Meet Zoe Young

We were lucky to catch up with Zoe Young recently and have shared our conversation below.

Zoe, first a big thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and insights with us today. I’m sure many of our readers will benefit from your wisdom, and one of the areas where we think your insight might be most helpful is related to imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is holding so many people back from reaching their true and highest potential and so we’d love to hear about your journey and how you overcame imposter syndrome.

People in their 30s are not supposed to start punk bands. You should be out of your f**k the man–burn it all down phase, right? Absolutely not! Overcoming imposter syndrome for us was about embracing that. What could be more countercultural than starting a punk band when you’re supposed to have your sh*t together.

At the outset of our band, The Furious Tits, we struggled to claim the title of “punk,” much less “band.” We had jobs, we generally paid our rent on time, and we had more 401Ks than body modifications.

We even had to let go of being buttoned up from a musical perspective. More than half of our band members came up through Bach competitions and judgmental vocal jazz recitals. We’d learned that our worth as musicians was determined by how well we could follow rules.

In this way, punk, became the perfect outlet for us—an invitation to be ourselves and an encouragement to make mistakes. Overcoming imposter syndrome became about simply embracing the music we would write if no one was looking.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

We’re a queer punk band that formed after our lead singer Zoe spent the pandemic writing punk songs in the shower. She was frustrated and angry and sick of being scared. Songs with titles like “I Love my Boyfriend But I Wanna F**k that Girl” and “Be Gay, Do Crimes” kept pouring out of her, and when quarantine lifted, all she wanted to do was get on stage and scream.

She put out the call, and it was clear she wasn’t the only one ready to let out a rebel yell. Griz, a guitarist and former bandmate, needed a break from full-time dadding. Zoe’s friend Miju had recently come out about being a closet bassist and needed a creative outlet after having her first kid. William was looking to get polyamorous with his folk band and play some punk drums. Enter Joy on cello and Alice on violin, and the Furious Tits were born.

We started practicing. It was fun, it was kind of working, and then suddenly we had eight songs and it was time to play our first show. Was it possible? Could we really do this? We had wrinkles and babies and one mortgage. But when we started playing, it all made sense. There is no feeling like the realization that you don’t have to make your weird art alone.

After that, the chemistry clicked into place. Suddenly, we were going to band practice every week. We started writing songs together, songs that kept getting sexier and weirder: “Costco Domme,” about a dominatrix who takes a client to Costco; “Cougar Town,” about dating older women and building bridges for mountain lions over freeways; or “AJAB,” which stands for “All Jobs Are Bad.”

Now, you can find The Furious Tits gigging out around the Bay and streaming wherever you get your music.Our first full album drops in January, and you can find us screaming at the Women’s March in San Francisco on January 18th.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

It doesn’t have to be perfect

Punk is a great place to start if you’re new to writing music or performing. The same four chords can make Bowie “break down and cry,” but they can also get people to mosh for two straight hours. You don’t have to be a musical genius to write and play a punk song, you just have to wear black jeans and commit. In fact, more mistakes = more punk.

Just f**king do it

There is no such thing as “the right time” to start a band. We were all in our 30s with full time jobs and two of us have kids. But even with all that, we kept showing up. You can do this if you want to.

Friendship is better when you make something together

We’ve been a band for about three years but we’re closer friends than ever. That’s because when we hang out, we’re not just catching up or watching a movie, we’re making something. We’re writing songs or practicing for shows. We do an activity that forces us to think together, to focus on something generative and collaborative. Instead of just reporting on our lives, we’re doing the thing that we report on to other people. It makes us better friends and 100% improves our music.

Who is your ideal client or what sort of characteristics would make someone an ideal client for you?

The ideal Furious Tits fan is a chaotic bisexual who has used up all of their PTO. They’re a snarky punk that obsessively memorizes song lyrics but intentionally forgot the Declaration of Independence. They probably live with a few housemates, or they’re an upstanding father of four who keeps trying to sneak their 12-year old into a show. They’re vegan…except for bacon.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Narges Tankbris
Girl with Lumix
Joy Ding

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