Boyup Brook country artist travels to Nashville to record debut EP

Boyup Brook musician Shenai Johnston will be travelling to Nashville, Tennessee, to record her debut EP this week, at a studio which has seen the likes of Taylor Swift, Keith Urban and Carrie Underwood walk through its doors. She expressed excitement for the opportunity, saying she “couldn’t wait for everyone to hear what she could do”. “Recording my first EP in Nashville is a dream come true,” she said. “The energy and creativity in the city of Nashville is unparalleled, and I can’t wait to share the magic we are creating in the studio.” The recording session is six months in the making, with Johnston saying it was paramount the recording was done in a studio that could make it sound “world-class”. She believed Nashville was the right place for her. “When I decided to make a country EP, and hopefully an album next year, I just wanted to make sure I did it right and make it a world-class recording,” she said. “Nashville is the best place for me to record the EP, and the studio has every instrument and microphone you’d want and it’s an amazing studio, which is why I chose there.” Hailing from the small farming community of Ongerup and now residing in Boyup Brook with her husband and three children, she said moving back to the South West helped her find her country sound and reignite her love for the genre. “I have always been a singer, and I grew up loving Shania Twain and being Shania Twain obsessed,” she told the Manjimup-Bridgetown Times. “As I got older, I veered from country for a bit and got more into pop, but when I moved down here, I fell in love with country music again and my voice is definitely country — through and through.” “I’m fully independent and this is self-funded, and once I’m done recording this EP, the idea is that I have something to send out, as I have nothing at the moment. “It’s a deep passion and it’s a deep passion to talk about my life and my story, and inspire other people that it’s never too late to follow your dreams.” Balancing her musical artistry with raising her three boys has been a challenge, she said, but the community’s support relieved some of the stress she had dealt with in the past. “It’s been a bit stressful as there’s a bit to organise when you’ve got three kids,” Johnston said. “We don’t have any family that live down here, but we’ve got a great community and they’ve been amazing to us and our family since we moved down three years ago.” The singer-songwriter said her sons’ enjoyment of her music was a highlight in her journey, and said it made her even more excited to record her music. “The joy I see when I see my kids singing and dancing is really beautiful,” she said. Having recently performed during the Boyup Brook Country Music Festival, Johnston said she wanted to perform more live music and revealed she had a new single on the way. “After this EP is finished, I can’t wait to get out there and do more live performances and play more live music,” she said. “I love playing live because it’s a chance to connect with people properly, and I love watching live bands. “I’ll be releasing a single (called) Ever Again before the EP comes out, and I hope people can listen out for my music on Spotify.”