Chasing the dream —- that’s what life is supposed to be all about, right? You’re supposed to find your passion, find your path, and go after it. What about the road to get there, though? There’s so much you miss if you’re only focused on getting to where you’re going. I was lucky enough to chat with Winona Fighter’s Coco Kinnon to talk about how the band has built themselves, their fanbase, and their first full album, My Apologies to the Chef, one day at a time.

Jordan: Congrats on what is shaping up to be a huge year! You’ve sold out several dates on your Yes, Chef tour, including huge cities like New York and Chicago, and you’ve gotten to hear yourselves on the radio for the first time recently. How does it feel to start this year on such a strong note?

Coco: Thank you! I would say it feels like a lot of hard work paying off but at the same time is extremely surreal. When you’ve been truly grinding and been told “no” for so long, the come up feels like a fever dream. I think it’s common for bands/artists to be like “this is the year”, but in the Winona Fighter camp, we take everything day by day. You almost have to. Big years will come and go but having a consistent rise, even if it’s something miniscule, with each new day is what’s going to keep you around for a long time. We just feel so lucky and grateful for today and are excited for what tomorrow might bring!

J: Your debut album, My Apologies to the Chef, was entirely self recorded and produced. I feel like that’s something we’re not seeing as much anymore, but you’ve mentioned that your label was all for you keeping your DIY roots and gave you their support. As you’re seeing such huge success, how do you stay true to your vision of being three punk rockers making music for people who love music?

C: We are here BECAUSE of the path we’ve taken and the band we’ve been over the past few years. We weren’t signed on a development deal or anything like that. We were signed because we found a team that loved the music, our “brand”, how we work, and the sheer amount of work we’ve put in up until this point. It’s very easy to stay true to the vision when everyone around you sees and supports it as well. It’s also very easy to stay to true to the vision when you feel pure happiness and passion within the space you’re in. We all say, if it ain’t broke… Don’t fix it.

J: The first leg of the Yes, Chef tour is over — what have you learned after this first run of shows that you’re going to take with you into your stint in the UK and back for leg two in the US?

C: We learned that maybe we ARE actually doing the damn thing. It is HARD to sell tickets right now… But we are selling out 250-350 capacity rooms in cities we’ve never even been before. It is SO surreal. We are about to sell out our London show as well as a lot of dates on leg two of the US tour. So going into these next few months of shows, we are going to take a sense of accomplishment, no matter what happens. We’ve accomplished so much this far, we can only move forward with a new found pep in our step and confidence. Even if it all falls apart, we will be proud.

J: Speaking of your shows in the UK, you’re opening for The Used at their sold out London show in May. How does playing as their direct support feel compared to sharing the main stage with other huge acts at festivals like Riot and Innings?

C: With festivals, it’s these promoters with extremely stressful jobs putting their trust into you, dipping into their tight budget to have YOU on their highly anticipated festival bills. You want to absolutely crush it, give the fans something to talk about, and of course impress the promoters so they’ll have you back. It’s definitely more about the promoters themselves than the other bands on the bill. I mean, it’s really cool warming up the stage for the headliners, but it’s a very surface level relationship. Most of the time the headliners have private camps and closed stages (meaning you cannot watch their set side stage). So it’s rare you interact. When you’re direct support for a band on a one off show or tour, that is extremely personal. They chose you and are putting their trust in you. Putting on headlining shows is an extremely stressful task, and the opener can make or break the mood for sure. You’ll usually get to know the band (depending on the band…) or their crew and start to form these relationships. At the end of the day, we put on the same show for a festival as we do a direct support slot, but what goes on behind the scenes is what makes them so different.

J: You’ve mentioned that when you were first getting started, you would play whatever shows you possibly could, including small shows in Nashville where the rest of the bill was country music. What was the buildup like from those shows to now being on something like Warped Tour?

C: SURREAL. It’s all so surreal. There’s a part of you that’s like, “Wow I am so lucky and this happened over night,” but then sometimes we DO give ourselves credit and are like, “Well we are lucky but also, we trudged through the fucking mud for YEARS to get here. We did the hard work and the uncomfortable shit. We actually did earn this.” I would also like to say, thank you everyone for not absolutely roasting us in the comments of our announcement video. It felt like none of the announcements were making it out alive but man, everyone was just so excited to see our dumb faces. It was really cool. This is all so fucking cool.

J: You’ve gotten the chance to build your community naturally through those smaller shows and festivals. The Fight Club is showing out in droves for your headlining tour. How important was building this space for not only your fans, but also yourselves? 

C: It’s so important. I love seeing people comfortable enough to post on Reddit that they are going to the show alone and if anyone else is going alone to hit them up. I love being at a festival and seeing one WF shirt compliment another WF shirt and then beat the shit out of each other in the pit. The Fight Club community is hard to understand unless you see it for yourself. It ranges from loud frat guys to sweet neurodivergent alternative girls to folks who identify as whatever the fuck they want, but everyone is completely respectful of one another. Seeing young women comfortable enough to stage dive or get in the pit. Seeing these grown ass dudes get emotional. In that room, it’s not about gender or race or religion or politics, it’s about the love of music and respecting your peers and getting some type of release. It’s such a special setting. It’s the greatest community a band could ask for.

J: The way I actually connected with you for this interview was through social media. This had been one of my dream interviews from the time I started dipping my toes into the world of music writing, and you were kind enough to say you would be the first interview I did if it meant I was chasing my dreams. That moment was my big push to create this space for myself and my friends — what gave you your big push to make Winona Fighter what it is today?

