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If you’re looking for the absolute cutest, most nostalgic, downright addicting music being made right now, look no further than the iconic duo known as Pebbles&TamTam. Hitting the ground running with their viral hit “PINK LIKE SUKI” last year, these girls have not slowed down one bit. Although their paths didn’t cross until college, Pebbles&TamTam move like sisters. From their creative process, to visuals, to how they interact, their synchronization is that of childhood besties. This is why their debut project, “Sleepover! the mixtape :P”, makes such a powerful impact.

Zooming in from their shared apartment (which doubles as the mixtape cover set and is still completely intact, months later), the girls chat about fully committing to the sleepover concept, their niche references, and why the silliest moments of growing up are the most sacred. 

OnesToWatch: Thank you so much for chatting about this amazing project! Obviously the mixtape follows a sleepover theme, which is so perfect. How did you land on this concept and commit to it? 

Pebbles: What's interesting is that we didn't necessarily come to the concept first. We wrote the music and then realized that the concept was there. Our manager said, “You know you have this group of songs that kind of feels like a slumber party?” Listening back, we realized it makes total sense to put these songs into a world together.
When we did that, we realized that from start to finish, it detailed the journey of one night. You get to the sleepover and you’re talking with your friends about boys, gossiping, maybe doing makeovers and then you start getting crazy. You're pillow fighting, and then you're like, “Wait, should we sneak out?”

TamTam:
The only songs that came after we had the concept were “sneak out….” and “PILLOW FIGHT!!!”, which are a bit more on the nose. Everything else was pretty organic and we did draw from real-life childhood experiences. 

I would love to hear what music you guys were listening to at sleepovers when you were growing up.

Pebbles: I recently started listening to my sister's old iPod and it reminded me of what we were listening to at that time. Flo Rida “Right Round”, that was THE song I listened to at every sleepover. We were bumping that. Definitely Lady Gaga, making dance numbers to “Poker Face” but thinking she was actually saying, “Poke her face.” All of the pop hits at the time, but then also songs like “Wake Me Up When September Ends”. Sleepovers were also a time when I got introduced to a lot of music, because my parents were only showing me what they listened to. 

TamTam: I lowkey did not know about the Flo Rida “Right Round” song until Alvin and the Chipmunks came out. When that cover came out, I was like, “Yo, this is my song right here.” Alvin and the Chipmunks put me on to a lot of music. 

You can hear all of those songs in your music now. How do you, especially as co-producers, bring that nostalgic vibe while also making it your own?

Pebbles: A lot of the time we start with absolutely no direction. But then sometimes we do say, “Okay, we want the song to feel like this” or “We want it to have some sort of this element from this song,” then that can be the jumping off point. From there, we completely forget about the reference so that it can take its own course and journey through the creative process. We don’t tether ourselves too hard so that we can still turn the song into something that sounds like us. 

TamTam: Most of the time we start from scratch. Sometimes we’ll come through with a reference, but regardless of how we start, it's just about making it feel fresh. Making something feel nostalgic, rather than dated. Sounds that we’ve always loved, but making them grow with us. Making not just something that we would enjoy when we were 13, but also now. 

Personally, I think you guys are doing that better than anyone right now. 

Pebbles: Thank you so much. That is so sweet. 


Okay so track by track, I love that the project starts with a Pebbles&TamTam theme song, “PBxTMTM!”

TamTam: I wrote that song by myself before we moved in together. It's so fuckass…but it's fun and I love it. I was bored, made a random beat and sang over it. Then I showed her and she wrote a verse. At first it was called “Bank Account” because the concept was, like bad bitch bank robbery or something…[Laughs] But then we thought the idea of it being a theme song for us was really cute. And we realized it’d be perfect for the first song on our first project and it became a no-brainer when I thought about it further. It's actually my favorite song on the mixtape. 

Do you typically write on your own and come together? Or do you mostly write together?

TamTam: It's pretty much both. I’ll sometimes bring ideas to sessions and she'll start with a concept, or maybe a hook idea. But when it comes to the actual writing process, we don't really do it together like that. Even if we're in the same room, we'll probably just write amongst ourselves as long as we're in the same universe. There's been plenty of moments where I have a whole 16 and then she comes in with a concept that's completely different from what I'm talking about. It's really not a set process, we kind of just do it. 


You guys have so much fun with acronyms and stylization when it comes to song titles, like “N.E.T.R.”. What do you feel that adds to your project? 

Pebbles: I personally like really long titles but only when there’s a reason why. Instead of “Not Enough To Remember”, we thought it would be better to shorten it. We just liked how “N.E.T.R.” looked, I guess. It feels fun to have, like you said, different stylization with the titles throughout the project because your eye gets drawn to different songs for different reasons instead of seeing it as a whole. It’s like each song has their own personality.

