What are your names? Where are you from? We are Vanessa Giovacchini & Marylouise Pels of POSSO… We are both from Sonoma Valley, CA.
What do you do in your daily lives? DJ’s, Musicians, Designers, Artists
How did you two first meet and how did you know you wanted to collaborate with each other? We met in ballet class when we were 4 years old. Our mothers met each other in college and also met back up when they discovered they had both moved to Sonoma, had daughters the same age who both were miniature ballerinas! We became best friends sophomore year of high school when we discovered we had every class together! We have been scheming ever since…
You girls are known as POSSO. How did you come up with that name and what is the significance behind it? We wanted a name for our creative collaborations that was positive, sexy and catchy… We are both of Italian decent so POSSO meaning “I can” in Italian just felt so right…
How are you connected to the Volcom brand? What projects are you working on with Volcom other than the Volcomunity project?
We were introduced to the Volcom family thru a few dear friends who work there, and literally as soon as we met we all fell in love! Both the men’s and woman’s line’s are really well done…classic, relaxed, and California but also chic and vintage inspired, which encompasses our lifestyle. We especially love the denim. We are also designing a capsule collection collab with Volcom based on our lifestyle and travel…we can’t wait!
How did you get started in your career as a DJs? We’ve always shared a mutual love for music..from rocking out to Led Zeppelin and Johnny Lang in high school to the present where we are actually making our own original music. Marylouise started DJ’ing when we first started our line of accessories back in 2007 and Vanessa soon after learned and joined up… DJ’ing was yet another thing that is way more fun to do with your best friend!
You girls do everything (design, music, art)! When did you know that all creative forms were your passion and that you wanted to pursue them all in life? We have both always been creative people since we were very young so a typical office job just never felt right… Between the two of us we have too many ideas and ambitions to be sitting down all day. Deciding to go into business together–designing and marketing a line of spats, really unlocked the creative power that we harness when we work together. Something magical happens, and we are both sort of fearless in going with our instincts of what feels right creatively.
What are three words that describe each of you? (Marylouise) Passionate, spiritual and fearless. (Vanessa) Compassionate, Classy, Clever
Did you think you would be doing what you are doing today when you were younger? Definitely NO! But I don’t think either of us could have dreamed this all up. I think lots of little girls dream of being “all of the above” (Rockstar, Movie Star, Designer) I think I am doing my little girl ambitions pretty proud…
What inspires you to wake up in the morning and face the day? Music, friends, the constant ADVENTURE that is LIFE!
Who is your role model? POWERFUL TALENTED WOMEN: Our mothers, Grace Jones, Stevie Nicks, to name a few.
Where do you see yourself in 1 year? 5 years? 10 years? Do you still think that you will be doing what you are doing? We will be playing music live all over the world and djing. We will be focused on making affordable yet chic and versatile clothing because that’s what we have always depended on! Giving back! And also trying new things! The best part about life is that you never know what could happen!
What were your hobbies growing up, and are they still a part of your life today? (Vanessa) drawing, singing, making crafty little projects, writing poetry, reading (still do all these things even more!). (Marylouise) Obsessively playing piano, playing and singing the blues with my brother, acting, playing tennis, writing poetry, collecting music, and reading.
Describe a regular day in your life that gives a good idea about who you are and what you do. When we are home in LA: Sleep in, eat oatmeal, drink apple cider vinegar, tea/coffee, lots of water, green powder, vitamins, do some emails, go shopping downtown la/vintage/or buy music, work in studio on new music, eat organic vegetable wrap, get ready to go out, meet up with friends (most likely other DJs and/or magical gypsy beauties), and go DJ!!
In your own words, how would you describe the quintessential Volcom girl? Adventuresome, easy going, wild, intelligent, fun, effortlessly chic, centered and confidant.
How big a part is Volcom’s surf/skate/snow culture and aesthetic in your own life? Do you take part in any extreme sports? Some may consider DJ’ing an extreme sport? We have lots of friends that are involved in the surf/skate/snow world… it’s all part of growing up with the California lifestyle.
How big a part is fashion in your life, and how do you incorporate the Volcom girl’s clothing line into your own sense of personal style, even if you do not take part in any extreme sports yourself? We both adore the Volcom line and love wearing the jeans, dresses, and swim wear when we are out DJing, just hanging out or at the beach or pool parties…
Who is your number one style icon?
Currently, it’s the below but this changes all the time!
(Marylouise) Michelle Pheiffer’s character in Scarface: Disco meets chic
(Vanessa) Stevie Nicks with a dash of both Francoise Hardy and Kate Moss (FASHION FUSION CUISINE: I CAN’T CHOOSE JUST ONE)
Because of your jobs, you must be surrounded by many different creative people everyday. How as this environment influenced your personal style? Our friends and their clothing and jewelry lines are what we covet–and continuous vintage shopping!! Fashion and style comes in waves and reflects your momentary attitude and evolves and adds to your specialized look. Personal style reflects lifestyle: One of the best things about traveling for us is meeting people that work in music/dj world who are inspired by similar music as we are and seeing what they’re into as far as fashion, philosophy, spirituality, etc. It’s really incredible how music is such a universal factor that we all share, no matter who you are or where you’re from.
