for the band Moon Baby that Max and Gavin started. Eventually they wanted to part ways with Moon Baby to start a new band, but needed a bass player and another guitar player. Their other roommate, Colin, taught himself bass to join the band and Max called up his friend, John, to come jam with everyone on guitar. We ended up forming the band Speaker Girl in Dec 2024. From that point we have toured the mid-south, released an EP, had radio appearances, played festivals…
Even though our individual tastes in music stem from very similar bands, our tastes now have a very broad range. This blend is really what makes us. Each member has an idea of what our “sound” is, but combining those ideas and compromising to create a whole new sound is how we try to create together. We don’t want to be one person’s ideas, we want to be a band.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
We are no exception. We struggle along with all the other independent bands and humans of this world. But the grind is rewarding if you really mean it. And we do. We work full-time all week, we have relationships, personal struggle, family, etc. We experience life like everyone else, but we GET to play music at the end of the day. It is a blessing and a release, and when we get the opportunity to be together making music or playing live we are lucky to have it. Making the most out of those times is all we can do.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
The way we write a song can change song-to-song. Maybe Gavin and Colin are jamming one day and create a cool riff, maybe John brings in a riff he’s had in his pocket for 8 years, maybe Max comes in with a full structure for a song that needs lyric help from another member. We usually hop on the train of a song if it feels right. It’s mainly about feeling. If we are all excited about it and feel a draw toward it then we will write it. Many songs have fizzled out though and that can be for any reason: maybe not the right time, we had another idea overshadow it, etc.
Right now we are really focused on being able to record ourselves. Max has a lot of skill in producing and we are starting to use that to our advantage in writing new songs for our record.
If anything we can be proud of our resilience. We find a way and make good music that we like. To be able to say we genuinely like our own music is cool.
How can people work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
We always love to get messages from bands looking for local support on their tours through Memphis. Our DM and email is always open. It’s really cool to see how many bands come through Memphis, the local alternative scene is really active and there is always a band wanting to hop on a bill.
We are really excited to begin collaborating with more local artists (photographers, merchandise, radio, graphic designers, etc.) as we start releasing more music. It makes us feel motivated when someone wants to work with us. All we want to do is spread the word on the Memphis scene and make connections through our music. As an independent band it can sometimes feel impossible to check all the boxes yourself, so getting the help of others, especially locals, is always a huge relief and a fun time.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.speakergirlmusic.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/speakergirlmusic
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61554850060406
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@speakergirlband
- Other: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/speaker-girl/1828484738
