Roll of the Dice: 12 questions with Go Betty Go

Go Betty Go need no introduction following their years of touring, ass-kicking records and legendary status. With a 20-year history in the punk scene, you’d have thought Go Betty Go had a well cleared path for themselves, but after a reunion was halted by a global pandemic and a cancer diagnosis to guitarist/songwriter Betty Cisneros, the veterans found themselves in unfamiliar territory. Go Betty Go turned those bruises into the upcoming LP Black and Blue, coming from Wiretap Records in 2024. Drummer Aixa Vilar rolled the dice with TGEFM to talk to us about the band’s fighting spirit, their roadie’s visit to a Mexican used car dealership and what the future holds.

Thank you so much for agreeing to this interview. Congrats, in advance on the release of I “Black and Blue.” This is your first new music since 2015, and in that time you’ve been dealt a few terrible blows, most notably Betty’s cancer battle . How’s everyone feeling? What’s motivating you to keep going despite everything else going on?

Thank you for your interest in GBG and what we’ve been up to.
Yes, this is the first new music we have recorded and released in the last several years. It feels good to be able to put something new out into the world. Especially under the circumstances we find ourselves under, with Betty’s cancer battle. Everyone is relatively good, feeling the same as we did when we let Betty know we would fight with her. Purely optimistic and looking forward to making it to the other side of this cancer challenge. Life alone is motivating. There is so much to do and live for, that every day is another day to take on despite the rockiness of an unpredictable world and life we all live in. There’s still a lot of good out there that we experience. 

How did the recording and songwriting process for Black and Blue differ from your earlier releases? 

These were ideas we had for some time, that kept getting brushed aside because of one circumstance or another. Mostly because the pandemic slowed things down for us and then Betty’s health challenges right as soon as we started to get the ball rolling again. But we really pushed hard to make something happen and we’re proud for doing so. We’re especially proud of Betty for pushing hard to be able to record these songs, during what were the beginning days of getting her diagnosis and starting her painful treatment. 

GBG is such an influential act that means so much to so many of us.  Does the high bar you’ve set for yourselves in the past help, hinder or affect the music you make today and to what extent?

Wow, thank you for that. It’s incredible to think that we mean that much to so many people and we’re just happy and humbled by what a passion of ours to make music can bring joy, comfort and enjoyment to another person’s life. Music is a blessing and if there is one thing, we can all share, regardless of what band or genre is your go to, music can have the power to lift and inspire everyone’s spirit, regardless of what circumstance life finds you in. We write and make music from the heart and just go with what feels good to us, so as long as we’re feeling good and getting consistently inspired by what we bring with our ideas, we’re good. 

What affect, if any, have the cultural and political landscapes of the last few years had on your music?

I think cultural and political landscapes tend to set the mood and direction for some of our music. Some may feel gloomier, as other positive aspects of life can lift the mood of another song. It’s a sentiment that each song holds and how the end listener interprets it as well. What may have been on our mind when writing it, may mold into a completely difference scenario for someone simply listening to the song. And depending on where they are in their personal life, the song may take on an entire different meaning for each person listening. 

What have been some of the most memorable moments or experiences with the band so far? What’s been the most unexpected? The weirdest?

