In the Country with Dave Woods:
Jessica Sevier

Since her debut single “Ghost of Tom” in 2019, Jessica’s music has been collectively streamed over 1 million times. Performing live has been a key part of growing her audience, and Jessica has shared the stage with artists including Jason McCoy and Tim & the Glory Boys, and has performed at music festivals and renowned venues including Whisky Jam in Nashville and the legendary Lee’s Palace in Toronto. She has also showcased at Canadian Music Week each year since 2021.

Growing up, Jessica took piano and voice lessons and had an elementary school music teacher who saw her passion for music and encouraged her to explore it through school musical productions. Jessica achieved a level 8 voice exam at the Royal Conservatory of Music with honours, and studied up to level 10 voice at the University of Western Ontario in the Bachelor of Music Program with a focus in vocal performance. She went on to graduate at the top of her class in a college engineering/production program, and she is a multi-instrumentalist, mainly focusing on piano, guitar, and harmonica.

Hello there, Jessica! Great to have you In The Spotlight this month. I want to start by asking – when did you first make the decision to become an artist and start that journey?
Throughout my whole life, I have always loved music, performing in my living room as a kid to then performing in talent shows and musicals. However, at 14, I decided to try my hand at songwriting, and it went pretty well. From then on, all I wanted to do was write music and tell a story, and I never really looked back. My dream has started to become true in front of my eyes, and 14-year-old me would be amazed at how far we’ve come since that first song.

Artists are usually influenced & inspired by other artists in some way. What are the top 3 artists who have done that for you & why?
Bruce Springsteen has always been my top influence as a musician. His songwriting has always spoken to me in a way no one else can. The heartbreak and stories in his music bring an honesty to the table that not many have been able to replicate. Every time I write music, I strive to get as close to the bar that Springsteen has set. John Mellencamp is another influence of mine. The thing that inspires me most about Mellencamp’s music is that he is not afraid to say what needs to be said. He points out issues that most are afraid to touch on, and does it in such a graceful way. A more current artist who has inspired me, and especially the new project I am working on at the moment, would be Elle King. She brings a rock/bluesy vibe to the world of modern country that I have really been enjoying. It has inspired me and given me the confidence to explore and experiment with my sound.

If you had to give some songwriting tips to new writers, what would you pass on to them?
I think the best advice I could give a new writer is to stay true to themselves and be authentic. I think it’s easy to get stuck comparing yourself to other writers and trends. If you’re too busy thinking about what’s going to be popular or what goes along with the mainstream, the artistry that makes your perspective unique will be lacking. Write how you feel, stay true to your original style, and your differences will be what set you apart.

What do you find is the most challenging part of building a music career?
The most challenging part of building a music career is definitely the business side. Being an independent artist means doing everything yourself, including building and maintaining a business and brand. As a musician, I have studied classically and learned all I can about music and theory; however, nowadays, you also need to have a business brain, which can be very challenging. After almost 10 years of learning the music business, I finally feel as though I am starting to grasp how it works. I don’t know if I will ever fully understand the workings of the business as it is ever-changing, but I finally have people on my team that I trust and that believe in me and my music, so I am feeling hopeful.

Tell us the story behind choosing to record your great 2023 single “Legends Of The Summer”.
“Legends of the Summer” was a monumental song for me. It was the first time I felt as though my musical influences and personality really started to shine through.” Legends” was written by Emma-Lee, Karen Kosowski, Jessica Cayne, and Maddie Walker, and I am so grateful they trusted me with this song. I like to say it was love at first listen. I could hear myself in the song the second I heard it, and I felt I could easily showcase myself within the music. I took a lot of inspiration from The Eagles while recording this song, which ended up paying off. I am now writing my next project, and I have been lucky enough to work with Jack Tempchin, who wrote “Peaceful Easy Feeling” as well as many other hits for The Eagles. If I had never taken the risk on “Legends,” I don’t think I would be lucky enough to be where I am now.

If you could record a duet with any artist from another genre, who would you choose & why?
Bruce Springsteen would probably be the obvious answer for me, but I feel as though our music could be classified in similar genres. So, to go into a completely different genre, I would say somewhere in the rock/metal realm. I grew up on ’80s hair metal, and I still believe it’s some of the best music ever written. I would love to record a song with Sebastian Bach of Skid Row, as I think he has one of the best voices of that generation. I love rock music and I have admired Bach since the second I heard him sing, the power and emotion in his voice is unbeatable. He is also a fellow Canadian, so maybe he’d take a chance on this emerging Canadian artist.

Thank you so much for being my guest this month, Jessica! My last question for you is – what would you like to accomplish in your music career in 2024?
2024 has already gotten off to a great start! I have been tirelessly working on my next project, which I have hinted at a little bit throughout these questions. I don’t want to give anything away yet; however, I can confidently say this new music is the most authentic and painfully truthful stuff I have ever written. Along with that, I have collaborated with some big names that I have only ever dreamed about working with. So, looking into the rest of the year, I hope I can start releasing a few of these new songs and really claim my own territory and style within the country music community. I am hoping the new stuff I have will resonate with people, and hopefully we can get a CMAO nomination next year! But overall, I just want to keep creating art that fuels and heals my soul, and if people listen and enjoy, that’s just a bonus!