Rikki Will

Brooklyn songwriter Rikki Will’s new EP, Songs For Rivers, documents a time of transition in her life.  After not picking up a guitar in over a decade, she felt compelled to reacquaint herself with the medium following a series of disillusioning life events. The resulting songs acted as a sort of therapy for Will, as through them, she attempts to find meaning while simultaneously processing the onslaught of emotions that set in, and then subsequently, tries to figure out how to move forward. She also examines the beauty and challenges of motherhood, the hardships that come with processing different kinds of loss, and how to properly heal after enduring abuse. Her style and delivery are gentle, yet profound, as she mixes blustery guitar work with intimate vocals that breathe life into her words. Though she does a lot of heavy emotional lifting on the EP, the five-song collection ends with a rousing rendition of the classic Wreckless Eric track, “Whole Wide World,” which caps off Songs For Rivers on a lighter note.  

The EP dropped today and in advance of its release, we caught up with Will to chat about its themes, her return to songwriting, how the music of John Prine inspires her, and more:

You stopped making music for about a decade. What prompted you to start writing songs again and what was it like bringing this creative outlet back into your life? Was it challenging to get started again?

My life changed pretty drastically. I decided to get out of the situation I had been in for over 10 years. I stepped out of a marriage that didn’t always feel safe. Suddenly, I had the exclusive care of my two daughters and I was on my own. This was exciting, terrifying and empowering all at the same time. There was a moment after I had just removed all of my ex’s things from my apartment when I took my guitar out of its case, put it on a stand and said, I am never living like that again.

It was challenging getting started again for sure. I didn’t remember any of my old songs and it was like I had to relearn how to play the guitar. I made a conscious decision to not write anything at first. I just wanted to learn songs and remember how to play again. It was nice to have that time in the beginning to just get reacquainted with my practice. No pressure.

In what ways is songwriting different for you now when you compare it to a decade ago? How would you compare your music now to back then?

There are aspects of songwriting that feel very similar. I still have moments like I used to where a song just appears. I’m walking, or going about my day, and a chorus or verse will float into my head. That hasn’t changed, but what’s different for me now, is I feel much more intentional when I write. I think about structure, I think about how my influences would have done it, I collaborate with my partner, bandmate, and producer, Oscar Albis Rodriguez. Comparatively my songs now have intention that my older ones didn’t.

The songs on the EP explore some heavy topics like love, abuse, and longing for acceptance. I’m curious as to how the title, Songs For Rivers, plays into that.

I am fascinated with words and imagery that continually pop up in songs; especially ones that show themselves across genres. I used to play a game with myself where I would say a word, like: river, water, moon……and come up with as many songs as I could think of that had that word in it. When I played the river version, I realized there was really something to that imagery. All of the river songs I could think of were songs of healing. Songs of desperation, songs of hope. There was often a spiritual aspect to my favorite river songs that I was surprisingly drawn to. When I wrote “Gone”, it felt very important to have mention of a river in the bridge. This was my song written from desperation and searching for Hope. I wanted that “going down to the river” moment like so many other songs before it. When I started thinking about naming the album, I realized that though “Gone” was my “going down to the river” song, all of the songs collectively were about piecing my life back together. The title is a tribute to how healing making this album was for me. Each song sent me down to the river in some shape or form.

The EP also explores motherhood, particularly on the song “Gone.” How has being a parent shaped your songwriting and music, if at all? Tell us the story about how “Gone” came together.

I think parenting has shaped the way I want my voice to be heard. I feel much more empowered about what I have to say and offer. “Gone” feels important to me because it’s not the joy and beauty side of mothering. It’s the overwhelmed and tired side of mothering. I wanted to show that side too.

I wrote “Gone” after my kids had gone upstate to visit my family for a week. I was a single parent. This was my first time alone in about a year. I initially thought that at the end of my free week, I would feel refreshed, relaxed, and so excited to see my kids again. I didn’t feel any of those things. What I felt was anger and resentment. I resented being a single parent. I would ride the subway in the morning and think to myself, “this guy standing next to me, I bet the most eventful thing he did this morning was drink coffee.” Or on the other side of me… “she’s probably going to go home from work tonight, call up a friend and say, hey, want to do something?” At some point in my morning travels I realized this practice of mine was not serving me. I was on the 7 train heading into Long Island City, when I decided to stop this practice and let go of my resentment. When I did, I felt unbelievably overwhelmed. It was almost paralyzing. But then the subway doors opened and the chorus of “Gone” started floating in my head. I distinctly remember watching my red cowboy boots descend the subway stairs, and I started singing, “I’m lost, I’m lost I’m lost”. When I got to my office, I jotted down the bulk of the song and the next time I saw my boyfriend, we arranged it and made a demo.

I like how on “Same As Always” you switch from first person to third person perspectives in the lyrics, but they both seem to be delivered as your own personal experiences. Was there any significance to that? Tell us a little bit about that song.