How has your personal style developed since you started your project collaboration with each other? We obviously vibe off each other creatively so our style does as well… a lot of times we’ll separately come to the same creative conclusion and then laugh when we both show up wearing our “new look” which is very similar. We’ve both gone through a lot of different styles since we’ve been friends from wild, loud and futuristic to chic to now… it’s a constant evolution.
What pieces of clothing can you not live without?
(Marylouise) Vintage sheer cheetah print cover-up, black knee high cotton tights, vintage Contempo Casuals black knit bra top, vintage Neiman Marcus white beaded bustier. (Vanessa) my turquoise rings, black high waisted pants, black bralet, black sheer cape/coverup
If you were stranded on a remote island, what 5 things would you have to have with you?
(Marylouise) apple cider vinegar, tweezers, sheer black robe, white grand piano, pen. (Vanessa) my hunky lover (to help gather coconuts), some fantastic piece of jewelry to dazzle the natives so they take me as their queen, tweezers, lip-gloss, and Volcom swimsuit!
Since you two are DJ’s, you must have a widespread taste in music. What artists and songs do you love to play the most? Basically anything by: Classixx, Fleetwood Mac, Todd Terje, Round Table Knights, Bill Withers, Hall & Oats, Crazy P, DJ Hoff, Cosmic Kids, Gwen , Chic, Juacques Renault, Alexander Holland, Tensnake, Cosmo Baker, Mobroder, Nile Delta, Shakedown, Rivaa Star, Camel, Freemason’s, Arthur Russell, Sylvester, Drop The Lime–To name a few!!!! We also play jump-blues, remixed gypsy music and classic rock!
How do you choose what types of songs to play when you two DJ together? While Djing you curate the vibe yet you are also a part of the vibe, not separate from it. Depending on the gig you want to entertain yet educate and push limits–so it varies. Typically when you are inside the vibe of the moment you don’t really need to think about what to play, the next song just is birthed out of the current song you are hearing BUT at times when one of us isn’t sure we ask the other and can quickly debate “which is better for right now, this track or this one?” We usually go 3 for 3 when we play.
How do you know that people are really into your music set for an event? Knowing that you aren’t “above” or “separate” from the vibe that you are creating, and having an unspoken open communication with your audience: a good DJ reads people and can tell what kind of music they might lean towards as the night goes on. Never ignore your audience, it’s a two way street, without them and their energy the party wouldn’t work.
What places in the world have you been to for work? What place have you gotten the best response to your DJ gigs? What places have made the biggest impact on you? We’ve traveled to: Japan, Korea, Mexico, all over Canada, America, Peru, and frequent San Diego and New York to play. Our recent trip to Singapore DJing at White Rabbit was one of the best gigs we’ve played. Our set was flowing and the response was powerful. The people there know a lot about music you could just tell–it was a magic duality, we played for 5 hours and it was sold out.
You two are said to bridge lots of different aspects of creativity together. In what ways do you do this, and why do you think it is important to connect them all together at the same time? In a world where people are sort of told to pick a trade, what we do might seem disparate, but to us everything we do: music, fashion, art, poetry, styling, photography, throwing parties is our way of communicating what Posse is. It’s important because it’s who we are, and exploring the highest level of that possibility is our life’s purpose. Struggling to get here and having an unwavering vision was also part of our path. We are politely bossy and know what we want.
If you had to choose one place in the world to visit that you have never been to before, what place would this be? EGYPT to see the pyramids…we know we will be DJing there soon.
What other ways do you express your creativity, other than what you do now (art, photography, fashion design, music, writing, etc.)? Spending time with friends and family is always a necessary refresh and romance: we are both extremely romantic and idealistic.
What is your favorite quote/motto to live by, and what does it mean to you? And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom. Anis Nin. To us, this is Posse.
Where is your absolute favorite place to be and why? The moment when you get off a plane and arrive in a new place and drive through the city–the discovery and possibility is exhilarating–minus the jet lag. Also we both love Sonoma where we’re from. It has a peaceful timeless quality.
What is it that you love about where you live? We live in a house surrounded by nature: trees, fruit trees, it’s centering. And high ceilings for the grand piano’s notes to bounce off of.
What new projects are you working on that we can look forward to seeing in the future?
Our Spring 2012 Collaboration collection of clothes and accessories for Volcom! AND our soon to be released EP of original music!
Anything else you would like to add about yourselves? We are nerds and our best friend’s are magical loving gypsy ladies and DJ bro’s…they’re are our family!
How would you like to portray yourself in your photoshoot with Volcom? Chic, fun, edgy, effortless, easygoing but classic and beautiful–naturally glam!!!
