Project Description
Interview with
DANIELLE TODD
Interviewer – Dave Bruce
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Have you always wanted to be a musician? When did you start writing music?
I grew up in a musical family so it was second nature to become a musician! I started writing music when I was in high school. I came home one day from school and my dad had bought me an upright piano. My dad promised me if I taught myself piano I wouldn’t have to get a summer job. Without question I sat down and started teaching myself. The easiest way was to write songs.
Which music did you grow up listening to? How has it influenced your current style?
My dad was in a classic rock band for my early childhood, then switched to country in the mid 90’s. I loved Shania Twain, Trisha Yearwood, Martina McBride, and Faith Hill. I also loved Mariah Carey and the Wilson Philips. I listened to their CDs on repeat and that was initially how I taught myself to sing harmonies.
How would you describe your sound?
Pop country with a classic twist!
Why do you think people will resonate with your music?
I always try to steer a little off the beaten path. My songs always have a bit of a quirky twist, while still staying current to what is on radio now. I also try to write relatable lyrics.
Your new single “BACK BURNER” has just been released! Describe its origin and evolution.
I co-wrote this song with Natascha Myers and Curt Gibbs, two Nashville artists. I was incredibly happy with how it turned out. It is all about leaving a relationship that no longer serves you. The track was produced with Grady James and we brought in acoustic elements to keep that “classic country” vibe, while still making the track rockin’ with electric guitars and a strong rhythm track.
Do you have any more new music in the works?
I am always working on new projects, but this single is my main focus right now.
You are coming down in January to play the iconic Tamworth Country Music Festival. What are you looking forward to, and what can the fans expect?
I am incredibly excited to perform at Tamworth! It’s my first time attending so I can’t wait to catch all the Australian acts as well as perform myself. My favourite part of life is being on stage, so I’m really excited to be in front of the Aussies again.
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If you could perform with any music artist, Alive or Dead, who would you choose? And why?
This is the hardest question. My dream has always been to share a stage with Keith Urban. Isn’t he just the coolest man alive? I ran into him in a music store once and he was the friendliest man. It would be the greatest experience to write and perform with him.
What’s next for you in the next year?
More music and more touring!
What are your longer-term aspirations?
Besides performing and touring my original music, I ultimately want to be in a position to use my music to create a mental health organization. I would love to be able to have an art therapy organization that helps people struggling with any sort of mental health issue. The organization would have doctors, therapists, and art instructors using all different sorts of art, visual, musical, drama etc. to help patients cope with their illnesses. That is a huge dream of mine.
What is the best thing about performing to a live audience?
Their energy and positivity radiates. I love making a connection with an audience, especially when they are singing my songs back to me. I get feedback from a live audience immediately, whereas when I record a song and send it out I have to wait for a response and I don’t typically get to see their reactions when they hear it. When I am live in front of them I get to connect immediately.
Finally, a few questions for some quick answers –
FAVOURITE:
Album – impossible to answer. Right now I have been listening to Caitlyn Smith’s “Starfire”
Artist – Ashley McBryde (this changes daily)
Movie – Planes Trains and Automobiles (It’s almost Christmas, okay?!)
Place to visit – my families house
Venue to play – Sauble Beach’s Two Chick’s Cafe
Food – anything Thai!
Drink – Soda water with a little bit of grapefruit juice (I rarely drink alcohol)
Person in History – Princess Diana
Tattoo – I don’t have a tattoo and I likely wouldn’t get one, but if I did it would probably be a music note on my hands. That’s where my music comes from!
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Follow DANIELLE TODD
Website Facebook Twitter Instagram
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BIO
Few can say their love for music came to them through an air vent. Canadian Country singer/songwriter Danielle Todd can.
In her childhood bedroom, complete with pastel sponge paint and horse wallpaper, Danielle would fall asleep to the sound of her father’s music coming through the air vent from his basement studio. Watching him work his magic she would marvel at the way he could make a song come together, until one day, her dad just needed her out of his hair. As Danielle fondly recalls, he handed her a CD with Patsy Cline’s “Sweet Dreams of You” on it and said, “Don’t come back until you’ve learned it.” Much to her father’s surprise, a mere hour later, four year old Danielle had returned, singing with the gusto of Patsy herself.
From that moment on, Danielle was head over heels for the country croonings of female powerhouses like Patsy, Martina McBride, Shania Twain, and Faith Hill. When it came time to find a job in her teenage years, Danielle walked into bar after bar, convincing them to give her a regular slot to sing— even if that slot didn’t yet exist. “The bar owners would be like, ‘Sure, send us a CD.’ I just responded, ‘I don’t have one, and I’m here right now so I’ll just sing here.’” And that was that.
Pretty soon, Danielle had made a name for herself in the Ontario music scene, not to mention in Australia as a result of a year-long, working vacation. Before long, Danielle realized she wanted to be where music was 24/7 and all-encompassing: none other than Nashville, Tennessee. Knowing she had some fierce competition awaiting her on Broadway, Danielle learned over 250 cover songs before packing up her 1999 Honda Odyssey “soccer mom van,” as Danielle jokingly puts it. “I figured if worse came to worse, atleast I had a van I could live in,” she laughs.
Thankfully, it never came to that. Working five to seven days a week, often times up to 14 shifts in a row, Danielle earned her keep under the neon lights of Broadway. Whenever she wasn’t singing, Danielle was honing her songwriting craft, a passion that had struck as a result of working with acclaimed Ontario songwriter, Ambre McLean, encouraging Danielle to take up the piano and attend various songwriting retreats.
With the help of country producer Grady James, Danielle uncovered her sound, melding pop/soul, rock, and classic country to become what Danielle best describes as “classic country gone pop.” With the pop sensibilities of the likes of Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston, a focus on country acoustic elements, and a little bit of quirkiness Danielle finds indicative of her sound, songs like her debut single, “Crazy,” came to be. Released in early 2019, “Crazy,” co-penned with Bobbi Holliday and Caitie Thompson, took Danielle to higher heights, achieving accolades like Ontario’s Artist of the Month in April 2019 and winning Country 104’s “Women in Country March Madness” with Carrie Underwood as the competition. The fresh, upbeat tune even went so far as to enjoy a spot at #80 on Canada’s TRAX Report and #34 on Australia’s Top 50.
The accomplished single was followed by the releases of the raw and emotional “Blue,” also co-penned by Holliday, and “Backburner.” The latter, written with Natascha Myers and Curt Gibbs, unveils a fierce and edgy side to Danielle’s natural charm, focusing on the empowerment of walking away from a toxic relationship. The highly anticipated radio single will be followed with an East Coast radio tour and run of shows in Australia in early 2020.
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