Podcast appearances and mentions of hana elion

Overcoats And Friends Benefit on Tiltify (Live Stream) on May 21Benefit for Association to Benefit Children7PM EDT via Amazon-music's Twitch channel The indie-pop duo Overcoats is curating and performing in a live music festival on Thursday evening, May 21, which they’re calling “The Fight For NYC.” The NY-based band consists Hana Elion and JJ Mitchell, and they – like almost all musicians – have been struggling with the idea of not being able to do the single, most basic thing that musicians do: play music for people.  “We were devastated to not be able to play our Music Hall of Williamsburg show,” says Elion; “our big hometown album show which was meant to happen just a couple of weeks ago. So we wanted to do something for NY where we could donate money to an organization that’s doing good work in the city right now – and get our artist community back together.”  The Thursday night lineup includes such notable figures on the Brooklyn indie scene as Torres, Margaret Glaspy, and Porches – all of whom have recent albums and would normally be touring around to support them now. The organization they’ve chosen to partner with is the Association To Benefit Children, which provides in-person support to families at risk of child abuse and domestic violence, and which also provides childcare to front-line workers in the fight against COVID19.  “It was a NY-centric idea from the beginning,” Mitchell explains. She points to the nightly tradition of clapping at 7pm for health care and other front-line workers as a source of inspiration: “we wanted to dedicate more than just two minutes of clapping to organizations working on the front line. And so it was always the plan for us to really focused and rallying around a New York City cause, and the ABC does really important work.” She adds that they felt the lineup of musicians had to be NYC-based as well. “We have a lot of musicians who are friends and we’ve toured with who are not based in New York, and it would’ve been amazing to have them, but we wanted the whole lineup to be performing as a love letter to New York.”  Overcoats’ new album is called The Fight, and although it was recorded before the pandemic, its theme of resistance and perseverance has taken on new levels of meaning. Hana Elion points to the song called “Fire and Fury”: “it has a line that says ‘the world as I know it is coming to an end’.” As JJ Mitchell observes, “there are a few songs that are ‘we’ll get through it’-type ballads. One is ‘Fire and Fury’ and another is ‘I'll Be There.’ And those have taken on a much more powerful and different meaning for us. It’s sad that we can’t tour now because so much of the joy of putting out a record is the experience of singing it for people in a room and feeling how the words are helping people. But songs are always taking on new meanings as the world around us changes.” The Fight also represents a new sound for Overcoats.  Their well-received debut LP featured glowing, almost folk-style vocal harmonies set in a wash of electronic pop. This new LP hits harder, with more of a rock sound. In the intervening two-plus years, the duo graduated from college, started living on their own, lost family and friends to what Elion refers to as “mental health complications and gun violence,” and came to the realization that, as she says, “life doesn’t get any easier when you grow up, and you don’t really understand much more; you just have to fight harder.” And so the live streaming festival is called The Fight For NYC. Elion, who is actually quarantining in Maryland, says “it’s been heartbreaking to see the struggles it’s gone through – uniquely, because it is New York and because there are so many people there and the rent costs and all the things that makes it an amazing place and also a difficult place. So we really wanted to do something that was centered around our hometown.”   As JJ Mitchell points out, most people know that musicians have been financially impacted by the loss of touring income; what they may not know is that musicians are feeling an emotional loss as well.  “It is a really crucial part of the album cycle,” she explains. “You hole up for two years, and then so much of our emotional rebuilding after having birthed this ‘album/child’ is from connecting with fans. And that’s gone now.” Mitchell admits to feeling nervous about Overcoats’ upcoming online appearance, but Elion is looking forward to the duo curating the whole event.  “I hope people come and watch and donate,” she says, “but what I’m most excited about is just to talk to the other artists and really feel a part of a community. Because that’s the part that we really need.”  

