Around Halloween 2023, longtime friends Finneas and Ashe began writing and jamming together for what started as a bit of fun. While Finneas was working on a new album and his sister Billie Eilish’s new record, Ashe was in a funk.
The US artist was feeling “uninspired.” The jam sessions with Finneas, which were being kept under wraps, soon became regular, and the music the songwriters were making led to the formation of The Favors and their debut album, The Dream, in September of this year.
In a new interview with Rolling Stone AU/NZ, Finneas and Ashe discuss the unique story behind the band’s inception, the journey both had as collaborators and solo musicians, and if we’ll ever even hear from The Favors again.
Rolling Stone AU/NZ: The whole story of The Favors is that you’ve been friends forever, and the idea of you guys getting into a studio together was started as a joke. How did that conversation start in a serious way?
Ashe: It was a bit of a no-brainer in that I think Finneas and I are very inspired by similar music, you know? We had connected as buddies for a long time, but it was so sporadic — a coffee here and then we’d write a song a few months later, and then a dinner here. I was really coming out of a time in music where I was feeling very uninspired and sort of lost the little spark, and thinking about those moments that really brought me the most joy was writing with my friends. When we’ve written together, it’s always been a special experience.
So, I just kind of found him in a joking-ish way, but probably in a way that he knew I was being serious, like, “Hey, what do you actually think?” I don’t want to speak for him, but it was an easy yes for me when he was actually like, “We should do this.” When you give someone else an an idea, and they’re actually 100%, and then you backpedal, and you’re like, “Oh fuck, now that you’re committing to it, I’m super scared!” I think making the record was a real testament to our friendship and our friendships.
Ashe, you mentioned that this started when you were feeling particularly uninspired with music. Fast forward to 2025, I recently caught you supporting Gracie Abrams in Australia, and I’ve got to imagine that working towards a goal worked, because seeing you on stage you looked very comfortable and, most importantly, happy.
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Ashe: Oh, thanks, that’s a nice thing to say! Absolutely, that feels very true. That Gracie tour came well after Finneas, and I had pretty much cooked the entire [Favors] record… I think that life had really come back into my body. I feel incredibly at home on stage in a way. I think that I always have, but a lot of artists, you get up there, and you don’t know if you have what it takes. I had a little bit of the typical imposter syndrome, but really, A) – that’s a waste of my time and everyone else’s time, and B) – I have a shit tonne of fun doing it. [The Gracie tour] was a nice taste of touring again and got me so excited for our Favors shows, which were obviously just a sweet little handful, but some of my favourite times performing.
I was lucky to see you on stage together during Finneas’ show in London’s Hyde Park in July. Was that one of the first times you had performed as The Favors?
Ashe: That was the first time we ever did “The Hudson” live, and I almost missed the intro. It was the scariest moment of my life!
Finneas: We’ve probably done a very similar amount of each other’s pop outs — Ashe played the Fonda years ago, I came out for that, Ashe played the Troubadour… Bottle Rock [festival], we’ve come out for each other… it’s so different to be doing a bunch of songs together. I loved the co-lift. If I was singing a verse, I loved that it was me and Ashe kind of like, doing a scene, and then if Ashe is singing a verse, same deal.
Because we did some of Ashe’s solo stuff and some of mine, and when we would do like “Angry Woman” or something, I loved just being in the band, I love just rocking out with the rest of the band on stage. It was super fun.
On that, I watched a Zane Lowe interview you both did a few months ago, and Finneas, you spoke about really loving the fact that you can be in these different worlds simultaneously. You said there is a world where you could just work with Billie for the rest of your life, and you’re good, but you get to write your own solo work, and you get to work with other artists like Ashe. It’s pretty special that you both are able to chop and change as you please in this one project.
Finneas: Yeah, man. Part of it is the world, and part of it is self-imposed. I do a bunch of different things — I score movies and TV shows, and I produce Billie’s albums, and I have my own stuff. I do all these things in music. I spend a lot of time trying to convince people to be versatile, you know? I often am talking to an artist and maybe they have a folk singer-songwriter career, and they’re like, “Dude, I’m just getting way into jazz right now. I’m loving jazz music. Maybe my next record’s jazz!” And I’m always like, “Or maybe you work with a jazz artist?”
That’s the beauty of making a record with Ashe and doing this different thing, and then making Billie’s album and then working with a totally different style of artist. If Ashe was trying to put out every song she wrote, it would be eclectic because she’s a great songwriter, and she’ll probably write a big variety of music, you know what I mean?
Bruno Mars is doing it a tonne right now. Bruno Mars is doing this song with Rosé and then producing this thing for this other person, and he did Silk Sonic [with Anderson .Paak]. He’s a great [comparison] to me… we think of him as an artist, but he actually does, like, 20 different things.
