Hello ACR readers!
Sarah Here! I have a big treat for country music fans!
I had the pleasure of sitting down with Canadian singer/songwriter, Carolyn Dawn Johnson on Friday night before her excellent performance at the LottoMax Presents Cavendish Beach Music Festival! Here is what she had to say!
SM: My first question pertains to your songwriting. You have such a raw talent for taking songs and making them a story so many people can relate to. It’s raw, it’s real and it’s honest with absolutely no BS, which I think is one of biggest reasons you’ve been so successful in your work. What inspires you to write this way?
CDJ: A lot of time inspiration just hits you. When it does, take it and run with it! It can be in the most unexpected of places sometimes! You just have to go with it.
SM: You don’t always sing the music you write. Other artists have been singing your songs for years. How did it feel to have your first song play on the radio?
CDJ: Wow. I was living in Nashville at the time. The song was “I’m Yours” by Linda Davis. A friend of mine actually came to me and told me it was playing, and the first thing I thought was “This is really happening!” It was so unbelievable!
SM: Was it always a goal of yours to sing your own songs, or would you have just been as happy writing?
CDJ: It was always a goal to be able to sing my own songs. I went to Nashville know that the songwriter route would be okay. But when I got there and was given the chance to sing, I knew I would rise to the occasion!
SM: I have to say, “Love Rules” is an absolute favorite album of mine. I listen to is all the time. The songwriting is awesome! I have always wondered, off all of the great songs on the album, what is your favorite?
CDJ: Oh, wow. That’s a really hard question to answer. Everything has something I love. I guess one song that stands out for me is “I want my life back.” I wrote that for a girlfriend of mine who was going through a lot.
SM: Seeing as how this is your first visit to the LottoMax Presents Cavendish Beach Music Festival. How has your experience been while on PEI?
CDJ: It’s so peaceful, and the people are so peaceful. I was here before with my family and I loved how when we would go into a town there would be, maybe, 30 houses in them! It’s a beautiful place! And the beaches are fantastic! I was swimming at the beach in Dalvay earlier today!