Chrissy Conway (left), Alisa Girard, and Kristin Swinford—same girls, but a more mature ZOEgirl

The early '00s were very much about the survival of the fittest for many Christian teen pop groups trying to leave a mark, and ZOEgirl had to fit the mold—including wearing some onstage clothes they thought were, well, just silly. But the girls are all growed-up now, sole survivors now able to laugh about it as if it all was but an item of the past. Such growth reached its peak in the trio's fourth album, Room to Breathe (Sparrow), an effort that has allowed them to try their wings musically, lyrically—and even in their wardrobe decisions. We recently caught up with Kristin, Alisa, and Chrissy to talk about this transformation, and about how the matching outfits and choreographed dance moves were simply a stepping stone to becoming who they are now.

Let's go back to the beginnings of ZOEgirl. You didn't originally have the freedom, artistic or otherwise, to do what you wanted. From matching outfits and dance moves to the music itself, it wasn't all your choice. How do you feel about those days? Do you regret any of it?

Alisa Girard: Horrified (laughs). People always ask us if we regret anything, and in our entire ministry, the only thing I regret are those matching outfits. I mean, they're awful. Horrible. I didn't even like them back then. We were kind of pressured in a way.

Chrissy Conway: We were new. We didn't know each other, really. Everything was new. We thought, "People know what they're doing. They've done this before. We're going to listen." And we did (laughs). I think that we learned a big lesson.

Girard: As far as the dancing, I'm really glad that we did that because I think it really solidified the audience we have now, and it really pinpointed exactly the kind of people that we wanted to minister to. It was fun, but I think that, as we evolved musically, the dancing didn't make much sense anymore, so it was a natural evolution. But our only regret was the outfits.

So when a stylist would give you clothes to wear, you would just say, "Okay!"

Girard: I remember that first fitting, and everything was so … young. Very bright. And I remember thinking, "I don't really like these clothes," but I don't think we realized we could speak up back then.

Kristin Swinford: We were still learning the ropes of the business. Since we were new and we were working with big people, we wanted to make a good impression. So you say, "Okay!" In a way, we're kinda trusting the people that are coordinating everything [because] they knew what they were doing. But we gradually started to realize, "You know what? All right, this is our group." The first album had come out. We began touring and traveling. We started receiving letters [from fans]. We came to the point where we thought, "We can either make this our own and really insert ourselves in this, because we are so different. Or not." So we started taking ownership and making calls, and we realized that we can do that.

Girard: It's kinda like being desensitized. Like when you walk into a room where they have fifty pairs of pink jeans to try on. Instead of saying what we should've have said, "I don't like pink jeans," you just pick the best pair of pink jeans and go with it.

Would you say the popularity of your first two records gave you the freedom to call the shots after that?

Conway: I think with every album we gained a bit of more trust with [the label], more freedom as we grew as a group. They allowed us to be more creative with our songwriting. We have a lot more of a say.

With this freedom in your hands, would you fault the label for what they were molding you into?

Girard: No, because we were all in it together, and they were trying, as much as we were, to fill the void at the time for what was out there in the mainstream world. There were so many kids that were following role models that weren't good for them to follow. We wanted to be that positive role model and, in a way, sacrifice our natural artistic tendencies to fill the void in the marketplace. And plus, we really just had met, so we didn't really have the time to form the group identity that resulted in the following years.

With Different Kind of FREE, the group identity changed, and so did the music. You left dance pop and R&B-based music in favor of instrument-based pop/rock. How did the fans react?

Girard: I love that album so much because it was such a good representation of who we are, but at the same time it was a little shocking for some people. That's why, in our current album, we try to stay on the same vein of the evolution that we've been going through, but at the same time, bringing some of that old stuff back in. But for some people, that album was the first one they actually liked.

As your music has grown, so have your fans. Those who were 13 in 2000 are now 18. Do they still listen to ZOEgirl? Is the group still relevant to them?

Girard: We hope so (laughs). On our last tour, we had so many girls come through that had shirts that are literally from back when we did the Carman tour. We've probably lost some along the way, but I think many of them are still there and have grown with us. Lyrically, this [new] album is the most mature we've had. Songs that previously would've seemed too mature for ZOEgirl were appropriate this time. We find a lot of older kids really getting into it. Moms. We even gained a bit of a guy audience, more than we had before. Our audience has grown. But it's a hard balance, to be able to appeal to the young kids, too.

You have said that teen girls are your intended audience. Will that stay the same throughout ZOEgirl's existence?

Girard: We just take it an album at a time, and we try to get God's direction for it. But this one's for the girls.

Conway: We write what we write. When we first started, we were surprised at how young some of our fans were. We had little girls coming up to us—eight, nine, ten years old. We were shocked. So you never know. With each album, we gain new listeners. We add a little more to the style.

Swinford: So much of it is also inspired by the girls that come to our concerts. That's why the music grows with them, too, because if they come to us and tell us what they're going through, everything grows. They grow, the music grows. So it's just a natural thing to happen, as far as the maturity of it goes.

There's a song called "Good Girl" on your new album. There's also a song called "Not the One," about girls' decisions when it comes to relationships. You're definitely writing to girls. What about the boys? They can't relate!

Girard: Sure they can!

Conway: "Dead Serious" was actually inspired by a guy actually in my hometown of New Jersey. I live in a very Catholic area. There was really like one Christian in the whole area. You just knew. He had the Jesus T-shirt. He had every Christian CD. His name was John, and everyone made fun of him, and I did too, because I wasn't a Christian at the time. We would drop his books in the ground. We'd call him "John the Baptist." But now, looking back, I see the type of example he was to me and how nothing changed what he believed. He was really serious about what he stood for. So that was an inspiration.

Girard: We even say at our concerts that ZOE means "a life living with Christ," and ZOEgirl is a girl living that life. So we say, "C'mon ZOEboys, where are you?" So we love the guys at our concerts. And with songs like "Good Girl"? I want a guy to listen to that song and to say, "That's the kind of girl I want." I want a guy to listen to "Not the One" and say, "I don't want to be like the guy in that song."

For more about ZOEgirl, click here to view our artist page. Also, check out our review of their latest album, Room to Breathe. Visit Christianbook.com to listen to sound clips and buy their music.

© Andree Farias, subject to licensing agreement with Christianity Today International. All rights reserved. Click for reprint information.

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