The Vans Warped Tour 2026 Interviews – The Devil Wears Prada

The Vans Warped Tour 2026 Interviews – The Devil Wears Prada

The Devil Wears Prada have never been a band content to stand still. Over the course of two decades, the influential metalcore outfit has continually evolved, weathering lineup changes, reinventing their creative process, and building one of the most loyal fanbases in heavy music. Yet even with new music on the horizon and fresh chapters still being written, the band’s history remains an essential part of their story.

During Vans Warped Tour in Long Beach, Highwire Daze caught up with vocalist Mike Hranica and guitarist/vocalist Jeremy DePoyster to discuss the themes behind their latest album Flowers, writing songs inspired by their early sound, the lasting impact of Transit Blues, and the twentieth anniversary of Dear Love: A Beautiful Discord. They also reflected on Warped Tour memories, side projects, and the gratitude they continue to feel toward the fans who have supported The Devil Wears Prada throughout their remarkable journey.

Introduce yourselves and tell me what you do in The Devil Wears Prada.
Jeremy DePoyster: I’m Jeremy. I sing and play guitar in The Devil Wears Prada.
Mike Hranica: I’m Mike. I sing in The Devil Wears Prada.

What are you looking forward to most about playing Warped Tour this year?
Mike: Just getting out there and ripping a gig. We’ve been off most of the summer, so really all we’re doing are these Warped Tour dates. We did D.C. about a month ago, and now we’re here and ready to rip another one.

Jeremy: Yeah, I keep thinking about Pomona and the other Southern California Warped Tour shows that were absolutely mental back in the day, so I’m excited for today.

Is there an overall story or concept behind the Flowers album title? And the song “Where The Flowers Never Grow?”
Jeremy: Yeah. The title came about pretty late, after we’d written a lot of the music. We were trying to piece together a narrative of what all this music was about. It was kind of centered around this place in your mind that’s barren of growth, basically. A dark spot, if you will. I think maybe Jon came up with the idea of a place where flowers don’t even grow anymore. It sounded cool, but it also fit the themes we were writing about.

Tell me about the song “All Out” and the inspiration behind it.
Mike: That’s kind of the throwback track, I think. The instrumental was given to me and I wrote from there, which is how we used to write a lot of material. It wasn’t as collaborative as it is now, especially vocally and lyrically. It’s just an ass-beater, honestly. It’s a little bit of a throwback and highlights the components that make a classic Prada metalcore song.

“Play The Old Shit” – tell me about that one.
Jeremy: We went even further than that and intentionally tried to write something as throwback as possible. There’s always a certain section of the comment section telling us, “Never write anything new again. Just play the old material.” So we were like, “Sure, here’s a brand-new song that sounds like that.” But honestly, it’s become a really fun, really heavy song to play live and watch people mosh to it.

So why do “the highs always feel So Low?”
Mike: I think it speaks to some of the bipolar tendencies that people experience. Another thread that runs through the record is this feeling of constant discontent, even when things are going great. Feeling low when you’re on a high follows that same thread.

Transit Blues is celebrating its tenth anniversary. Looking back at that era, what stands out to you?
Jeremy: I think it’s amazing that we’re still standing here from that period. We’d lost one of our primary songwriters, and it was the first full record we wrote as a new version of the band. We were trying to figure out how to do things without that anchor and reset our roles within the group.

I have a lot of positive memories of people stepping up and taking on responsibilities in different areas and saying, “Well, we’re here. We’ve got to do it.” It’s scary to do things in a very different way, but it taught us how to adapt over and over again. At this point, doing things differently is pretty normal for us.

Mike: Yeah, like Jeremy said, it was our first full-length without Chris Rubey. And Daniel quit in the midst of recording it, so we brought in Giuseppe. We overcame those obstacles, and I think it was all for the better.

I don’t look at it so much as losing Chris as a songwriter. I think more about Jon stepping to the forefront. And for Giuseppe, it was a chance to join Prada and play drums with us. I’ve known him forever, and it’s been amazing. We love having him in the band.

Speaking of “Play The Old Shit,” Dear Love: A Beautiful Discord recently hit its twentieth anniversary. What goes through your mind when you realize it’s been twenty years?
Jeremy: I know. To me, it’s almost cool how disconnected I am from who I was when we made that record. I can’t believe we actually did that. The towns we came from were so small, and our music scene felt so cut off from the rest of the world.

When I think about the bands we were playing with at the time, it makes me excited to watch younger kids do the same thing now. Building their own scenes, creating their own sounds, and being inspired by what’s happening nationally while still existing in their own little vacuum. It’s a cool testament to what can happen when you’re not from a place like Los Angeles or New York and you just decide you want to do something.

I asked you years ago if you’d seen The Devil Wears Prada. Now I have to ask: have you seen The Devil Wears Prada 2?
Mike: (Laughs) I have not. Have you?
Jeremy: Oh, I love Anne Hathaway, so it’s talked about pretty frequently in my house. I haven’t seen it yet, but I had about a hundred thousand people send me photos of themselves with the movie poster at the theater. I’m not opposed to it. I’m sure I’ll watch it eventually.

Are either of you involved in any other bands or projects outside of The Devil Wears Prada?
Mike: Yeah, I do stay busy. I released a solo project called Town of Lake and I’m continuing to work on that. I also have something else in the works that I haven’t announced yet, but it should be released before the end of the year.

Jeremy: Mike isn’t very good at being stationary. He will fill his time.

Any final message for the fans reading Highwire Daze?
Jeremy: First of all, thank you for caring about this band for more than twenty years. We take our job of providing entertainment and creating music people will enjoy very seriously, and we work really hard at it. We appreciate everyone who comes to shows, buys T-shirts, buys records, and continues to care about what we do.

In my mind, it’s a very positive relationship between us and our fans. They’ve taken us all around the world and continue to do so. We’re incredibly grateful.

Mike: Very, very grateful. We never want this to end. The band has become something bigger than any one member or individual. We’re just grateful for the opportunity that our listeners have given us.

In Conclusion

After twenty years, countless tours, lineup changes, and creative reinventions, The Devil Wears Prada remain as vital and passionate as ever. Speaking with Mike Hranica and Jeremy DePoyster at Warped Tour made one thing abundantly clear: this is a band that refuses to be defined by any single era. Whether embracing the crushing intensity of their early metalcore roots on tracks like “Play The Old Shit,” exploring darker emotional territory on Flowers, or reflecting on milestones such as Transit Blues and Dear Love: A Beautiful Discord, Prada continue to evolve while honoring the foundation that brought them here.

Just as important is the deep connection they share with their audience. The gratitude both Mike and Jeremy expressed for the fans who have supported the band across two decades was genuine and unmistakable. In a genre where longevity is rare, The Devil Wears Prada have endured by remaining fearless, adaptable, and committed to creating music that resonates on a personal level. With Flowers set to open yet another chapter and an enthusiastic fanbase still along for the ride, it is clear that this story is far from over. And for a band that never wants it to end, neither do the fans.

(Interview by Ken Morton – Photos by Vivian Ortega of So Finch Photography)

The Devil Wears Prada Official Home Page