A Chat with Make Believe Friends (11.02.26)
Interview with Karen Beishuizen (Guest contributor)
Make Believe Friends is a band from Los Angeles and consists of Laura Espinoza and Mindy Milburn. The band also does tributes to Blondie and Madonna. We talk about their career, the music, their songs, who they would love to work with, and more.
You are several bands in one. Let’s start with the first one: Who is Make Believe Friends?
Make Believe Friends: First of all, thank you, Karen, for this interview. The heart of Make Believe Friends is Mindy Milburn (lead singer and primary lyricist) and Laura Espinoza (primary composer, instrumentalist and lyricist). We are blessed to have worked with some of the top producers and mix engineers, including Bernie Godwin, Ed Stasium (Ramones, Talking Heads) and Jun Murakawa (Nine Inch Nails and Geoff Pearlman (4 Non Blondes). We released our first critically acclaimed album (of the same name) in 2023, and are now in the process of working on our second album.
Heart of Blonde: Why a tribute to Blondie?
Laura Espinoza: When the pandemic hit in late 2019, almost all live performances for bands were stopped cold. When the pandemic ended in 2023, almost all the music venues were desperate for money, so they were only hiring tribute and cover bands. We thought it would be a good way to get back into the live music scene, so Mindy suggested we cover Blondie, whose music we loved. Also, Mindy’s voice is much like Debbie Harry’s voice, and she has an uncanny resemblance to her.
Mindy Milburn: Debbie Harry is so unique for her time. A beautiful front-woman that doesn’t play into her beauty – quite the opposite. She dresses herself and presents herself on stage as tough and so confident. She doesn’t lean on her looks, which she could have totally done, and no one would be mad at her or question it. Her looks attract, but her fiery punk rock attitude keeps you around. It’s a great juxtaposition that I admire so much.
Describe your music and why people should listen?
Laura Espinoza: Our songs are individual, as two rarely sound alike, and each has its own personality and story and/or message. Reviewers have described our songs as haunting, unique, heartfelt, and amazing.
Mindy Milburn: To add that we hope that our music makes you feel something, like dancing (‘Thank The Academy’) or reflecting (‘Haunt Me’), but just that you have a memorable moment listening to it and taking it in.
Is the song ‘Haunt Me’ based on a real story of losing a loved one? How hard is it to write a song like this?
Mindy Milburn: Writing ‘Haunt Me’ was actually not as hard as it seems because it came from such a real place, a real emotion that I was feeling and couldn’t stop thinking about. It was the perfect way to express the sadness, hopelessness and desperation I imagined this person I knew would be feeling after the very devastating loss of their spouse. It was abrupt, unexpected, and he had no control over the situation, so when I thought about it, I kept coming back to the idea that you would want that person who has passed to give you a sign, any sign that they were still with you. Quite the opposite of a traditional ghost story, where the spirit is a thing of fear and unwanted. In the situation presented in the song, you would do anything to know that spirit was with you, so you plead to it to haunt you forever.
Laura Espinoza: This song started with the music written by myself after working on a bass riff with Enrique Garcia, then I finished the rest of it and produced it along with Bernie Godwin who also engineered the mix. Regarding the lyrics, I presented the music to Mindy, and she came back with the amazing lyrics.
‘Don’t Say Goodbye’ is a love song about feelings after they have passed. What inspired the lyrics?
Make Believe Friends: This song was written by Laura several years ago and was inspired by the loss of several very important people to her. Laura had tried recording it several times in the past but felt it never had the emotional aspect she was seeking until she gave it to Mindy to sing it, and she nailed it. We were blessed to have it mixed and co-produced by Jun Murakawa.
If I were to let you make an album with 7 of your most favourite songs (not your own), what would you pick and why?
Laura Espinoza:
Nirvana
Bob Dylan – The Very Best of Bob Dylan; ‘Tangled up in Blue’, ‘Mr. Tambourine Man’, ‘Just Like a Woman’, ‘Like A Rolling Stone’.
Beatles – Revolver; ‘Tomorrow Never Knows’, ‘I Want to Tell You’, ‘She Said She Said’, ‘Taxman’, ‘I’m Only Sleeping’, ‘And Your Bird Can Sing’, ‘Eleanor Rigby’.
I picked this because I love albums where each song has its own uniqueness, style and personality. This is the model we try to implement in our music, where no two songs sound alike. I also like the haunting quality and amazing melodies of several of these songs, so unique for the time (1966).
Mindy Milburn:
‘Grace’ – Jeff Buckley
‘No Surprises’ – Radiohead
‘Prep-School Gangsters’ – Vampire Weekend
‘The More You Ignore Me, The Closer I Get’ – Morrissey
‘Glynis’ – Smashing Pumpkins
‘Kissing The Lipless’ – The Shins
‘Sedona’ – Houndmouth
These are all very emotional songs that, when I heard them for the first time, I literally had to stop what I was doing and just listen. That is how I know a song is great: those are the ones that stick with me. I live for those moments, so having them all on one album would just be magical to me.
Are there artists you would love to collaborate with or wish you had?
Mindy Milburn: I wish Jeff Buckley’s life hadn’t been cut so short; his voice and songwriting really move me. I would’ve loved the opportunity to see him live. To work with him would be just next-level amazing.
Laura Espinoza: Would love to collaborate with Billie Joe Armstrong (Green Day), Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters) or Brian May (Queen). I wish I could have worked with George Harrison or Kurt Cobain.
What are you currently up to?
Mindy Milburn: Working on some new songs and getting back into the studio again to record. Making more music – that is the goal and the most challenging and rewarding part of the process.
Laura Espinoza: Working in the studio with Bernie Godwin and Mindy on several new songs and performing with our two tribute bands: Heart of Blonde (Blondie) and Like a Material Girl (Madonna).
Thanks to Laura Espinoza and Mindy Milburn for speaking to us. Find out more about Make Believe Friends on their official website, Facebook, Instagram,YouTube, and Spotify
