Hardcore astrologists swear the universe hits the reset button every seven years — something to do with Uranus and Saturn playing celestial ping-pong with our lives, I guess.

Funny thing, it took exactly seven years for me to circle back and interview B-52s icon Cindy Wilson again. Coincidence? Doubtful.

Dare I say, it’s clearly a cosmic thing. (Yes, I went there.)

Wilson is back with a new surfy-sparkly, dance-tastic EP called Second Sight. I’ve got a full feature story dropping in next month’s Pitch Kansas City that dives into her fresh grooves, her creative reunion with longtime producer Suny Lyons, and how she’s incorporated her B-52 DNA into something undeniably, unapologetically Cindy.

When we spoke, Team Cindy had just returned from watching her brand-new vinyl being pressed at a record plant near Athens, Georgia — the B’s old stomping grounds. “It was so much fun,” she gushed. “We met the people who owned it, the folks who worked there, and just had a blast.” (Note to friends: I’ll take a signed kaleidoscope copy of Second Sight for Christmas. Kthanxbai.)

As for me, I managed to stay semi-composed during our 30-minute chat. No fangirl meltdowns — just a mild case of post-interview exhaustion that required a four-hour nap. Turns out, trying not to spontaneously combust from excitement for 30 minutes takes a lot of energy.

Cindy was her usual radiant, effervescent self. While my upcoming Pitch piece dives deep into her creative rebirth, I couldn’t resist tossing in a few extra questions here for diehard B’s devotees. Consider this your glitter-dusted teaser trailer ahead of November’s full-tilt Pitch article.

M2: Hey, what is up with The B-52s documentary? I feel like it’s been going on for a hot-minute, since the pandemic.

Cindy: I know, it’s crazy. To tell you the truth. I’m not quite sure. I don’t know.

M2: You know who’s coming into Kansas City next weekend that I’m gonna go see? It’s your boy, Fred Armisen!

Cindy: Oh yes, he’s so great. He played drums for us on SNL. I didn’t know he was such a good drummer.

M2: Yeah, speaking of, yesterday was the literal 50th anniversary of the debut of Saturday Night Live. What do you remember about the SNL 50 performance and being behind the scenes? Was it nuts?

It was. It was nuts! We were touring a lot. And I think what I remember is, I wasn’t afraid because we were functioning as a band. And it wasn’t scary. It was just another fun thing that we got to do. I think Ricky might have been scared, but I really enjoyed it.

But it was all live. And we had a rehearsal, and then they would do a pretend show, ran through the whole show and then did the real show. Doing it live for TV is crazy. I mean, you’re walking a tight wire. But, you know, everything went well!

M2: Oh, and who knew that the Backstreet Boys were giant fan-boys of The B-52s?! I read they were backstage losing their minds when y’all were on stage.

Cindy: Oh, I love that. That’s great.

M2: Speaking of Ricky, does he ever like come through, like in cosmic ways? Or in a song or a dream?

Cindy: Yes. For the longest time after he passed, I couldn’t even see a picture of him, a photo of him without breaking down or crying, you know? And so, it took a while. I had a dream where I couldn’t — the classic dream — where I’m chasing after Ricky and I couldn’t catch him. My husband, Keith had a wonderful dream immediately. They were in Greece, on this mountain top or something, and with a beautiful view. And there were sailing ships on the ocean, and Ricky took Keith Bennett around, and they talked about things. I thought that was a lovely dream.

And the Cosmic Thing era — it was a healing process writing that. And it felt like Ricky was in the room when we were doing that.  That was very comforting for all of us. And that was amazing, I remember. And when I’m listening to Second Sight in my car, I can hear, I think, Suny probably — intentionally — put a little bit of Ricky-spin on his guitar.

Suny: I’m definitely channeling a bit of Ricky. That’s the other thing about him is he has this sort of amazing legacy, because he really left his mark on music. I think in many ways the number of guitar players that have been influenced by his style it’s just, you know, kind of crazy. And so, yeah, I’m definitely channeling a little bit of that.

Cindy: And that’s very noticeable. It’s good. And it makes me happy.

M2: I’m kind of putting you on the spot on this one. Out of literally all of the thousands of wigs you’ve ever worn, do you have a favorite, young lady?

Cindy: Yes! I helped design a wig back in our early days. I guess it was during Wild Planet. I had a wig maker, Phyllis, in Yorktown Heights, New York. Kate and I got all our wigs done by Phyllis — and she was a master. But I have a good imagination. Like, I used to draw stuff and I liked to create, and she helped me do that.

And one was this bouffant that was hooked on to a dark pixie wig — and it was a bird cage. It was chicken wire rolled into long cigar form, you know? And then I weaved a dark ponytail through the chicken wire and then connected it to the pixie. It was this magnificent wig made out of chicken wire! And did you know that thing is still together? It’s in a museum at the University of Georgia.

Also, there’s another wig that I only wore it a couple times. I came up with it, but Phyllis executed it. We put a plastic heart — like something from Valentine’s Day — and put a light in it and built it into a bouffant. And it was battery operated, so when you turn it on, it would be a lit-up heart in the bouffant. Again, that’s when I was wearing brunette wigs. I was a brunette. You know, I like brunette wigs — either blonde or dark brunette. But I have natural blonde hair. So, on stage, that wig looked like a lighthouse of love. There were lots of good ones. And I’m still fascinated by bouffants! They’re slimming, they look good, and they pull an outfit together like nobody’s business.

M2: Lighthouse of love is my new hashtag! When I came to visit you, I remember you showing me a brand-new wig you hadn’t even worn. In fact, it was still under its protective-like netting. And we sat on your patio and we talked about it. That was a sacred day. Like, nothing will ever top this. I am seeing a Cindy wig before anyone else.

Cindy: Crazy! I’m still fascinated by the wigs. And I’m sure I have more buried in the closet, you know?

M2: I just saw you perform with The Bs alongside Devo outside Detroit. How much fun are you having right now on tour?

Cindy: You know what, I am tripping. I’m having so much fun. It’s nice to see people happy and laughing. I don’t know about you, but everyone seems to be feeling terrible and depressed and everything. And going out with a good show like Devo, Lene Lovich,  and us … I look out into the audience, and people are dancing, and it’s amazing. I can’t tell you how that has made me so happy to see that. And, at the end, people are just going crazy. And it’s so wonderful.

M2: I nearly broke a hip dancing! Hey, my new book — for which you graciously wrote the foreword — is selling like hotcakes. I just wanted to say thanks for doing that for me. I mean it. You made You Have Four Minutes just that much better. 

Cindy: I’m so happy for you. It was your honesty. I think you had all the facts right. It was well done  — and fun. Congratulations!

Interview gently edited for content and clarity.