Traveling and the experiences you get to live outside of a normal 9-5 (Monday- Friday) world are what leave us with some of the funniest, scariest, and most amusing moments in our lives. There are so many… But one that comes to mind (that we can all laugh about now) is when we were down in Mexico playing a show and the promoter decided to keep the shots coming, so everyone was having quite a wild fun night. We all walked back to the hotel at the end of the night which was down the street and made it safely to our beds. At least we thought because the next morning we couldn’t find our trustee roadie. As we traced our steps back to the club looking for him, just down the street, we noticed the fence had been knocked down in a used car parking lot and we found him sound asleep in the front seat of a used car for sale. He couldn’t even remember how he got there! 
Unexpected and weird… Not going to name who and what band. But several years ago, at Warped Tour we were at our booth set up by a music magazine so our fans who wanted to talk and get a picture/autographed poster could do so. We noticed this particular band member get in line, which we thought was peculiar as we had been talking to him during the tour and had what we thought was a friendly/ peer relationship and thought he was in line just to be funny. When it finally was his turn to get up front, we greeted him, and he asked that we sign his poster. We happily signed as requested and immediately his face turned stone serious, and he simply ripped the signed poster in our face and walked away. We were caught off guard as we had thought we had a good relationship prior to this. His band members got wind of what had happened, and they all were extremely embarrassed and apologetic on his behalf. He then went on to act somewhat normally, and as if nothing had happened for the rest of the tour. Who knows why he did that, but there was nothing to our knowledge that could have triggered it. Just some dude being weird, ha!

We’ve all got a few, what is your biggest regret? A gig you turned down, advice you didn’t take, what one thing do you wish you handled differently as a musician?

Towards the end of 2005 we were supposed to go on tour with Social Distortion. That was when Nicolette suddenly quit the band (we later re-united in 2012), but we had some good tour opportunities and unfortunately didn’t resolve some personal issues well enough at the time and we blew it. Time and talking healed what led up to those circumstances, but we wish we would have handled that all a lot better. 

I could be crazy, but I seem to remember seeing you guys every year at Warped Tour whether I was going to the Jersey, New York or DC stops.  What does the festival circuit mean to individual artists like yourself beyond a normal touring cycle?

You’re not crazy, you did see us! We played several years of Warped Tour runs and we made lifelong fans there! So, we are forever grateful for being one of the first all-female bands and to Kevin and all Warped for giving us the opportunity to be there. Festivals are a great opportunity to expose yourself to new people who would have never known of your band otherwise. I’ve personally discovered some amazing live music at shows/ festivals. 

The music world has also changed a lot over the last few years.  What are some of the biggest changes you’ve come across in your time within the scene?

Well, the fact that it’s even harder now to make a living from music. I mean, in the past you could sell 25,000 records and there were a lot more 0’s at the end of that pay statement. Now with digital streams, you’re looking at far, far less. So that’s a challenge, especially for musicians whose music is their living. We have other resources, so we’re blessed to be able to make music, but also have the fortunate circumstance to make a living elsewhere. 

Your label, Wiretap Records and their imprint My Grito Industries have done a great job of showcasing the current wave of Latinx Alt-punk bands.  How important is that representation as both artists and members of the community?

Latinos are a huge part of the population, and we’re proud to be a diverse mix that represents a huge part of our community. Seeing a reflection of yourself out there is key to inspiring the next generation of musicians coming up. 

One of our obligatory questions in these interviews also tends to be the one I have found most important on a personal level. Who are some bands on your radar that TGEFM readers may not know about, but you think they should?

I love what Nikki Lane has been putting out over the past few years. I’m a big fan. She released a new record last year and she’s a clash of punk rock/ rock and roll grit with an old cash style country twist and attitude.

Beyond the release of Black and Blue, what’s next for Go Betty Go?

First and foremost, we want to see Betty get healthy. That’s our #1 priority now and we will do everything in our power as friends to help her reach that stage in her life. She needs us now more than ever. We’ll continue to write and make music in between. Once Betty is well enough, we’d love to start playing live again. 

Was there anything I missed that you’d like to share or dive deeper into with our readers?

If you’ve never heard of Go Betty Go, now you know who we are and please take a listen. Let us know what you think! If you’ve been here from the beginning, thank you!! Amazing that we’ve had fans for over 2 decades now. Unbelievable and we’re blessed.  

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Roll of the Dice is a short interview format with a variable amount of questions. A pair of dice is rolled and the total, between 2 and 12, is the amount of questions we can ask. All questions are given to the interviewee(s) at once, and no follow-ups are allowed. The interview may be lightly edited for content and clarity.