From freshman roommates to rock duo, Luna and the Carpets takes the stage

Ferguson says that their session on Loud and Clear was her favorite experience on the show to date. She believes that there are many advantages to being in a duo, as opposed to performing as an individual artist. Not only does it help to have the support of a partner, but she thinks that when two artists write together, they maximize their ability to create the types of songs they love.

“I think that it’s so unique because both of us have our individual styles as an artist and as a songwriter. So being able to write songs together makes the things that we can write more vastly different,” she said. Ferguson also notes that when they co-write, they are able to combine four unique genres of music, as opposed to just two.

“I feel like I have good ideas but I don’t have anything truly finished or complete until I start working with Grace,” Engstrom said. 

The members of Luna and the Carpets met how many best friends do in college: by being freshman-year roommates. They quickly discovered their shared love of music and combined their styles to create the rock duo in which Ferguson plays the piano, Engstrom plays the guitar and both sing. The pair said they have had a passion for music for as long as they can remember. Both Ferguson and Engstrom began to take their hobby more seriously when they realized that it is their true passion and that they can make a career out of what they love to do. 

Both girls draw from similar inspirations and have similar backgrounds in music. They each cite being inspired by rock music from being exposed to it at a young age. As for their role models, they draw from artists across multiple genres and generations: from Led Zeppelin and Joni Mitchell to Phoebe Bridgers and Daisy the Great. The two also share similar career aspirations. Ferguson said that a dream of hers is to one day work at Columbia Records, and both of them want to eventually write for other artists.

The duo began sharing music through an Instagram series called “The Carpet Series” on Ferguson’s account where they uploaded acoustic covers of songs along with their own music. The name came from the fact that they would sit on their dorm room carpet while harmonizing and bouncing ideas off of one another, they said. Their first working title, The Carpets, was already taken when they had started but they loved the idea of spirituality and the significance of the moon — specifically with the word “lunar.” Thus the current name was born, Luna and the Carpets, perfectly tying a sentimental shared memory with a much larger concept of spirituality. 

Ferguson’s and Engstrom’s new album will be debuting at the end of the spring semester. The album is graduate student Robert Child’s capstone project, who was given a grant to help them produce their work. Their favorite song from the Loud and Clear episode, “I Wish Venus Had A Moon,” will be the title of the new album.

“We wrote that on the last day of fall semester when we had writer’s block for so long … and it’s just our favorite song now,” Ferguson said.

Through Luna and the Carpets, both Ferguson and Engstrom said they feel more connected to campus, especially through opportunities like performing on Loud and Clear.

“I can see that people on campus are seeing my stuff and I had a girl come up to me and Anjali the other day and be like ‘Oh my god you guys were so good!’,” Ferguson said.

While they were filming the Loud and Clear episode, an admitted students tour passed through the studio and stayed to watch them for a moment. Ferguson said that it was an incredible feeling to know that she could have inspired even just one person on that tour. Engstrom particularly appreciates the interconnectedness of the artistic community on SU’s campus.

“I think it’s really cool how the different organizations on campus, specifically the creative ones, find ways to utilize one another, to help each other create,” Engstrom said.

According to Ferguson, passion and persistence are key in order to seriously pursue a career in the music industry, which both girls clearly possess. As they have learned to seize every possible opportunity and step out of their comfort zones, they have always stayed true to their roots: two best friends sharing their passion. While they are dedicated to their aspirations, they make sure to keep lightheartedness at the forefront of their music.

“It’s a lot of fun and if you’re not having fun with it you should reattach your strategy. Because the times when Grace and I weren’t having fun with it we would always redirect ourselves, always make sure that we were having a good time,” Engstrom said.