1. Hi Zayna! Please introduce yourself to those who might not know you.
Hey there! I’m Zayna Youssef from the band Sweet Pill. I have a black cat named Misery Business, and I live in the greatest city in the world: Philadelphia.
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2. When did you first realize music was your path? Was there a specific moment or influence that solidified being an artist as your dream?
My really cool older brother, Jay, was in a local band and would always be playing his guitar around the house when I was younger. I was about nine, and whenever he took a nap, I’d sneak around and quietly play his acoustic guitar. He’d wake up and FREAK OUT, yelling, “DON’T TOUCH IT, YOU’RE GONNA BREAK IT!” That Christmas, he got me my own guitar to destroy. :)

Jay introduced me to some of my favorite bands—Circa Survive, Taking Back Sunday, and even Paramore. To this day, he’s still recommending amazing artists. He even showed me Movements years ago, who we are now touring Europe with! I can assure you, he is definitely jealous. Haha.
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3. Being in the alt music scene, which is usually pretty male-heavy—what does that experience mean to you as a woman? How are you navigating the space?
Sometimes I don’t notice it because the guys I am surrounded by are awesome and don’t treat me any differently. Sometimes I feel it when I need to change my clothes and our green room is a literal hallway full of dudes, or if I am on my period and the bathroom backstage is only a urinal (this just happened on this current tour, haha). There are times when I am talked to like I don’t know anything by venue staff or industry folks. I can’t help but feel like it is because I am a girl. But it feels so, so, so good to rip a GREAT show and show off to these bozos. Like, OK, try and do what I’m doing—I DARE you. I do see men say weird comments online from time to time. But I know who I am, I know what my goals are, and I know that I am achieving them.
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4. Where did the name Sweet Pill come from?
When Jayce and I were in college, we were trying to figure out our band name, and he had a red and yellow Reefer Madness poster hung up. It had a line on it that said, “The Sweet Pill that makes life better!” and our eyes wandered over to it, and we were like…should it be Sweet Pill?
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5. Earlier this year, Sweet Pill dropped the “Unraveled” EP featuring stripped-down versions of some of your most known tracks from previous projects. What can fans look forward to in your upcoming new music? Are you exploring any new sounds or styles?
We have been touring endlessly since “Where the Heart Is” dropped. We have been trying to write music for LP2 for over two years, but in little bits and pieces. So the new LP will have songs that are 2 years old and also songs that are like 2 weeks old. It feels cliché to say this, but I’d say we matured our sound and are trying slightly new chord patterns and time signatures. We slow down a bit for a few songs, but also have explosively fast songs, as well as some in-betweeners. LP2 is diverse and, for me personally, a little more emotional and honest. I get in my head about writing words that are meaningful and smart to our audience, but I tried letting go of that for this upcoming record and simply wrote what I feel, regardless of what it sounds like, and I hope that translates.
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6. Sweet Pill is hitting the stage for Warped Tour’s 30th anniversary this summer—what are you most excited about being part of such an iconic milestone?
We all have our own Warped Tour stories. We grew up with Warped being a staple part of our punk lives. I’m seriously just stoked to have Sweet Pill be recognized and part of a lineup I only ever dreamed about. Going to these shows when I was younger, I imagined what it would be like to be in a band touring the country with your buds. Now we get to share the stage with huge names and get that Warped stamp of approval. Not only that, there will be a lot of people seeing Sweet Pill for the first time, and I really want to show them what we got. (And I really hope we get a new pair of Vans out of it, hahaha.)
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7.  How has signing with Hopeless Records- an iconic label in the punk scene- impacted your journey as an artist, both creatively and professionally?
Hopeless has helped put us on the map. The team at Hopeless fully believes in us and our abilities, and it feels great to have a powerhouse label back you up. Mentioning my brother again, he showed me so many bands that were signed to Hopeless when I was growing up. It is sometimes hard for me to wrap my head around that now Sweet Pill has become one of those bands and part of the legacy. We feel no pressure from Hopeless, and they give us creative freedom to try any kooky idea that comes to mind. We are so grateful for the opportunities we have because of Hopeless!

8. You and your band are Philly natives, how does the local scene compare to other big cities you’ve played?
Philly’s music scene is world-famous. Wherever we go, we are asked, “What is in the water in Philly?" Well, first let me tell you, it is pronounced “wooder,” and you probably don’t wanna drink it. Practically every night, you have a choice of at least three different shows to go to. I could ride my bike around and show hop. When we tour the country, a lot of people we talk to crave this sort of thing. I think Philly has this infectious bug where you see one band doing it, and it makes you form your own, and thus starts this domino effect. There is a lot of camaraderie, believing in each other, and support.
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9. Paramore’s been mentioned as a big influence on your sound. Do you remember the first time you heard them and how did it shape you as an artist? Who else has helped shape your musical vibe?
My brother (mentioned yet again) showed me Circa Survive when I was in 5th grade. I said, “Wow, I wish there were more girl singers,” and he said, “Uh, that’s a dude singing. But you should check out this band called Paramore.” So that night I went onto purevolume.com (TBT) and found them and fell in love. Like, head over heels in love. It was everything my 12-year-old heart was craving and more. The music was perfectly emo and perfectly pop. To see Hayley be so confident, so cool, and so unapologetic lit the biggest fire in my chest. She also showed me that you don’t have to be a party animal or a troublemaker to be cool. I bought Riot the day it came out and listened to it on my Walkman over and over and over in my bed at night when I should've been sleeping. I imagined myself on stage, singing my heart out to these songs. Paramore truly made me feel like I could do anything. I can only hope that Sweet Pill has the same effect on folks because I know how powerful that can be. You never know what will happen when you put something or yourself out there. It might mean something incredible to someone, and it might inspire them to do the things they were meant to do.
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10. If you could collaborate with any artist, past or present, who would it be?
Well, obviously, I love Paramore, haha, so that would be bonkers. But I think my answer would be PinkPantheress. I love her vocal melodies! She has a bit of emo inspiration sprinkled in there—I just know it. It would be dope to go out of my element and sing to dance/electronic music. Her story is pretty cool too, as she got noticed from posting and lurking on Reddit! Coincidentally, she just released a new album, and I am bumping that on repeat.
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11. If your life were a movie, what would the title be, and who would play you?
“AAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!” and Selma Hayek. Or maybe “Shrek 7,” and definitely Eddie Murphy.
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12. If you could pick one album as the soundtrack to your life, what would it be?
‍Kidz Bop Vol. 3, for sure.
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13. What’s a personal achievement from this past year that you’re especially proud of?
I started therapy and started taking antidepressants. I used to think taking pills was like a bad thing, but it is a tool to help me navigate this funny world. I feel as though I have a better grasp on myself. I stopped taking things for granted and started to enjoy the smaller things in life. Being a front person is awesome, but it doesn’t feel so great when everyone believes in you, and you don’t believe in yourself. Now, I am learning to love myself and everything that I have to offer!

14. What’s next for you?
Recording this dang album! We are hitting the studio in July, and we will be starting the next chapter of Sweet Pill. We are so excited, and we are very proud of what we have to show. We can only hope the world loves it as much as we do! We’ll see!
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