A firm believer that nobody should have to choose between having a music career and starting a family, Filippa Nässil of Swedish hard-rock band Thundermother has been leading by example and touring all the way through her first pregnancy.
“Fans think it’s very cool to see a pregnant lady playing,” she says, having taken on the challenge with joy, determination and a Gibson Explorer slung beside her ever-growing bump. “There’s a lot of people saying I’m now the real Thunder Mother!”
Combining the physical demands of playing and pregnancy, it’s perhaps unsurprising that Nässil has had to start taking things a little easier in her final trimester – her “super-pregnant” phase, as she puts it.
She recently called upon stand-in shredders Edvin Öström and Philip Z Obuskovic to help fulfill the band’s summer commitments. But the soon-to-be mom – who also acts as band manager – has already planned her return, with a jam-packed gig diary from February 2025.
“I’m aiming to have everything,” she beams. She’s already considered logistical essentials like hiring a tourbus with a suite big enough for her family, so it certainly sounds like she will.
Her due date is at the end of July, but Nässil says it’s a family trait for little ones to arrive roughly three weeks early. “I feel it’s baked and ready!” she says. We agree to get to the questions pronto…
What made you decide to keep performing into the final months of your pregnancy?
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“I never had a doubt in my mind because music has always been so important to me. Since I’ve never experienced having children, I just accepted all the gigs that came in and I was very confident about touring the whole way through. Then, it got to the seventh or eighth month and I realized it was going to be harder on my body than I thought!”
Having babies is a normal part of life, so why don’t you think we’ve seen normalization of motherhood within the rock industry?
“There’s no normalization in the rock industry at all about having children. Even among other females the attitude is, ‘Ah, she has a kid. We can’t have her in the band.’
“When I brought singer Linnea Vikström into the band, I was thrilled because she had two children already. She’d had difficulty taking other band jobs because of her family situation and I said, ‘Not anymore! We’re going to support you in every way.’ Now she’s able to tour and be a mother. It was a perfect match – it also opened things up for me to have a kid.
“I want people to know you can have it all. You don’t have to choose just because this is a difficult job and you’re away for months at a time. I’ve spoken to many people who stopped touring and got normal jobs. I really don’t want to do that, so I’m going to do everything in my power to try and combine the two. It helps doing interviews like this because I have to live up to what I’ve said!”
I have the strap higher up, for sure, and I have the guitar off to the right side of my belly. I’ve had to learn how to not hit the mic stand!
What have been the biggest challenges?
“It was easy in the second trimester. I love being pregnant and I feel very happy, comfortable and at peace. We had a big tour called 15 Years of Rock all over Scandinavia, and it was easy because the girls supported me so much.
“Then in the third trimester, we started flying to festivals and I started finding that it was getting heavy and I couldn’t breathe properly; my lungs were getting squished by the baby. But they carried my pedalboard and guitar. My drummer even got me a wheelchair for the airport! So, they’ve been very helpful – you need that support.”
Have you had to adjust the way you play guitar?
“I have the strap higher up, for sure, and I have the guitar off to the right side of my belly. I’ve had to learn how to not hit the mic stand! My hands are really big and swollen now and it’s painful playing. I had a gig three days ago and I got cramp, but my stand-in was waiting on the side to take over.”
Did you have concerns about noise being harmful to the baby?
Take care of yourself and the baby and remember that music is always there for you
“Yes. We took the volume down extremely and we have in-ear monitors now, so my Marshall stack has been very low for the first time. I use a SoloDallas Schaffer Replica pedal, which is a limiter – the same as Angus Young uses – and it really doesn’t matter if the Marshall isn’t very loud because the pedal compresses the sound and it sounds really good through the PA.”
What would you say to others who want to balance a music career with motherhood?
“You have to listen to your body and your health first, because if you don’t feel good, there will be no music career and no motherhood. So take care of yourself and the baby and remember that music is always there for you. You can take a little break and come back. But also, with the right support and determination, you can have everything!”
Update 07/17/24: This article was edited to add the name Edvin Öström to the list of stand-in shredders.
- • Thundermother return to the road in 2025.
