Q&A: Chickpee’s “Two Trees” Music Video, Artistry & More

☆ By FRANKIE TAMERON ☆

WALKING THROUGH THE SNOWY PENNSYLVANIA LANDSCAPE — Chiara D’Anzieri — also known as chickpee — appears reminiscent and homesick in her music video for her new single “Two Trees.” Just in time for spring, D’Anzieri wrote the retrospective song in only one night. Playing slide guitar for the first time, she wrote, recorded vocals, and had the song ready to go all before her husband, Ron Gallo, woke up that day. Together, the couple tracked drums and piano, allowing D’Anzieri to feel like she was birthing something new. “It was so pure and so beautiful, and I felt really good. I don’t like to drag the process or writing out for weeks or months and wait for a song to be done,” she explained. “One day writing, for me, is the best.”

Moving to the United States a year and a half ago to be with her husband, she first settled in Nashville, however recently relocated to Philadelphia. D’Anzieri loves the culture and the big city feel that Philly offers; she’s finding herself absorbing a little bit of culture every time she is out and about. However, she still finds herself missing Italy, particularly her family. Therefore, it is no surprise that when homesickness hit her, she was able to produce a song in just one night — a track written for D’Anzieri’s parents.

Imported is Chickpee’s debut album that is set to release in late 2021, which will include “Two Trees.” And although the song and music video have the sound and appearance of dreamy, well-flowing emotion, the album was a personal challenge to D’Anzieri herself. This was the first time she’d recorded in English, only asking her husband to look over the songs once they were completely finished. However, she found English to be easier to make music with because of the words having a “more musical” sound.

D’Anzieri, who is classically trained, previously was a cello player in an Italian conservatory. This — as well as the musical taste that her parents instilled in her — has heavily influenced the album. However, despite her musical past, her sound is not classical. It is modern, fun, and light-hearted — something that D’Anzieri hopes that her fans can take away from listening to her album.

“I hope that my album gives my fans a little tenderness and sweetness.” Read below to learn more about chickpee’s musical origins, inspirations, and creative challenges that she has overcome with the release of “Two Trees.”

LUNA: Why the band name “chickpee”?

D’ANZIERI: I can’t have gluten — I have Celiac disease. I started to eat a lot of chickpea pasta, so when Ron was over at my parents house in Italy, he asked how to say “chickpea” in Italian and I told him “ceci.” He started to call me that and at some point thought that “chickpea” sounded really good for a brand name. We changed the name and used ‘pee’ [instead], which is really fun and really silly. It fits perfectly.

LUNA: You recently moved to Philadelphia — what about it feels like home?

D’ANZIERI: From Italy to Nashville, it was a bit of an adjustment. It was too draining to go from a country like Italy to the south. Nashville is good if you want to be a country musician, but I thought I needed to be in a place with more people, and it was more global. Also, I’m a classical musician and I play cello, and there’s not much classical music in Nashville. I thought Philly was the right city for me — either Philly or New York. I absorb a little bit of a different culture being in Philly than I did in Nashville. I feel more a part of something in Philadelphia. That’s what I was missing about Italy, too.

LUNA: What do you miss most about Italy?

D’ANZIERI: The thing that I miss the most about Italy is the way that we decide [our] values that we have in the culture — what we put energy into. Aside from my family, which is the thing that I miss the most. I also miss the way that I used to live with my family, too. We spent a lot of quality time [together]. Aside from that, I miss from my country what we value in life, which is time, beauty, and appreciation for really important things. And to be honest, I miss the beach a lot. I used to go to the beach, even in winter, and stop to get a coffee with my parents.

LUNA: What does music mean to you?

D’ANZIERI: I started in a conservatory when I was 10. Since [that] moment … I realized that if there was anything that I wanted to do, it had to be something that was [with] music.

LUNA: What is it like making music with your husband? Imported — your debut album out late 2021 — is about navigating moving to the US in the name of love. What was it like recording your first album in English? What challenges did you face?

D’ANZIERI: Writing in English is easier than writing in Italian because English has a better sound. You can put words and melody together easier. When you want to write poetry or write a book, Italian is terrific for that. But making music — sometimes [Italian] words are really long or have really strong sounds. English sounds are definitely more musical. It was difficult at times because I had to translate things, but I wanted to challenge myself, and I didn’t ask Ron to help me with the lyrics. It wasn’t too crazy difficult.

LUNA: You wrote your new song “Two Trees” in one day. What does that sort of creative endeavor look and feel like?

D’ANZIERI: I just picked up the guitar and started to play the beginning, and then I felt like the entire song was just … happening. I had to record everything super quickly because I didn’t want to lose it. I played the slide guitar for the first time and I recorded vocals by the time Ron woke up. Then we recorded the drums and the piano, and the song was done. It was so pure and beautiful, and I felt really good. I don’t like to drag the process of writing for weeks or months and wait for a song to be done. One day writing is — to me — the best.

I tried to make my parents wait for the song to come out. My mom was like, “What are you doing? What is this song about?” I wanted to wait, but I cannot keep a secret from them. There’s no filter with them; when something happens, it literally goes from my mind to my mouth to their ears right away. They really loved it right away. They were kind of moved by it.

The album does not have any classical influence. I did it on purpose — classical music is kind of like my alter ego. My parents made me listen to so much other music so I wanted to put those things into my new music. I wanted to make it a little more modern-sounding, too. It makes me feel more free to make something that isn’t classically influenced.

LUNA: What has making your first album given to you?

D’ANZIERI: It showed me that I can do things. I struggle so much with the sense of myself. I always doubt myself or [my] capacity to do something; I’m always questioning myself for that. It took me — in my mind — one year to be like, “Okay, I’m going to make a record,” and it literally took me two weeks to make the record. This is crazy! It’s like — if I wasn’t doubting myself every day, I would be making so many other things. It was like a slap in the face. It also showed me and reminded me that when I’m not at my best, that’s what I should be doing — [music] — instead of sitting in the corner and giving in to anxiety and panic attacks. When I have to sing and I’m anxious, I always wonder how I’m going to start singing, but when it’s time to actually do it, everything is fine.

I am capable of doing things. Whatever I do, my art is valuable. Whatever I do, this is the purpose for my life. And whatever I do, music is a cure. This record is like, “This is what you have to do when you can’t see.”

I hope that my album gives my fans a little tenderness and sweetness. I want them to feel like [there’s] a cuddle around them. They can just put that record on, go for a drive, sing along with it, and really just get the nice [feeling] from whatever is happening in the world. I want people to see that the simple things are the most important things. For me, this record is really easy to listen to — I am just talking about real things. [Romantic] love relationships, friendships, family relationships, homesickness … I’m talking about stuff that everyone [has] felt in their life.

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