Check Aly & AJ‘s beautiful photoshoot for As If Magazine and interview they gave.
Singer-songwriters and actors Alyson and Amanda Michalka, known as Aly & AJ, are the entertainment world’s double threat sister-act who have recently reemerged with a new, sophisticated look and sound. They started their careers as young actors on Disney, broke through as music duo, synth-pop sister act, Aly & AJ in the mid-2000s with songs like “Potential Breakup Song”, “Into The Rush”, and “Insomniatic”; briefly re-branded as 78violet, and have returned as Aly & AJ after a decade long pseudo-break from music (during this time they focused on their acting careers and released the occasional EP and single). Last year marked the release of their 4th studio album, A Touch Of The Beat Gets You Up On Your Feet Gets You Out And Then Into The Sun. There is a grounding to this album that’s different from former ones. Fans can feel and hear Aly & AJ breaking out of their past persona and entering into their own as women. Songs focus on harmony, melody, and deeper songwriting that surpasses their younger efforts. At 32 and 30, respectively, Aly and AJ are about to embark on their tour of the US to promote their new album. Before packing up their tour bus, the sisters stopped by my studio to talk about their evolution as artists, women, and sisters, while posing for a photoshoot unlike anything they have done before.
AS IF: You guys took a decade hiatus between your 3rd album and your 4th album and in 2021 you released A Touch Of The Beat Gets You Up On Your Feet Gets You Out And Then Into The Sun. During your 10-year hiatus, you were busy releasing singles and eps and you even had a band change from 78violet to Aly & Aj. Tell me about this professional evolution and what you learned about yourselves and your music during this time?
ALY: It was inevitable that we would have a huge shift in our creative process and musical style, given that we started at such young ages. We got signed when I was 15 and Aj was 13 and we put out our first record when we were 16 and 14. We eventually got to the point of feeling burned out and overworked, and maybe even a bit downtrodden by the industry and the many older men that we had to bow down to. That’s taxing on young women, and we were going through puberty at that time too. We were dealing with our personal growth as women, our growth as a band, and we needed time away from it to find out what artists we wanted to be as women. In that interim, we focused on our acting careers, which prospered from not having to juggle music careers. AJ worked on The Goldbergs for many years, I was commuting from LA to Vancouver working on iZombie. So, taking time away from music was needed for our trajectory as a band.
AJ: Something important to know is that in those 10 years, we didn’t stop making music, we just didn’t release all of it. Getting signed at a young age, and being told how to write and what to write, made us gun-shy when we started making music without the support of Hollywood Records. Being independent made us realize that we weren’t sure of the music we wanted to make, we were not sure what our band was. Those 10 years were an incredible growth period that brought Aly and me to our songwriting and confidence as vocalists. I’ve never been prouder of our music as I am today. I’m so thrilled with our new record. It came out at a perfect time during the hopelessness and sadness of the pandemic. I hope our music has brought a lot of joy and hope.
It sounds like you left behind who you were defined as by others and came to define yourselves. Choosing to call your band by your names truly gives you a sense of ownership. Tell me about your new sound and how it’s reflecting where you are today?
AJ: Our sound represents quintessential southern California music. Aly and I were born and raised on the West Coast, we’re California girls. We grew up listening to Surf Rock and Classic Rock and we wanted to have our take as two female artists, as sisters, as songwriters who believe in the power of harmony and create a Californian record that brings sunshine and light to those who hear it.
ALY: This album isn’t only about love songs. AJ wrote a song about a near-death experience she went through in 2020. We write about struggling with mental health issues and asking for help, and songs we hope encourage someone to get back to living again. AJ and I try to touch on many subjects and issues that we know people are dealing with. So, I think people will get a peek inside our minds and sisterhood listening to this album.
