It’s been just over a year since Brian Wilson passed away on June 11, 2025, but the gifts he left this world will be here forever. As the musical soul and architect of The Beach Boys, he magically turned California sunshine into sound and weaved haunting harmonies that soothed the hearts of lonely teens and bravely expressed his vulnerabilities on Pet Sounds.
Another enduring musical gift he left this world is his daughters, Carnie and Wendy Wilson, two-thirds of the chart-topping trio, Wilson Phillips. After selling millions of albums in the ‘90s, they have continued to build their musical legacy through new albums, touring, and unforgettable appearances in the 2011 hit film Bridesmaids, and a 2022 performance on The Masked Singer.
Wendy and Carnie Wilson open up about their father a year after his passing
To commemorate their father’s life and legacy, a year after his passing and for Father’s Day, Carnie and Wendy sat down with Upworthy to talk about a man the world knows as a genius, but they always knew as Daddy.
(You can watch the entire interview below.)
For the Wilson women, losing their father has been hard, but, in a way, he’s never really left.
“I mean, how can you ever have real closure when your parent dies? You go through so many emotions, and there are so many stages of grief, but yet there are so many revelations inside you, so it’s all a process, and it keeps on going,” Wendy told Upworthy.
“We’re in the same industry, music has always been a thread with us, and so the fact that we are still performing, and the people every day on the street coming up to you, it’s a blessing. Because we can still celebrate his memory, energy, music, and the connection we had to him that will never go away,” Carnie adds. “It’s helped me with the process of the grief, but it comes in waves, no pun intended, it really does.”
Brian Wilson was a deeply spiritual man
Carnie says that one of her father’s greatest compositions, “God Only Knows,” was a testament to his deeply spiritual side.
“Our father was an extremely spiritual man, not necessarily religious, just like everything came down to like God, spirit, and vibes,” Carnie said. “I was about 18, and I said, ‘Dad, is “God Only Knows” written about a woman, a relationship? He goes, ‘No, no, no, it’s about God.’ I had never heard him say it like that. That’s when I started really tapping into my own spirituality. Dad tapped other realms, I think his whole life he was able to do that, and I think it came through in his music.”
“He was like he wore his heart on his sleeve, he said what he felt, and he didn’t hold back. It was part of his charm,” Wendy said. Brian had a deep love for comedy, which was a major theme in SMiLE, the legendary Beach Boys album that was abandoned in 1967 and later re-recorded by Brian in 2004. His daughters think his positive attitude and creativity helped him navigate a life fraught with personal challenges.
“He was a very sensitive man to people’s energies, but he was also just very direct; he would make you laugh a lot. Humor was it, he had struggles and pain too, as we all do in life. But he was able to sort of translate that through his music and through the people that he loved, and made a lot of progress in that way. I can’t think of a stronger person than him. He survived everyone on his side of the family, and you know, he’s a true f**king rock star.”
Carnie recalled a moment in the ninth grade when she shocked her father with her incredible singing ability. Brian never gave Carnie and Wendy specific lessons, but in a home steeped in music, the ability to sing beautiful harmonies came naturally.
“I was doing a play called Carnival, and my character sang big, belting with vibrato, and I just remember when it was over, his eyes were bloodshot red and tears were coming down, and he was just going, ‘I didn’t know you could sing like that.’ It really was a beautiful moment,” Carnie told Upworthy.
Brian Wilson was a very protective father
One of the most touching revelations the Wilson sisters made about their father was that he had been incredibly protective throughout their lives.
“When I was like two years old, we had a koi pond in our backyard. I went in to swim, and I fell, and my hand was sticking out of the water,” Wendy recalled. “Dad came running outside, and he grabbed me with one arm, and he scooped me out of the pond. Saved my life. A year ago, we were at his house, and he didn’t want me to go near the pool. He still remembered he didn’t want me near water.”
“When we were in Holland, Wendy was going to take a bath, and I guess the hot water was only on, but not the cold, and she put her foot to get into the bathtub, and her foot got burned,” Carnie recalled. “We took her to the hospital, and Daddy was holding her in his arms, running down the corridor of the hospital to take Wendy to the hospital, it was, it was mind-blowing, but he was very protective.”
Brian Wilson was an enigmatic force that changed music by expanding the boundaries of the pop format. He also endured a difficult childhood, suffered from mental illness, and dealt with the tragic losses of his brothers, Carl and Dennis. Even though he was famously eccentric, Carnie and Wendy never had any problem relating to their father.
“I feel like I always just kind of understood that he was his own person with a complex mind and a purpose in life. He felt that purpose. He was a deep, deep human being who really cared about people, and he cared about what his music did for people,” Carnie told Upworthy. “No matter what he went through, I was always impressed by his stamina, his ability to survive, and keep the things that were important to him alive until he passed away.”
“He never lost his spark,” Wendy said. “He always had his spark.”
Even though Brian Wilson has passed away, his daughters have never lost touch with his spirit, which they believe continues to watch over them. Wendy says he connects with her through hummingbirds, and Carnie through butterflies.
“He loved Elton John. I get in the car, and I’d be thinking, ‘I miss Daddy so much today,’ and then ‘Your Song’ will come on. It’s just like little signals that we get, and it, so I know he hears us,” Carnie said. “I know he hears us,” Wendy added. “And we just want to say, Happy Father’s Day to a very special person, and our Daddy.”
This interview has been edited for time and clarity. You can watch the entire interview on Upworthy’s Facebook page.
