INTERVIEW
INTERVIEW
☆ BY AUTUMN THATCHER ☆
CLASSICAL MUSIC MIGHT BE PART OF LILY HONIGBERG’S GENETIC MAKEUP—but it’s the violinist’s versatility that landed her on stage with Phoebe Bridgers as part of the indie-rock sensation’s The Lost Tour.
“The Lost Tour is a moment in musical history, and I am so grateful to be a small part of it. I love my bandmates and the crew on this team,” Honigberg said. “It takes a lot of people to bring this show to life, and this group of people rises to the occasion day after day and night after night.”
Honigberg packed her things in Los Angeles and boarded the tour bus in early September, embarking on a packed North American leg that ended on November 1. From there, the musicians stop in New York City to perform on Saturday Night Live on November 14, then head out for the European leg of The Lost Tour, playing multiple shows through December 13.
It’s a busy schedule. Days are filled in transit from one location to the next, while evenings are spent playing in front of thousands of screaming fans. Honigberg has little downtime amid the busyness of the tour but, when there are hours available, she’s working on several side projects — and preparing for an upcoming album release.
Things have moved at a dizzying pace for Honigberg since she followed her intuition to Los Angeles five years ago. A classically trained musician, she has played the violin since she was four years old, moving through the ranks at prestigious music schools and earning degrees along the way. Honigberg grew up under the tutelage of professional classical musicians: her father, a former cellist in the National Symphony in Washington, D.C.; her mother a pianist and harpsichordist.
“Growing up, playing in an orchestra was always the light at the end of the tunnel,” Honigberg said. “But when I went to New England Conservatory for my undergrad, I started to have this feeling where I was like, ‘I don’t think I’m going to be happy playing in an orchestra like my dad.’”
Surprised by this realization, Honigberg began some self-exploration to figure out what she wanted and where she found joy with her music. The search for answers led to Ireland, where she lived with a host family of musicians who introduced her to Irish folk music. There, she immersed herself in fiddling. When she returned to America, she switched her graduate-degree major to contemporary improvisation, graduated and packed her car for LA.
When she looks back on her whirlwind career, Honigberg realizes the wow-factor of it all hasn’t quite caught up with her yet. There’s been little time to process how one small choice at a time has led her onto a tour bus taking her around the world with one of the industry’s most sought-after musicians.
Honigberg talked to Luna Collective about life leading up to this moment, what it’s like releasing songs while on tour and why trusting her instinct continues to work in her favor.
LUNA: How has The Lost Tour been so far? Are there any memorable moments?
Honigberg: There's so many things. First and foremost, Phoebe has a pug named Maxine who's just iconic. She's always around in her special way, looking for treats and pets before the show. She doesn't come on stage, but it's uplifting to have her around because she's such good energy and we are dog-deprived on the road.
The show is a no-phones show, and the only way you can relive it is in your head, which is so special. From the stage, we can see everybody in the front of the pit. Their facial expressions are clear, and we see them cry and sing and comfort each other. I've never experienced anything like it. It almost feels strange to think of what that show would feel like if people were to have their phones, because what ends up happening in that scenario is people watch the show through their phones or through phones around them. This experience not only removes that, but also the fans don't have anything to do but interact with each other when they're waiting between the opener and Phoebe’s set, and it's really unique and wholesome. It’s a rare place to find oneself in 2026—phoneless for over three hours.
LUNA: You are classically trained and perfectly suited to perform in an orchestra. What led you to working with artists like Phoebe Bridgers and Shaboozey?
HONIGBERG: A couple of months after I finished my graduate degree, I was like, “I’m going to move to LA. There’s a lot of inspiring music happening over there and it feels like the next step for me.” I didn’t really know anybody. I had nothing lined up. I went with my gut and trusted that it's all going to be okay.
I took every gig, did every session, made my own music in my room, recorded my first full album of original Celtic music and started getting more and more creative calls that aligned with what I wanted to be doing in LA. Being able to play fiddle as well as violin opened doors to more country and folk artists as well as pop and mainstream, where I use my classical chops more. Phoebe’s music calls for both fiddle and violin, so it’s a really wonderful fit for me as a player.
I'm finally starting to digest what's happened the last five years living in LA. It's such an amazing city, and there's so many opportunities.
LUNA: Your story is so inspiring. Congrats! Last month you dropped the first single off of your upcoming album, Lost in Time, and, separately, you recently dropped a single with yeemz—the cellist currently playing on The Lost Tour—on November 6. Plus, your full album release is slated for January 2027. Tell us about that album.
HONIGBERG: “Fork in the Road” is the first single, and I have some incredible musicians on it from Ireland, Scotland, Boston and LA. It's a fiery fiddle tune in 7-8, which is a fun time signature. I throw in a couple bars of 6-8, which makes it feel a little off-balance. I'm really proud of it.
In 2024, I got to play on this song called “Tipsy” by Shaboozey, which just blew up, and it kind of put a lot of things into perspective for me about why people make songs. There's a lot of rooms in L.A. and everywhere, I'm sure, where people are like, "How can I make the song that does the best?" This project, my own artist project that “Fork in the Road” is on, it's music where if nobody listened, I would still put it out. It's the most genuine thing that I put out personally and feels different than playing on someone else’s project.
LUNA: And you have another single, “End of the Road,” coming out in the next month or so. What makes that song special for you?
HONIGBERG: It’s the second-to-last song on the album. My friend Jessica Willis Fisher, who's a beautiful musician, sings the song. We met backstage at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, we were both playing there the same night, and she's become such a dear friend. She has her own artist project under her name. On October 30, she released an album I played on called Wait for My Signal.
I have a lot of different genres of music out that I really feel proud of and love. I have a full classical album out with my dad that we put out two or three years ago, and I have a duo EP with my good friend and incredible pianist in LA named Elijah Fox. I have a bunch of original Irish music. My artist project is full of a multitude of genres, and I think that's part of what makes it unique.
LUNA: Congratulations! It sounds like you’ve been making music nonstop. When can we look forward to the full album dropping?
HONIGBERG: What a great question. It's really crazy releasing music on The Lost Tour, so we are figuring that out. But I do have an EP coming out this month. We're going to do a few singles with my friend, Yi-Mei Templeman—she's known on Instagram and social media as yeemz. She plays cello, and she also sings, and we reconnected last year and made this really beautiful instrumental EP together.
LUNA: You’ve done so many interesting things with your instrument. What advice would you give to aspiring classical instrumentalists who may want to try a less conventional path?
HONIGBERG: My biggest advice would be to go where the music is. If you want to tour out of Nashville, you have to move to Nashville. If you’re trying to land a role on a pop gig, maybe LA is your best bet. Be a good person. Be kind. Be yourself, and be on time. Work really hard. Get really good at your skill. These all seem so obvious, but I didn't know what was waiting in LA. Looking back, I did put myself in that position to get those calls and do music in the worlds I wanted to. It’s different for everyone, but my advice would be do it if you love it and go from there.