Ashe: You kind of have to convince yourself that you can get your cup filled in other ways. I think human nature is like in college — you pick a major and you’re like,”‘I have to get good at that thing, and my whole life has to be in that lane.” I’m good at other stuff… I’ve learned from Finneas in that way that, like, there’s no ceiling to what you can accomplish or one lane you have to be in.
Finneas: I was at Benny Blanco’s wedding, and I was at a table of a bunch of producer guys and I was like, “What’s the thing that you think you’re the best at in your career?” Ashe sings and performs and plays piano and writes songs and, again, on this project, I got to see that she’s a creative director, she’s putting together mood boards and figuring out the visual side.
There is a lot more openness to exploring other lanes and opportunities without jeopardising your ‘day job’. Once upon a time, if a member of a successful band went solo for any particular reason, that was the beginning of the end for that group. Was that ever a concern coming into The Favors?
Ashe: There really wasn’t that pressure. I don’t know if that’s a privilege or a luxury, but I do feel like this was just an exciting way to experiment and express. We really had the luxury of not telling people about it, so no one was really concerned about his solo career tanking if he made a band. No one was worried about my career ’cause I basically quit for a second. It was only going to make our lives better. This record we made, it makes me want work on my next record, you know? I learned so much from this whole process and things that I want to do the same, things that I want to do differently.
It’s really, really healthy if you can step outside of your one lane, and bring your best talent and your best strength to the thing you do, bring that into other areas. I’m a pretty good people person in a songwriting session for somebody else. I’m able to communicate with the songwriter and communicate with the producer and bridge the gap. To Finneas’ point, knowing your strengths is really important too, you know?
Ashe, you said you’re now reinvigorated to work on solo music. Where are we at with new solo music?
Ashe: The short answer is right at the beginning! I’m so excited and ready to write again. I’ve just started to scratch the surface. Starting a band with one of your closest friends, is some good fodder for a new record. I mean, I just got married… I just had a year where I got to learn from amazing people. I started the year with Kelsea Ballerini and Gracie [Abrams], and doing this band with Finneas.
It was just a really huge growth experience for me, so I’m excited to get to it and see what else is next.
Finneas, in your case, this is the longest you haven’t been on the road with Billie because you’ve been touring with your own band and with The Favors. After this, are you gonna take a beat and chill out for a bit?
Finneas: Yeah, I’m off the road. Billie is doing her last few weeks of her world tour, and then we’re back in [the studio] making some new Billie stuff. I don’t have any shows next year. I’m going to make another solo record, and then I’m working on another TV score. It’s nice to be sleeping in the same bed every day. I’m getting married.
It’s on purpose, trying to be at least semi-coherent and available for stuff… I also want to live through it and have it to write about, you know what I mean? We’ve never talked about this, but I have a kind of a feeling of weird pride that I didn’t commodify that private moment in my life musically, if that makes sense? Like I didn’t put out a song that’s like, “I can’t wait to marry you!”
I want to process this experience in my life and see what that turns into as a songwriter and write it, you know what I mean? I do squint a little bit at people where I’m like, “Is this for you or is this just like a brand opportunity?” You know that phrase that people say where they’re like, “Dude, last night was a movie”? [Fiancée Claudia Sulewski] has been saying this thing that I love. She goes “last night was a sponsored post!” [laughs]
You both started The Favors because you just wanted to get in the studio and make some music together. Given the reception the album has had and how much fun you’ve had making it, do you think there’ll be more music in the future?
Finneas: I bet we’ll make another record, but I do think that I like it being a someday thing. I joked about this to Ashe at some point, that it’s almost like you’re speed running a band’s full 50-year career, where I like that this is a different thing, but it would be like if our next album was [The Beatles] India album, you know what I mean? It would be like, “Oh we’re doing acid and we’re making this!”
My eyes glaze over when I talk about making this record. I loved making this record, and I’d love to make another one, but I do think that it’s cool to have it be special – special limited engagement, limited run. We said that that was what it was to each other, and then we said that that was what it was to the world.
Ashe: Yeah, I think it makes sense for us to work on things again, if that’s what we choose when we need that cup filled again. The reality is people crank out music too fast these days, and I think that we would not be inspired to sit down today and work on that record, you know? I think that we’ll make a shitty album if we sit down today.
Like, what a gift that the way we talk about making this album is just the fondest, sweetest memories, and I would hate to make another record because of pressure or whatever it may be, and not look at it the same way.
Does that mean an Australia trip is off the cards whether as The Favors or solo?
Finneas: Yeah, dude. Listen, I love Australia so much, and depending on how hard the winter is, I may just have to come because I love to be there so much.
We’re not on the lineup, obviously, but Laneway is the best festival ever. I would play that festival every year if it were a viable option. Like, I just am obsessed. I sound like a sycophant when I talk about Australia, but I love it so much.
Ashe: Australia is the best. I also just got the warmest reception when I was there. Like, y’all had me on your news outlets as, like, “Margot Robbie is opening for Gracie Abrams,” and I was like, “Damn, thanks everybody!” You guys just treated me really well, and I had the time of my life.