TamTam: For this one, we originally went for a Red One type beat that was more like “Pound The Alarm” by Nicki Minaj. When it came down to putting everything together we thought it just didn't feel like the song fit the track. The song was great, but the track wasn’t right. So our managers helped us fix it up and make it a little, I guess you could say Pink Pantheress-y, and it fit so much better. One of our managers, Pat, came up with the melody and we just put the words to it. 

It's pretty cool that your managers help with the music like that. 

TamTam: We’re a squad.
Initially they were just our producers, then they started being managers for us because we needed someone to guide us through the whole process. It was an accidental situation that just worked out.

That's so great. I’ve never really heard of that. 


Pebbles: I really like it because they can understand a standpoint that a lot of other managers can’t. They understand, not only the whole picture, but more the creative and how it all works. I also feel like it makes them much more invested in it, you know? Because they're a part of it, in all ways. 

Okay, so “horse girls <3”, I'm a horse girl, so this one hit so hard for me. Are you guys horse girls too? 

TamTam: I don't want to be a fraud. I'm not like a horse, horse girl. That one, though…[points to Pebbles who is grabbing a framed photo of her as a child riding a horse] She definitely was. Wait, hold on. She's about to prove it. 

Pebbles: This was my vibe growing up. This was my pony, Maggie May. She was the sweetest girl ever. And this framed photo in the background of the “N.E.T.R.” music video.

I also have to pull out my credentials. 

Pebbles: Horse girls unite. 

Talk to me about “horse girls <3”!

Pebbles: That one was so much fun to make. A lot of the songs on this project are a joke…but they're not. They're a bit, but we never stopped the bit. Like a horse bit…[laughs] But if you just keep going with the jokes, it becomes serious. Before Pebbles&TamTam, I would’ve taken myself way too seriously and not ventured into being stupid in songs. I always thought, “I can't do that. I can't say that.” But, why not? Why can't I say that? No song idea is too stupid. When making this song, we actually started off with the section of weird sounds and I said, “What if we put horse sounds?” I think it was Pink Slip that ended up asking, “Can we just write a horse girl song?” We wanted it to feel like you’re in the field with the wind blowing in your hair. 

TamTam: But it's also giving Tina Belcher vibes. Like a girl who’s probably never ridden a horse but she’s like, “No, I am a horse girl.” But she's never met one. 


“Pinky Swear?” has been on repeat for me and is probably my song of the summer. Tell me about this one. 

Pebbles: Damn, thank you. I realized we didn’t have any songs about being in love or really any positive feelings about relationships on the mixtape. Obviously, it's way more fun to write a song like, “I hate men!, but we also had to represent the girls that are in love. So I thought it would be cute to do a little song that's like, hehe I'm giggling and kicking my feet in the air. That goes hand in hand with being in your bedroom in middle school talking quietly on the phone with your crush. It’s lowkey one of the most straightforward, simple songs that we've created.

You said, “PILLOW FIGHT!!!” and “sneak out….” were made once you landed on the sleepover theme. How was it writing these songs knowing that they were going to live in this concept?

TamTam: It definitely came into play, especially the whole story taking place in one night. What I love about this project is that, while it feels nostalgic and a little childish, it's still pretty mature. I felt this was a great opportunity for us to be fun and violent. I just imagined a bloodbath in a room, it was such an amazing concept to me. We started with my verse, shoutout Jesse Bluu who produced it, and that production is so different from the rest of it. It’s very funny that it started with that but then went to a different vibe. 


Pebbles: I always annoy him (Jesse Bluu) because I'm like, “Now I want this part to be major and this part to be anthemic!” 


TamTam: If I remember correctly, I don't think I was even in the room for that. There’s a pattern where I'll leave for maybe 5-10 minutes to go piss and then I come back and there's a major key section. And she’s like, “Just listen.” 

Pebbles: When she comes back, we’ve somehow totally strayed from the path in three minutes. 

TamTam: I think “PILLOW FIGHT!!!” works so well because it has that 2010’s pop vibe, but it grew up. 

I also think “sneak out….” has that quality. 

Pebbles: “sneak out….” is one of my favorites. I was caught into this vibe of making Crystal Castles type beats, so I really wanted there to be a song on the project living in that world.
The production feels happy, but also sad. It has a melancholy feel to it, akin to hanging your head out the sunroof with a tear streaming down your face. I think that was the last song we wrote for the mixtape.

It really encapsulates the feeling that you think sneaking out is going to be like, but in reality it’s not as cool.

TamTam: You’re watching a Disney Channel original movie and the characters sneak out and you're like, “This is me. I can do that.”