A Discussion with JJ Mitchell and Hana Elion of Overcoats during the Covid-19 Pandemic

Gone are the days of a clear dividing line between “mainstream pop” and “conscious” music. Many of the world’s highest-grossing pop stars are climbing the charts with lyrics that seem to get right at the very weight of human existence. They’re tackling climate change, and drug addiction, crippling anxiety, inequality, sexism and racism. It’s a fascinating shift to witness. That’s why this week, we’re especially thrilled to be chatting with folk-pop duo Overcoats. JJ Mitchell and Hana Elion are known for otherworldly harmonies that sound more like a single voice diverging in two rather than the other way around. We discuss two singles off their new album “The Fight” (out now), and reflect on how seemingly small decisions about a song’s arrangement can make things like anxiety and microaggressions feel a bit easier to carry. Here’s a teaser quote from the episode that we’ll be thinking about for a while: “We often use repetition as a way of saying something until you believe it...that’s very true for this song as well. We’re singing ‘There’s a fire / There’s a fury’...it feels apocalyptic. But the more you say ‘We’ll get through it’ and the more voices join in, it starts to feel true, and starts to feel hopeful.” SONGS DISCUSSED Overcoats - The Fool Overcoats - Fire & Fury The Supremes - Stop In The Name Of Love LCD Soundsystem - Watch The Tapes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Overcoats are a Brooklyn-based pop duo, comprised of Hana Elion and JJ Mitchell. Their second album, The Fight, follows their 2017 debut Young. While it has a few nods to their first release, The Fight is largely a departure for Overcoats. On their new album, their pop anthems unpack what it means to fight, in every sense of the word: fighting for womxn, against misogyny and ignorance, fighting to be understood, and fighting for one’s self-worth.

The folk-soul duo Overcoats, comprised of JJ Mitchell and Hana Elion, have experienced plenty in the three years since their debut release, and all of that struggle and wisdom has found its way into their new crop of songs.

Latin Grammy and Juno-winning artist Alex Cuba talks his new album Sublime and his collaborations with superstar Latin American musicians. Also, Hana Elion and JJ Mitchell aka Overcoats explain the process behind their new single "The Fool", feminist music, and their decision to shave their heads on camera. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/dan-mcpeake/message

Marleah and James talk about the Two Door Cinema Club (with Overcoats) show that Marleah- along with special guest, Najood!- saw on 9/13/19 at Hammerstein Ballroom. Marleah likens the sweet, sweet mix of Alex Trimble’s vocals with the steady groove of TDCC to 300 thread count sheets on the kind of bed you never want to leave. James compliments the parents (who were in the crowd right next to us!) of the talented Hana Elion in his, you know, signature way. Twice. And Marleah, James and Najood discuss encores, and the topic of the pros and cons of phone out vs. phone away during a concert. When? How often? Or never? But what if you have a podcast that’s basically all about the live show experience? It’s all so very mildly controversial. On our Twitter: thoughts on TDCC’s new album cover artwork aesthetic? Venue: https://mc34.com/ Overcoats shows: http://www.overcoatsmusic.com/ Overcoats music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2pst3pDewxsl4kJERuDZpp?si=vldZ56H_TPyYsilYdHwHCA Two Door Cinema Club shows: http://twodoorcinemaclub.com/main/ Two Door Cinema Club music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/536BYVgOnRky0xjsPT96zl?si=rwWYw0m6SAKjvWsvM1eSyw Intro music: Evan James Rhind IG: @xrhindcorex

On Sunday, June 10, 2018 Overcoats joined us for an intimate concert. The New York-based female electronic-pop duo of Hana Elion and JJ Mitchell, performed in the historic Hofmann Studio in Provincetown, the former West End home and studio of artist Hans Hofmann, as part of Twenty Summers' annual month-long arts festival. The talented best friends’ debut, Young, released in 2017, was praised as a “memorable album” in a rave review by critic Bob Boilen. In a vocal style that is minimalist yet rich in melody, they deliver songs of connection and tension, on the depths of love and the challenges of family.

Hana Elion and JJ Mitchell of Overcoats spill about their meet-cute at Wesleyan College and how they transitioned from a cappella buddies to being on the verge of a huge break-through with their debut album Young, out April 21. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Overcoats is the folktronica project of Hana Elion and JJ Mitchell. Their latest single, "Nighttime Hunger," came out in February of 2016. In this episode, Hana and JJ talk about injecting tension into their music, the vulnerability that comes with writing together, and the powerful empathy and understanding that they've developed for each other through their songwriting. Visit http://scratchtake.com/episodes/overcoats for a complete playlist of all of the songs featured in this episode.