Traditional country music is attracting more attention from new and wider audiences both in the States and Europe and the likes of Nashville-based Emily Nenni is keeping the honky tonk flag flying vigorously.
Despite the many hurdles that women face in a male-dominated industry Emily’s career has moved at a brisk pace through hard graft, attention to detail, dedication, and no end of talent, which has resulted in three solo records over the past five years. She independently recorded her debut album, HELL OF A WOMAN in 2017 and followed that with her 2020 EP LONG GAME. Both provided glimpses of an artist whose enunciation and vocal range are pure country, allied to an ability to create songs rich in both detail and content. Emily has turned up the heat a number of notches with her latest album ON THE RANCH. Written in the main on a ranch in Colorado during a period when Covid deprived her of employment in Nashville, it’s a noble effort in keeping real country music alive. A giant leap forward for Emily has been the support of New West, who added her to their roster. Just off the road from a tour with Kelsey Waldon, we caught up with Emily before she packed her bags for Australia for a tour with her label mate, Joshua Hedley.
How daunting was it for you to move to Nashville at twenty-one years of age?
It was daunting, but because I was so young, I didn't think too much of it at the time. I didn't know anybody there. I had been to Nashville once before and I really just put myself out there because I was so young and it was also exciting there. I just went there and worked hard. I knew I wanted to make music and be a part of it, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to just be a songwriter. I didn't really think I had the courage to sing in front of people. I was still pretty shy singing in front of larger groups, so I had a couple of beers and started singing in front of some folks and that happened about six months after moving into town. Robert’s Western World was where I first cut my teeth. I would watch their house band, Brazibilly every Friday and Saturday: they are so loyal to traditional country music and they play it so well. I learned so much from listening to them. I was then introduced to the folks at Santa’s Pub where they do a similar thing to Robert’s but to a younger crowd and in a much more laid-back way.
At what stage did you progress from spectator to performer?
I played my first show playing originals with a band at the first-ever Honky Tonk Tuesday at American Legion Post 82. That was about eight years ago and I probably played to about five people. There was still a table in the middle of the dance floor back then. I didn't have my songs recorded at the time and didn’t have consistent players because Nashville is a busy town and a lot of the players were also touring. So, I had to get players to learn my original songs and I was still learning how to lead a band. That took some time. I'm still learning, learning a lot, that's the beauty of it, you're always learning.
The American Legion has become a ‘go to’ venue for traditional country music in Nashville. It’s attracting increasingly large numbers of younger people every Tuesday night to both dance and enjoy great music.
I think that's a beautiful thing. I'm really glad that a number of us are keeping traditional country music alive. The Honky Tonk Tuesday nights started with some older folks there but as the crowds got bigger over the years there have been more and more people in their twenties coming along. I toured with Charley Crockett for a month and saw a lot of younger folks in their cowboy hats and a lot of them were still in college, which means a lot because there’s a lifetime ahead of those people to continue to support country music and spread the word. It is still far and few between but I'm hoping it will get much bigger again.
Where did your love of traditional country come from?
My parents listen to every genre, we listened to music all the time in our house. My dad worked in radio since the 70s and my parents moved from New York to California in the 80s. We’ve always been a music loving family: my mom played a lot of Patsy, Willie and Hank Williams. Those are really the three that I heard a lot of growing up and I took that with me when I moved to Nashville. I never really leaned towards pop/country. I still think Shania Twain is great and I love her but we are more of a Patsy Cline and Willie Nelson household.
Your 2017 album HELL OF A WOMAN is anything but pop/country, more a statement of your intended musical direction, would you say?
Yes, I recorded that with my former guitarist Mike Eli. We actually met at Robert’s Western World. I showed him a couple of my songs that I'd written and we just started recording and writing some more just from home. We recorded that probably over the course of a year and a half and I wasn’t really trying to shop the record or have anyone release it. I had a lot more to learn and a lot more people to meet back then. There's a combination of quite a few musicians on that record because I recorded it over a year and a half but a couple of those songs I'd written when I was nineteen years old, like Hurt All Over and Canyon. The song Hell Of A Woman wasn't initially going to be on the record, but it ended up being the title track and that logo is on my T-shirts now. All those songs except for Canyon are autobiographical and about what I felt and experienced when I was twenty-one years old, living in a new state and a new city.
In terms of autobiographical writing, the songs Gates of Hell and Matches from ON THE RANCH read like exorcisms.
