MCCARTHY, Lily C

[lily mccarthy]

________________________________________________ NAME: Lily Christine McCarthy CURRENTLY IN: Albuquerque, New Mexico KNOWN FOR: Her Music, Her Brother INSTRUMENT OF CHOICE: Acoustic Guitar SIGNATURE SCENT: Le Labo Iris 39 PRIZED POSESSION: Her Father's Sheet Music FAVORITE COLOR: Lavender COFFEE ORDER: Iced Chai DRINK ORDER: Gin Fizz PIZZA PREFERENCE: Margherita, Extra Basil ALWAYS CRAVING: Empanadas GUILTY PLEASURE: Coconut Peanut Butter Cups LAST PLAYED ON SPOTIFY: Lemon Glow - Beach House LAST PURCHASE: Lace Curtains MOST PURCHASED: Spell & The Gypsy Dresses TELEVISION BINGE: Wild Wild Country ADMIRED ARTIST: Florine Stettheimer VACATION DESTINATION: Chiang Mai HIGH SCHOOL REPUTATION: Goody Two Shoes PERFORMANCE REPUTATION: Poignant, Strong, Vocals Smooth like Honey ________________________________________________ FIRST COFFEE. FIRST KISS. FIRST SONG. (1) I hated the taste instantly. I'd ordered it black, no sugar, no cream. I knew nothing but that bitter taste for hours - it's like I would forget every sip, then spend the rest of my efforts trying not to screw up my face in agony. (2) He was so nervous he almost bailed out and kissed my cheek! We were standing right outside, waiting for our parents to pick us up. It felt very scandalous at the time, kissing in public. Until we stood hand in hand while their cars pulled up. That was a look my father gave me! (3) As cliche as it sounds I was heartbroken. Sitting in a back booth, pen in hand, scribbling something until I realized they were lyrics, then verses, a chorus, a mindless melody that became cool & quiet. ________________________________________________ "LIL! I know you'll kill it out in the real world - SO proud of you and not even going to lie, we've had the BEST years here together. So excited for many more when you're a superstar like that hot brother of yours. Please hook me up. xoxoxoxoxoxox" "HAGS, bitch. " "Lily, thanks for being not only the most talented, down to earth girl in this entire school, but one of my best friends. Truly can't think of anyone who is more loyal, more kind, and more capable of being decisive without coming off as a huge bitch. Keep in touch and come visit me (tour) in New York! Love you! " "Can't believe we're finally graduating, but can't wait to see what UNM has in store for us. Know you'll hold your own at all those future parties. Cheers, McC." "I'm sorry. Don't ever change. " ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________ THEN: "I was a pleaser - did what was asked of me, above and beyond if I could. Creative in my own right, coaxed by my parent's love of music and the way my brother took to it. Small town sweetheart, with a love for dust storms and green apple slushes that stained my tongue. If everyone was happy, I was over the moon. Obsessive about laundry too, which my mom always appreciated. Good student, great group of friends, an easy enough way of life full of piano and guitar lessons and soccer practice and homework bleeding into the late hours. Xander was my one turn against the grain in high school - you only really need one, don't you? But he made me laugh, and was bold about doing so. Wouldn't take no for an answer, then was seemingly shocked when I finally did say yes. When one month turned to one year, when that reached close to four. It was the one schism in my family that I always reasoned against. Joe was out getting tattoos, smoking cigarettes - I was just dating a boy! Alright, in love with a boy. One whose hands were so calloused but held mine so softly. Who was reasonable enough in arguments, who never looked at me in anger, who brought me around his family that always felt so warm. It was the lively chit chat in Spanish around his household that coaxed me to pick up the language. I wanted to be able to contribute, and wouldn't it be fun to surprise them? Unfortunately, that surprise ended up being on me." ¿CUÁNTO LLEVA SALIENDO CON MARIA? NOW: "I work hard. Drown out the noise in sound booths, travel back and forth between New Mexico and LA and the rest of the world when I'm touring. I love the quiet of overnight flights - I get so much done in that silence, when it seems like the entire world is sleeping and I can't shut my mind down. Graduated a year early from school to take music more seriously, follow my brother's (and parent's) impossibly patterned footsteps. Survive on sugary coffee and being outdoors and lengthy phone conversations. Am at a place with my label that I want to be - which took a lot more work than it should have. But I became tired of needing to please everyone... if there's anything that Joe's taught me, it's that being anything but yourself won't get you anywhere. It's why I ended my most recent relationship, why I ended my only one in high school. I can't fake being happy when I'm not, and it's become easier and easier to voice that. Talk through the way grief hit me - in the wake of my father's death we've all reacted different ways. You can only be so strong when you lose an incredibly important person in your life - but after everything he's done for you, what else can you be but strong for him? For your family? " ________________________________________________ FALL 2018

jill . brooke . resident