Paste Magazine has compiled a collection of mini interviews with musician mamas. I love their approach to parenting and creativity, and this quote from Vesper Stamper particularly hit home:
It’s vital to me that they see their mother setting an example by constantly creating, working, struggling and not giving up, and not just doing things for them—eternally wiping their behinds, as it were. I hope they will be far more daring than I am. I also hope they’ll figure out how to make lots of money with their art. Or go the easy route and become brain surgeons… Whoever sold us this lie as women that we could ‘have it all’—career, family, eternal beauty—I want to throttle her. I’m sure she was an heiress with a nanny and a $1,200 stroller.
Each segment begins by asking the names and ages of the children. I’ve relayed this information to you, but do go check out the article, which also has samples of their music!
Are the names of the creative people in your circle particularly “creative”, or do they sound like everybody else’s kids? Do you think a creative name makes for a creative human being?
Panda Delilah (4)- Kimya Dawson from The Moldy Peaches
Delphine Rita Jane (6 weeks)- Amy Milan from Stars
Magnolia (6) and June (3)- Kori Gardner from Mates of State
Constantine, (9 months)- Shara Worden from My Brightest Diamond
Madeleine, (2 1/2)- Emma Wadeau from Lost in the Trees
Theresa Anderson, currently pregnant with who might be an Elsie
Rosemary (10), Esther (7), Eleanor (4) – Rachel Galloway from Danielson
James (5) – Ashton Shepherd
Henry (5 months)- Annie Hart from Au Revoir Simone and Pursesnatchers
Zoe (6 months) – Alina Simone
Nico (2) – Jill Andrews, The Everybody Fields
Vesper Stamper jokes that she named her children Mango and Dervish and doesn’t reveal their true identities, though if they’re anything like their mother’s I’m sure they’re equally intriguing! From Ben + Vesper.
Lily (7), Jake (6) and Lukas (3) – Lynn Truell, Imperial Teen
Nils Patrick (8 months)- Kate O’Brien Clarke, AgesandAges
Sebastian Rhys (7 3/4) & Isobel Laurence (2)- Rebekah Goode-Peoples, Oryx and Crake
Ari (3)- Olaf Arnalds
Liam (4) – Kelli Scarr
Oscar (2 1/2)- Caithlin De Marrais, Rainer Maria
{ 16 comments… read them below or add one }
I loooove this compilation of names! My husband is an artist, and we come in contact with so many creative people, most of whom do not have children yet… But of those that do, I don’t think they’re naming their babies much differently than anyone else. Artist’s I know have named their babies: Haydn, Asher, Gabe, Vivienne, Kiki, Jack, Honey, and Tiare. Our own children are James, Evelyn, and another (gender-surprise) to be named very soon.
You expect them all to have “way out” names because they are artists, but most of them just gave their baby the same names that people I know have – Liam, Henry, Oscar, Lily, Zoe and Madeleine. It seems very down-to-earth of them.
Panda is definitely a little unusual though – maybe she will end up married to Bear Blu Silverstone!!!!
I do know someone with a Rosemary and an Eleanor – currently pregnant and considering Esther!!!!!
Love June, Constantine, Elsie, Esther, Eleanor, Ari and Oscar.
I think having a creative name can help to cultivate a creative personality, but if your parents are creative, you’re probably a lot more likely to be creative yourself anyway (and your parents are more likely to give you a creative-sounding name), so it’s hard to say how much a name does in this regard.
I am expecting my second child later this year, and if she’s a girl, she will be named Nico, which I love for either a boy or a girl!
Wow, Nico for a girl! I have never heard of that before! Very interesting.
I know it’s traditionally a boy’s name, but I love the female singer Nico who sang with the Velvet Underground, and I know that Thandie Newton and some other singer (can’t remember who) have daughters named Nico. I’m normally not a fan of boy’s names for girls (and vice versa), but I’ve fallen in love with the name Nico, as I think it goes well with my son’s name, Luca (don’t know if others would agree?). I would love to use it for a boy too!
I like Nico for a girl too. There’s also Neko Case, and I could see her inspiring a girl’s name or two.
I like the sibling sets Magnolia and June, Sebastian and Isobel. Constantine is very cool.
Does a creative name make for a creative human being? The most creative person I know is named Heather….
I love Magnolia and June!
Isn’t that a sweet set? Most people will say June is too short next to Magnolia, but I love the way they play off each other.
There are some seriously fantastically named babies on there!
I agree with Siobhan that if you have creative parents, you may be more inclined to be creative yourself (given the freedom to do so and such). And being in a community of creative people can probably really influence both parent and child. So creative names aren’t as rare in an art-driven community, but I think it’s also a place where you go more with what you love/feel is right than “just picking one that sounds good”… Does that make sense?
OMG! I went to high school with Vesper Stamper. I had no idea she was a musician now. After reading this I had to look her up to make sure she was the Vesper I remembered (unusual name, but you never know), and she is!
I know Vesper IRL, too. It’s always so neat to see someone you actually know in this way
Oh! “Magnolia June” is a pairing I have on my long list for the possible little girl in my future. I do love it!
Isobel Laurence-
When I was pregnant with my 1st(didn’t know the sex) my husband and I didn’t love any of the few boys names on our list and only had 1 for a girl. The baby was a girl and we named her Isabella-back when it wasn’t even in the top 50. While we were holding our hours old daughter, the tv in my room happened to be on and we both thought we heard a female news reporter with the name Laurence. We said almost at the same time-what a great name for the next girl! In the past years, I haven’t heard it used at all for girls and our next child was a boy.
I am so happy to see somewhere out in our world someone paired those 2 names together like we always wanted!
More on topic-my husband is an architect and I’m a graphic artist and we chose family names for our children. During my 2nd pregnancy I considered Caslon for a son, but all my designer friends told me I was crazy with hormones and not to do it. I still like it.
I’m just mad that I didn’t get Delphine Rita Jane first, b/c I could never use it after someone else. Delphine is in my top three names for baby girl number 3 (should she ever exist.) Jane is my favorite classic name. My sweet mother, Rita, passed away one month ago, and I’ve since realized that I’d like to honor her by using her name for our next little girl. I almost cried seeing this name.
I *love* Magnolia and June together. Our second ends up going by June quite a bit these days; it’s the second part of her double-name. And the name Vesper? She lucked up with that one, and I would kill to know what she named her kids.
I love My Brightest Diamond and Shara Worden!
She’s also the only one I’ve actually heard of before on the entire list.
Constantine is beautiful, but I prefer Constantin myself.