“Same As Always” is a song I wrote before I stopped playing music. I wrote it about 18 years ago. I always felt really connected to it and it felt important to finally give it a life on this EP.

It has two perspectives because it’s about two different things. I was caring for my mother during her battle with cancer that eventually took her life and I was also working through ending a relationship. I didn’t want the relationship to end, but I knew there were a lot of problems this person needed to work through in order to be available to me. Most of the song is convincing myself that he wasn’t going to be able to do it. When the perspective switches to third person, I was trying to figure out what my mother had felt when she was told she didn’t have much time. As an incredibly stoic woman, I knew this was something she was never going to reveal, so I wanted to put the sound of it in a song. The song was my way of wrapping my head around not having either of these people in my life.

I was scrolling through your Instagram and I read your touching tribute to John Prine, who sadly passed away last year. What did his music mean to you and how has it influenced your work?

My mother was a John Prine fan. She pretty much always played the John Prine live album in her car on repeat. Or sometimes just “Fish n Whistle” on repeat.

After my mother passed away, my twin sister and I held strong to our connection to John Prine. We went to see him a few times and it always felt so special. Going to see John Prine play was our way of honoring our mother but we also became big fans ourselves. As I started playing music again, he was an artist that I really looked to for inspiration. “Fish n Whistle” was one of the first songs I learned when I started playing again. I think his simplicity and honesty is something I really strive towards in my own writing. When my sister got married and asked me to perform at her ceremony, I said, “which John Prine song would you like me to play?”

When he passed away last year, I felt devastated in a way that I had never felt from losing a person I had never met. It was surprising and really hard. I went through a real grieving process. I still am.

Your cover of “Whole Wide World” by Wreckless Eric is great. It’s a nice, light way to end a powerful EP. Why’d you decide to include this on the EP and how’d you approach covering this song?

That song happened really organically. I was hanging out with my partner, Oscar. I was fiddling around with his new guitar which was a Gibson SG junior. I wanted to play something gritty and distorted to see how it would sound. The first song that came to mind was “Whole Wide World.” I started playing it and singing it, and Oscar got all excited and started setting up gear to record in his home studio. When we went to the studio to record the EP, we asked my bass player and drummer to also do “Whole Wide World”. We just loved the song and hadn’t yet decided what to do with it. To me it marks a really happy time at the beginning of my relationship with my partner/ bandmate and it felt really sweet to include it on the record. I remember when we were recording it on that first day, I went to the other side of the apartment to answer a phone call and when I came back Oscar was adding synths with an enthused smile on his face. It was so fun.

What was the recording process for the EP like?

We recorded “Gone”, “Same as Always” and “Blindsided” at Russell Street Recording (RSR) in Brooklyn. I wanted to spend two days in the studio instead of having a party for my 40th Birthday. The album was recorded, mixed and produced by Oscar. It was a great way to spend my 40th Birthday. Jesse Kristin (Jukebox the Ghost) came in and did drum tracking for us. Annie Nero (The Hold Steady, Bob Weir) played bass and sang background vocals. I am still so psyched about how her voice sounds on “Gone” and “Blindsided”. They both brought exactly what I was hoping for: stellar backing, and an extremely fun hang. Oscar and I finished the record at his home studio in our apartment in Greenpoint.

Do you have a favorite song on the EP or one that you think really represents the message that you were trying to convey?

I have a real affinity for “Beautiful Face”. It is for sure one of my favorites. As much as “Gone” is about desperation and searching for hope, “Beautiful Face” is about finding my sense of home again. Oscar and I were best friends for about a year before we started dating. When we did start dating, there was a wonderful sense of careful intention brought to the relationship. I wanted “Beautiful Face” to convey how we both found a way to heal from our past relationships through this new one. I think both songs together convey the message of the record. Stepping out of bad situations and finding new ways to heal.

Who are some Brooklyn based artists/musicians that you’d recommend to our readers?

Albis: Rock band fronted by Oscar Albis Rodriguez. His lyrics are hauntingly beautiful. His songs are nostalgic and new all at the same time.

Zach Jones and the Tricky Bits: Zach brings a sense of humor and some heartfelt soul to his songs that you’ll be wanting to sing-along to in no time.

Hannah Winkler: Has one of the most beautiful voices I have ever heard. Her songs are blaringly honest and heartfelt. She has a knack for flexing between genres and styles.

Check them out. They are amazing.

What’s next for you?

I’m hoping to release a single soon that Oscar and I recorded with Zach Jones at Studio G in Brooklyn called “I Wanted You.” I also have a bunch of songs written that I’m excited to record for the next record. So far, they are shaping up to be a little more electric than Songs for Rivers. We’ll see how it turns out.

You can purchase Songs for Rivers via Bandcamp. The EP is also available on all streaming platforms. Keep up with Will by following her on Instagram.