The Watson Twins
These twin sisters write and perform together in perfect harmony.
Raised in Kentucky on gospel classics and country, the Watson Twins, Chandra and Leigh, have traveled cross country for their music, formed an acclaimed rock band, Slydell, in California, sang back-up for Jenny Lewis and others, and never lost their roots.
In 2006, they were featured on Jenny Lewis’s highly-acclaimed 2006 album, Rabbit Fur Coat, and that same year they released their first EP, Southern Manners, an homage to their hometown of Louisville. They continued to write and sing their own songs while singing backup for several other artists and then moved back east to Nashville.
The twins say they are “natural partners,” and have shared most things, but had never written a song together. One would write a song, and both would work to arrange and perform it, one taking the lead and the other providing a perfect harmony. For their 2018 album, Duo, they worked as partners in a new way — writing songs together. That album was inspired by vintage country sounds from the 1960s, yet the whole album has a timeless feel.
Now, they perform as a duo, as well as with their Tennessee-based band, and are co-owners of the Nashville event venue Cordelle. In 2023 they released the album Holler, described as unfussy, sweet, assertive, and with a bit of whiskey under the sweetness.
