Are you looking for music that doesn’t fit into a specific genre? Music that has a message but is written and performed in a beautiful way? Let us introduce you to Griefcat! Annie Nardolilli and Louisa Hall, the masterminds behind Griefcat, are a in matching outfits who together create music with an unpredictable twist. They’ve been compared to Flight of the Conchords, Tenacious D, Norwegian duo Ylvis, and Garfunkel and Oates by fans.
But if you ask Annie to describe their sound, she says “We’re like if Taylor Swift, Dolly Parton, and Bo Burnham met up at an Olive Garden and wrote a song while eating unlimited breadsticks. Does that make sense? Probably not.” Annie Nardolilli is a Mormon and former sheriff’s deputy from Arlington, VA. Louisa Hall is a long-time lapsed Catholic and a career tech employee. From Alexandria, VA and now resides in Reston, VA.
The duo met at a DC-based variety show in 2015 and were the only musicians in a group of comedians performing that night. “Louisa played a song called ‘Barista Boyfriend,’ about a barista she had a crush on, and I played a song called ‘Hot Park Ranger’ about a park ranger I had a crush on,” says Annie. “We both realized we liked hot people with jobs!” They felt an immediate kinship.
After continually running into each other in the singer-songwriter scene in DC and admiring each other’s work, they joked backstage at the 9:30 Club in 2018 about how they should form a band together. They scheduled their first rehearsal in 2019, and wrote a song about vaccines and egg rolls, and the rest is history.
Griefcat’s album Late Stage Capitalism includes nine tracks that range from flat out hilarious to unexpectedly thought provoking, each with a unique sound and lyrics to tickle the soul. The musicianship stands out on its own as well. You will hear some unexpected instruments like slide guitar, ukulele, trumpet, trombone, violin, and cello throughout the album. The album explores how unbridled capitalism has invaded every facet of modern life, from workplace politics to interpersonal relationships, and even our most private moments.
They came up with the title in early 2020 when they wrote arguably their most well-known song on the album to date, “Revolution (Poop At Work).” This song catapulted the duo to viral infamy and a strong following with over 25 million organic views of their videos – more than 15 million of those views for that song alone.
“Revolution (Poop At Work)” is a song about how even the smallest acts of defiance can be revolutionary. “So much of the 2020s feel like the 1920s all over again – the income inequality is staggering, and the rich are getting richer while others are struggling,” says Louisa. “Late stage capitalism is at the core of our entire album, but this is the song that most explicitly calls this out. We always tell audiences it’s our most cerebral song, then we dive into a 1.5 minute poop joke. Life can be crappy, but it’s so much more fun to laugh your way through it!”
Other songs on the album include “I Just Want To Get Inside (Your Bank Account).” This song is an unanticipated, ‘90s-style love song with a hilarious contradiction between two women looking for two different things when it comes to a new relationship. Are they looking for love or money? It also shines a light on dating culture and how much sensitive personal information we share online every day.
“Crytpobro” is a traditional country tune with all the makings of a hit song. It’s a melodic, catchy, and current, and a breakup song about losing love, in this case to the cult of Cryptocurrency and the church of Elon Musk.
With each live show, Griefcat invites their audience to step inside their world, creating a fun and exciting atmosphere that becomes a universally shared experience. “We want to take away some of the seriousness of the day and help people remember that though life may be chaotic and nonsensical, it’s still good. Life is hard and it’s okay to laugh at it together,” says Annie.
But the greatest messages they receive are from fans who say their music provides a cathartic experience. Says Louisa, “We’ve had folks reach out who couldn’t get out of bed due to grief, and they’ve found us, and it brought them enough joy to get out of bed that day.”
Ultimately they want people to enjoy the music, not just because it’s funny, but because it’s good – they want fans to feel it in their souls, to love the lyrics, and to have fun singing along. People often tell them after a Griefcat show that they haven’t laughed that hard in a long time, and that’s a compliment that inspires Griefcat to keep making music every day.
Not only is Griefcat discussing difficult topics in a light-hearted way, they are also focused on inclusion and supportive of the plus size community. Louisa says, “Something instrumental to me on my journey as a fat person was seeing fat creators thriving in the world – it gave me hope that I could too. Now that we are more in the public eye, I’m grateful to be in a position where I can share that hope and joy with others. Seeing fat people represented, especially as main characters in our own stories, is incredibly powerful, and I’m proud to be one of the many incredible fat creators out there showing that we exist, and we are worthy of the spotlight!”
Learn more, Listen, and support the Dynamic Duo at Griefcat.com!
Annie says, “I would love to one day live in a world where all body types are so normalized they aren’t even a topic of conversation, but until that day I love being a tiny part of the growing landscape of diverse bodies represented in media. No matter how much or how little physical space you take up, the world has infinite room for everything you bring to the table. And if you happen to bring a whoooole lot to the table, might as well share that with as many people as possible right?”
Who wouldn’t want to support a duo that supports the plus size community? If you’d like to learn more about Griefcat, visit their socials at @griefcatpartytime on Instagram and on TikTok at @griefcat!