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Autobiography
September 2007
For me, music has always been such a personal thing. An expression of who I was, who I am, who I pretend to be, who I wish I was and anything in between. It has made friends with every single one of me.In a lifetime of interesting and occasionally extremely unconventional phases, twists and turns, it is possible that my music is the only thing which has survived alongside me. And now, we have come out into the clearing with this- my third album.I left my home town of Mooroopna just before my 21st birthday and headed away from family and friends and into what would be a 3 year long corridor filled with doors to knock on. Hoping one would open.Eventually, one did open and producer Rod McCormack was on the other side.Together we worked on getting my music out there and eventually I got my first record deal and my debut album “The Way The World Is†was born.I’ll never forget my first meeting with Rod all those years ago. He said to me “Do you write songs? Do you want to only record your own songs?†My answer to him? “I’m not really a songwriter- so no- I don’t care if I don’t record any of my own.†(I had actually written since I was 10 years old- but never thought ofm myself as a songwriter)It makes me laugh looking back. Thankfully Rod didn’t listen to that statement and encouraged me with great passion to write more, and make my writing a priority for my debut album. With the denial of being a writer long behind me- I scored a worldwide publishing deal with Universal Music, one of the (if not THE) largest Music publisher which helped me get to Nashville on a couple of occasions to write with some of the key writers on the American Country Music Scene.I was proud enough to win APRA country songwriter of the year for my songs on “The Way the World Is†(I wrote 11 of the 13 tracks) and also my debut single “Way Too Easy†sat at the 2 position for 5 consecutive weeks and remained in the Top 10 for 21 weeks. This was followed by two more top 5 songs on the National country PLAYLIST chart and a 1 video on CMT. I had also toured the country extensively with Australia’s top country artists and the also headlined my own show in the United Kingdom.While it all seemed to be rolling along progressively, it was still such a slow road and I started to get itchy feel. There was a side to my music that I was yet to truly explore. My new found passion for writing songs had taken priority to some degree and I was desperate to explore past the boundaries of country music and into the more contemporary world of the singer/songwriter. I did have the support of my record company ABC in doing this. In fact, was told that they would not be interested in doing my next album if I continued down the country road. So I thought at the time- that this was my only chance to have a second album released.Hindsight is a very powerful tool. To look back at this decision- and the years that followed now looks and feels like a long, dark, cold tunnel. It was such a long drawn out process to even get the 2nd album onto the shelves. Years of re-recording, re-writing, TWO photo shoots had to be done because the procrastination and ‘planning†had gone on for so long, I no longer resembled the photo’s that were originally done for the album!I was however blessed with Rick Price throughout this entire process. The moments of actually creating and recording were the only saviour for me. Rick and I spent months working side by side on the project- loving every minute of creating. Only to loose my passion when I stepped outside his studio into the real world.Eventually 4 ½ years after commencement)- the second album was released. Self titled. And it managed to scratch that singer songwriter itch that I had longed to tend to. As proud as I was with that piece of work- and still am- it was accompanied by so much ache and frustration- that the process managed to put out what little ember may still have smouldered inside me for music.I was now- completely exhausted. I wanted it all to work so much, and then, when it didn’t- I was lost.So I turned my back on music. I moved to Sydney with my now Fiancé, and spent a little time in the real world. I didn’t listen to music let alone write anything for around 18 months. It felt unnatural to NOT be doing music but I literally could not string two musical words together.It was a tough time. But I was overdue for a break. I needed the rest. As they say- if you love something set it free- if it comes back it’s yours, and if it doesn’t, it never was.I remember the day it returned. I was driving with my partner to we were travelling on the M7 heading to Canberra from our Sydney home, and I had forced bought a copy of Trisha Yearwood’s album “Jasper County†to take along for the ride. Prior to this I never wanted music on in the car- not even the radio, but I put Trisha on – and loud! Just to see what would happen.Well, this song came on that rocked me. “Trying to Love You†is the name of the song and it’s written by one of my FAVOURITE country writers Beth Neilson Chapman. And there it was. My reason for falling in love with music in the first place. The raw honesty and SIMPLICITY of a good song. That can coax you into exploring yourself.From that moment on – It was alive again! After that trip to Canberra, I came home and started writing… slowly and one piece at a time, but building to today- and my 3rd album.I have said many times since announcing my plans to release a 3rd album, that I feel like I have fallen in love with music all over again. And I truly have. With thanks to a good country song I have managed to truly find the essence of who I am- not who I think I should be.Me.The first single from the album is pure, raw Me. It is a feel good track that I wrote about that balance between a couple where you can rely on the other to carry the load when your feeling a little too overwhelmed. But most importantly – it’s about doing it for THEM in return.DRIVE is released to radio FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 27th, 2007