(Laughs). Yes, Gates Of Hell is definitely a very therapeutic song, it's about a relationship when I was twenty-one. And you know, I started to think about these things during the lockdown. During that time, I had a lot of free time on my hands and was thinking about a lot of things for my writing, so yeah, very therapeutic. Song writing is a very therapeutic thing, so I'm very grateful to have that outlet.
ON THE RANCH has been released on the New West label. Had you recorded the album prior to signing with them?
Yes, I had just started working with one of my booking agents and I had just finished the album six months beforehand, having recorded it at a friend's studio. I told my booking agent that I wanted to shop the album as I'd already released a single from it. New West had heard of me and enjoyed my self-released last EP LONG GAME. They had been listening and had an eye and ear out for me a year, and they liked the record. After we sent it to them, I had to play a couple of very intimidating shows for them. They're just the nicest folks and they're working so hard for me; they liked the record just as it was and I'm really grateful for that. They appreciate that I'm making my own music and that it’s more traditional.
What difference has signing to them made for you?
It has made such a huge difference. Before then I was surprised anyone heard my music at all, I just put it out. My single Long Game ended up on a big Spotify playlist, probably just by chance, but now I have a fantastic team working with me on publicity and digital radio. I've also got a great booking team who know the market. I have no knowledge of all these things.
Were the songs for ON THE RANCH written at the ranch in Colorado where you spent time during lockdown and how did you end up there?
I had a few songs written, In The Morning and Matches were written before we went to the ranch in Colorado. Mike Elijah – who I had written the last couple records with – his wife was turning thirty and she was working at the ranch. So, we said: ‘why don't we just drive up, work more on this record and write some more songs.’ We came back to Nashville a few weeks later with the rest of the record written. I messaged my buddy, Jake Davis, who had engineered and mixed my other records and we got some studio dates on the books. We had recorded demos in my basement and I went into the studio with Mike Eli and Alex Lyon, who co-produced the record, and also played bass. We had a couple of other folks play in the studio and we got it done in three or four days.
Did the environment at the ranch in Colorado have a marked input on your writing for the album?
Anna, Mike's wife, grew up barrel racing in rodeos when she was younger, so Can Chaser is a song about that sport. I got a perspective on a different career on the ranch that expanded my subject matter and I definitely gained a lot of respect for that different career. It's just like being around women in country music as you get to talk about the good and the bad and your experiences as a woman. I dated a cowboy when I was twenty-one. The majority of the time you're born into that life, I certainly wasn't as my parents are New Yorkers and I was raised in California. I really admire that lifestyle, it's a lot of hard work. When I worked at the ranch, I was doing what I did in Nashville, serving breakfast and dinner and playing music for the guests. I did take care of a calf named Scott that lost her mom, I tried to try to get her to gain some weight and feed her, but I'm not a cowgirl by any means.
Are you a ‘nine to five’ writer or do your songs come to you in bursts?
It does just come in bursts. I jot down my ideas or some lines as they come to me. With the song Hell Of A Woman, I think I was just sitting at my kitchen counter and that song came out in ten minutes. Sometimes the songs come out of nowhere, sitting on the couch or I might be walking the dog and the song will be finished by the time the walk is over.
You’ve recently played two album release shows at Santa’s Pub in Nashville with Pat Reedy and Hannah Juanita supporting you.
Yes, I've known Pat since I was twenty-one, he's such a good buddy and we've played quite a few shows together over the years. Hannah Juanita is wonderful. She moved here just a few years ago. Her voice is so easy on the ears, I love her. It was really great to play those shows at Santa’s and celebrate with people that I have known since I moved here, and that have always supported me
You’re also busy on the road and have just returned from touring with Kelsey Waldon are due to head to Australia with your New West label mate Joshua Hedley.
Kelsey and I have known each other for a while. The tour with her was the best, the month really flew by. She has such an incredible band and she’s a great songwriter. She was also very encouraging of me and my music which means a lot, coming from another woman. We all stayed in Joshua Tree together for a couple of days and went hiking and had a lot of meals together. I was given twenty-four hours to decide about the dates in Australia when I was on the road a couple of weeks into a tour. I really can't wait, I'm really excited. Joshua Hedley’s band The Headliners will be backing me up. It's going to be half travel and half shows, a two-week ordeal. I think it's going to be a lot of fun.
Any plans to get over to us in Europe?
I’m very excited about getting over to Europe. There are talks about shows over there and I hope that happens soon. I’ve only left my country a couple of times, a few hours in Mexico and then a week in Cuba. In the meantime, I have my first headlining tour lined up here for March and April next year.
Interview by Declan Culliton