Pebbles: You’re with your friends riding in some random car and everything's in slow-mo. We filmed a lot of content for this song, and the project in general, but ”sneak out….” feels most like what the project looks like. You're out at night, the fog is low and you’re running through the sprinklers. Everything feels kinda creepy, but you're free.


“FromTheBack” is crazy, what was the inspiration behind this song? 

Pebbles: I have to show you a video for this to make sense. The concept came from a time at our friend’s house just messing around. I don’t know why I started saying, “I look nice from the front, don't look at me from the back.” I posted a TikTok of me saying it and then I was like, “Wait, should we make that song?” It's so good because it’s some shit you would do at a sleepover. It’s like when you show up to the school dance but you didn't have time to brush the back of your head so you walk around funny so people don’t see.

TamTam: Like, why are you on the wall? 

Pebbles:
Or the classic, do I have a period stain right now? I have such a distinct memory of walking around in 8th grade realizing I wore white pants and I got my period today. And the entire day you're so stressed. That's the song, essentially. Which I think is so funny because it sounds like it's something sexual, from the title. It’s not at all. 

TamTam: That was so fun, when I came up with the title. We knew we had to do it because it sounds freaky, but then you hear it and realize it’s so goofy. It's so dumb but relatable as hell. 

You touched on how some of these concepts are perceived as “stupid”, but you fully lean into them. That really adds to the theme, because there are so many things about girlhood that mean so much, but are perceived as stupid. Meanwhile, sleepovers with your friends are one of the most impactful moments of your life. 

Pebbles: Absolutely. Lowkey, it’s where personalities are built. Memories are made, experiences and ideas are solidified. They say your parents raise you until you get to an age where your friends raise you. There were so many times at sleepovers where my world shifted. The girls I was with were so emotionally intelligent and taught me so much about how to process my feelings. I'm so glad that you see it like that, because that's really what we wanted to convey. It is stupid, but it's also the basis of your life. 

I'm sure you’ll always be exploring this theme, but at the moment, what is the most inspiring to you?

Pebbles: You answer and then I'll answer. But I feel like we definitely have overlap. 

TamTam: I mean, I'm trying to think myself. What do you think? 


Pebbles: There was a moment with one song where we thought, is this going to be on the project? But then we ended up making “sneak out….”, and that took its spot. The song is called “Switchblade” and I absolutely love it. The world that it lives in, I’m really into right now and would love to build upon it. We kind of already have our next project completely done, because we made so many songs that when we looked at them again we realized there’s definitely something there. Sleepover: the mixtape :P is Pebbles&TamTam in high school and then the next one is maybe going to college when things get a little crazier, but we’re still figuring it out. That’s something we want to mirror in our music, the natural path that Pebbles&TamTam has taken as a unit.

TamTam: I’m definitely interested in taking this universe and talking about topics that are a bit darker and more emotional, reflecting on girlhood into womanhood. On the realization that your awkward phase really doesn't end. I'm ready for everything to grow with us. I wouldn't say I want to leave this universe yet, but I definitely want to evolve it. I've always been into anything that feels like something I’ve never heard before. We're pushing that already, but I want the next project to push it even further, while staying authentic to us. 

Pebbles: What you just said made me think about how a sleepover represents your first crush and then next is your first heartbreak, when things get real and you're like, “Oh life is more intense than I thought.”

TamTam: Right now we're in Big Mouth, I'm ready to go to Degrassi next. 

I'm so excited to hear how it evolves. One last question, as always, who are your OnesToWatch? Who are you listening to?

TamTam:
I've been really into projects that came out recently. I've been all over Amelia Moore's EP, he’s just not that into you. SAILORR’s album was really good and Rico Nasty's new album is amazing. 

Pebbles: I have to look at my Spotify because I have the memory of a goldfish. I’ve been listening to Sipper a lot, they're on this song with adore called “breathe u in”. It’s one of my favorite songs ever. I realized I hadn’t listened to a lot of Sipper’s music so I went through yesterday and started diving straight in.

TamTam: The way I get into new artists is from the Spotify feature that’s like an Instagram reels vibe, there are samples of all the songs. I’ll just doom scroll those and then screenshot the ones that stick out to me.

Pebbles: What about you? Do you have anything that we need to listen to? 


The funny thing is, I usually say Pebbles&TamTam when people ask me! Right now I’m obsessed with “A-Lister” by Romy Mars, who is Sofia Coppola’s daughter. Also the new Between Friends music, which I think y'all will really like. Then of course, Addison Rae “Headphones On”, just killing it. 


Pebbles: I'm so excited for where pop is going. It just feels like it’s becoming really fun again. 

Listen to Sleepover! the mixtape :P now: