Ronni Rae Rivers

I edited my profile with Thomas' Myspace Editor V4.4 Country is cool when delivered by the talents of Ronni Rae Rivers.Born in Sydney, Australia to an Aussie Mum and Texan Dad, Ronni spent time between Australia and the USA during her formative years.Ronni’s musical journey began at the tender age of three when she was given a once in a lifetime opportunity to perform in front of the great James Brown. However, it was her Father’s friendship with Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings and other country music luminaries in Texas that had the most impact upon Ronni’s musical direction. At that early stage, no one was quite aware of how much those encounters would fuel Ronni’s desire to write and perform country music. Since then, she has created her own unique musical identity by merging the freshness of Australian country music with the traditional roots and flavours of its American counterpart.A graduate of the 2004 CMAA Australian College of Country Music, Ronni’s fiddle, guitar and piano skills have enabled her to work locally and internationally. She has shared the stage with some of Australia’s best known country music entertainers such as Bill Chambers, Kasey Chambers, Adam Brand, Beccy Cole, as well as internationally renowned Jose Feliciano, and Aaron Neville and the Neville Brothers.2003 saw the release of her debut EP, “Bridging The Gap”, co-produced by Mark Donohoe (Magnificent Seven), receiving a terrific response, via her radio singles ‘You Win…You Lose’ and ‘Happy New Year’.2004 highlights include being awarded the 2004 Best WA Country Music Songwriter for her song ‘Haven’t Things Changed’, crowned 2004 Best WA Country Music Female Artist, finalist in the Australian Country Recording Awards (ACRAs) for Australian New Talent Album Of The Year & a Grandfinalist in the 2004 Toyota Starmaker – she has sure made an impact.Her version of Randy Van Warmer’s 1979 classic ‘Just When I Needed You Most’ achieved Top 10 chart success. It was the vocal performance that would set the stage for all her subsequent singles to receive high rotation on National Country Music Radio. The video went Top 10 on the Country Music Channel, and news of Australia’s newest hot musical property quickly spread, creating strong demand for festival appearances and media opportunities.In 2005 , Ronni exceeded her own expectations, by being named ASA (Australian Songwriters Association) Awards Country Songwriter Of The Year, Best WA Country Music Female Artist, a finalist in the TIARA Awards (Female Vocal), the Victorian & National Country Music Awards (New Talent) and the WAMi’s(West Australian Music Industry Awards) (Country Act), but also receiving praise for her single ‘Just When I Needed You Most’ becoming a Top 10 Finalist for Female Vocal in the Golden Guitar Awards.The second single ‘Rodeo Romeo’, taken from her debut album ‘Notice Me’, became a Top 5 success, with the title track ‘Notice Me’ becoming her first 1 hit. She also was a finalist in the 2005 Golden Saddle Awards and made the Top 50 Biggest Hits Country Tracks Top 30 and Saturday Night Country’s Hottest 100 tracks for 2005.Now in 2006, Ronni started the year off with her second number one hit ‘It’s Only Make Believe’ and was a co-host with Troy Casser-Daley on board the Tamworth Country Music Train, where she was then the subject of the BBC World documentary ‘Destination Music’ which featured performances and interviews with the 10 hottest Country Music Acts in Australia. For the second consecutive year, was named a 2006 Golden Saddle Awards finalist and was nominated for 2 songs in the 2006 APRA awards. On the WA music scene, Ronni is an active contributor, having been re-elected to a 2 year term as a WAM (West Australian Music Industry) management committee member, was a featured performer at the 2006 WAMi festival, and contributed a song to the Kiss My WAMi 2006 CD Sampler.In 2007, Ronni was acknowledged her fellow musicians in Australia, by receiving a Top 3 finalist nomination for the 2007 Golden Fiddle Awards. This award goes to the fiddle player who demonstrates excellence in both live and recorded performance.2008 is set to be a hugely successful year if the first few months are anything to go by, having been selected again as one of the hottest export ready musical talents by Austrade and featured on the OZGIGZ 4 DVD, releasing the new single ‘Cowboys Come Home’ from her highly anticipated forthcoming CD, and having been chosen as the CMC hot video clip of the week. The new CD will be released early 2008.