Sisters Lucy and Bernadette share more than a passion for music; they also share a deep connection to Jackson Hole. The sisters have been singing together for as long as they can remember. Growing up, they sang for the Amerikids Professional Choir around Florida. Though their musical careers have taken them in different directions, the sisters – one of whom changed her name recently to align with their Italian heritage – continue to draw inspiration from their experiences in Wyoming and from one another. From Lucy’s beach-inspired songwriting and work with Taylor Guitars to Bernadette’s multilingual music and Italian and Turkish influences, their distinct styles reflect the different places and cultures that have shaped them. In this conversation with KHOL Morning Show Host D’John, they talk about growing up together, finding creativity from Jackson, and learning from one another as artists.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity. — Ed.
Support for this arts and cultural coverage comes from the Wyoming Arts Council.
John Garcia: So y’all have ties to the town. Can we talk about that a little bit?
Bernadette Esposito: So my whole family moved out here in 2016. And then just a few of us stragglers stayed. And the rest went back to Florida. But yeah, I kind of come and go.
JG: Could you describe each other’s musical styles? Because I know you guys have kind of taken two separate musical paths.
BE: When I’m telling people about your music, I always describe you as a female Jack Johnson. That’s 100% your vibe. You’re like a beachy gal.
Lucy Spotts: I would say, Bernadette…I think she has a really cool vibe going on and I think she’s creating this really cool niche. I think it’s really cool the way she plays these different lanes as an Italian, Turkish, American. I’m so American that I don’t really understand a lot of the stuff you sing, but it’s really cool to see.
JG: Lucy, you started writing your music while you were here in Jackson? How does the scenery from Florida differ from the musical influence and how does it affect your writing?
LS: Yeah I actually wrote mostly worship [music] when I was in Jackson and then when I moved to the beach, I really got inspired. I started writing songs about the sunset and the scenery out in Florida. That kind of beach lifestyle really inspired my writing. It broadened my songwriting world somehow.
JG: You’re endorsed by Taylor Guitars, what does it mean to have people recognize you in the music industry? How does it feel that music is going in a positive direction?
LS: Taylor Guitars was a dream of mine. I got my first Taylor when I was probably 20 and I fell in love with it. I mean, it was actually a friend’s, and the first time it was in my arms, I wrote like five songs in a week and fell in love.
JG: Bernadette, your music has taken you from places from Jackson all the way to Turkey. Do you feel like songwriting differs depending what language you’re writing in?
BE: I feel like I could have only written this one in Turkish because it was about a heartbreak that I had with a Turkish man. I feel like any song that I could’ve written in English wouldn’t have done that pain justice. The thing that I love about Turkish, it’s an emotional language, generally speaking, but the music that people write in Turkey is heartbreak songs and about hard times. It is always just so brutal and poetic in a way that I feel like sometimes English falls short.
JG: What does that song mean to you, and also what does that mean in English?
BE: “O Kanayan Kalp,” the title of the song, basically means ‘that bleeding heart.” So the whole chorus is just that bleeding heart on the floor, did you ever really love it? But that’s the great thing about being an artist, like any strong emotion, be it pain or joy, gets turned into art either way. This song is my favorite song I’ve ever written.
JG: What do you think about this place that has encouraged you both to pursue this career of music?
BE: Okay, I’m going to kind of give a brutally honest answer. I love Jackson. I think it’s beautiful. I get really bad seasonal depression in the winters. That’s why I started leaving. I think that kind of sadness is because we don’t ski or anything. But when you’re just shutting your house with nothing to do, I feel like there’s nothing else to do except get creative.
LS: And being from Florida originally, we’re not big snow people. So, when you’re kind of hunkered down in the winter, you kind of go through things, and you get in your head a lot more, and from there comes art.
JG: What have y’all learned from each other, from watching each other build completely different sort of musical lives? Obviously you’re sisters, too…
LS: I think it’s cool going through the music thing together because we can bounce ideas. It’s tricky because as artists we just want to write songs and play, but there is a side to music that you have to figure out: social media [and] putting your songs out there. And so that’s the part that we can really help each other out with.JG: I know you’re releasing a single on the 18th, correct? What’s it called one more time?
BE: “O Kanayan Kalp.” It’s going to be on all streaming platforms.
JG: Lovely. What is your artist name again?
BE: Palma: my middle name and it’s also my great-grandmother from Italy.JG: Lucy, what do you have to plug?
LS: I have two worship songs coming out in the fall. One is called “Wild” and one is called ‘Beyond Imagination.” My Instagram is LucySpotsMusic. You can find me everywhere!