C: I’m so glad you finally took the leap! Honestly, all I’ve ever wanted to do was play music. I think the thing that pushed me to start Winona Fighter was leaving the Boston punk scene and moving to a town with no scene at all (at the time). I thought, “Well, then I’ll just do it myself” —- a phrase that is a hearty part of my dialogue haha. The community and the energy of the scene I grew up in was, what I thought, the most special thing to ever exist. I wanted EVERYONE to get to experience that. The Yes, Chef Tour has definitely been proving that we are accomplishing that goal. I think little punk drummer me, having to sneak into clubs and venues, no friends, just playing music for hours everyday, would be proud of what we are doing every night on tour.

J: Before you released My Apologies to the Chef, you did short rundowns of the tracklist in the two weeks leading up to its release. It was something that I, as a fan, loved to tune in for because I loved getting to hear your thoughts and intentions behind the album you had worked so hard to put out. Was this something that felt important for you to be able to do before letting this album out into the world?

C: I really enjoyed getting to sit down to talk about each song. I think it opens things up even more for fans to relate. I say this album is about “the human experience”, so it was only right to let the listeners in on that experience. Also… Let me just say I didn’t do it for the haters… I do nothing for the haters. HOWEVER, people are so quick to call lyrics “weak” with absolutely no idea what the song is about. People are also quick to label every song as a love or break up song. I know we are goofy. I know all our songs are upbeat(ish). I know all this. Winona Fighter songs have a lot more depth than what some listeners take in at a surface level. I hope the album rundown makes those people sit back and really listen to what we are saying…

J: “Jumpercables” is one of my favorite opening tracks in recent history. You’ve said that the conversation that led to you writing the song was “like jumpercables for your noggin”. How do you jump your battery when you’re in a slump? What helps you come back from the times where everything just kind of sucks?

C: Haha this is a good question. I work on Winona Fighter 7 days a week, literally. Whether it’s being on the road, doing interviews, recording, writing, or just doing the boring “running a business stuff”, I am always working. So my battery is at 20% a lot of the time. It’s exactly what I wanted and the dream, but it is exhausting sometimes! My husband started making me take an epsom salt bath with chamomile tea 2-3 times a week. Spending quality time with him and my rescue dog, Elmo, always gives me a nice little recharge. We are actually talking about taking a relaxing vacation for the first time in our entire relationship once the Yes, Chef Tour is officially over… but at this rate we keep adding so many extra dates I’m not sure it will ever be over. Haha. I also try to stay off of social media a lot. Feels like the one thing I can actually control in order to manage my stress. That’s why I tell people the worst way to reach us is via any social media messenger or comments. Social media can just add on to the feeling of being bogged down SO much and you don’t even notice until you’re off of it!

J: “Swimmer’s Ear” is about the cycle of self sabotage and how easy it is to stand in your own way, no matter how much you want things to be different. Is there anything you’ve learned to help you be more gentle with yourself?

C: I just have to remind myself that at the end of the day, my dog is excited to see me no matter how I look, no matter if I wrote a bad song, no matter what. The last thing I’d want to do is disappoint him and he’d be really upset if he knew how I treated myself sometimes.

J: You’ve cited your experience trying to promote yourselves at Sad Summer Fest as the inspiration for “Don’t Wallow”, the closing track on My Apologies to the Chef. Now that you’re seeing success and results from your hard work, how do you stop yourself from resting in the comfort of knowing that you’re doing so well? Is it harder to keep yourselves “hungry” now than it was when you were first starting out as a band and finding your footing?

C: We are always arriving. That’s something Austin likes to say. Always arriving, always room to learn… Improve… It’s impossible not to stay hungry with that mindset. Every day is a new lesson or adventure and we are eager to see what it is. We want this career so bad. We want to be able to support our lives without side hustles and maybe buy a house along the way. You don’t achieve that without a sense of hunger. We’re always thinking about the next thing. We truly work 24/7. I mean, people really don’t see what goes on behind the scenes but if they did they would think “do they ever take a fucking vacation or two second break?” The answer is, no not now… but one day.

J: A lot of artists have started adding some kind of “secret” song into their sets. If we were ever to see a secret song at a Winona Fighter show, how would you introduce the bit? We’ve seen lots of artists rolling dice and spinning wheels — what would be your approach? Is there something you’d hope it landed on?

C: Hmmm, that’s a good question. In the middle of every set, we’ve been appointing a “pit master” —- someone to really get the mosh pit energy up (and no I did not realize the food relation until halfway through the Yes, Chef Tour) . Maybe we’d have the pit master pick a song out of a hat or something and just fucking rip it. It would be fun to throw a few curve balls in there, like cover songs we’ve never rehearsed. We are all very proficient in our instruments so I think it could work and would be absolutely hilarious.

J: This was on my vision board for myself for the next two to five years. When I check in with you over the next few years, where is your vision board for Winona Fighter taking you? I mean the absolute craziest, out-of-your-wildest-dreams kind of hopes.

C: We want to do late night and we want to do a tiny desk concert. Otherwise, we just hope to get to a spot where we are like, “Wow, we actually will be able to do this career forever.” Oh —- also Fuji Rock in Japan would be INSANE.

J: After you got home from your first leg of tour, you started posting photos of you back in the studio already. Beyond the rest of the Yes, Chef dates, what will we be seeing next from you?

C: We got home and started working on something REALLY cool. Something for the fans, but also something that allows us to be musicians. I don’t know how much I can say, but there will be .. 15? 17? New.. things?? this year. We are really excited about it. Otherwise, we are hopefully going to see you all again this fall!

Wherever Winona Fighter’s headed next, whether it’s back into the studio or to a stage near you, there’s no doubt that this is just the beginning for them —- getting there one step at a time.The Yes, Chef tour returns for a second course on May 31! Grab tickets while you still can through Winona Fighter’s website —- they’re selling like hot cakes. Don’t forget to stream their debut album, My Apologies to the Chef, while you’re waiting for them to come to a city near you.