Writers on Track features Tenille Townes, 15-time Canadian Country Music Award winner and rising star in the country music scene with Big Yellow Dog Publishing. Originally from Canada and now based in Nashville, Tenille is celebrated for her exceptional songwriting talent, crafting lyrics that resonate deeply and authentically with listeners.
What’s your favorite part of the songwriting process?
I like the freedom of expression. I started writing songs in my room as a kid because I was afraid of my own feelings, and I needed a safe space to just say anything. Songwriting brings me comfort; providing an outlet to further understand myself and the world I’m observing around me. It’s also a time when my head feels the quietest. When I’m present in the middle of that creative process, it’s like an electric, almost out of body feeling, where you’re a vessel catching something as it comes through you. In a lot of ways, that’s a spiritual practice for me. And it’s always a rewarding experience, having something you can listen back to that didn’t exist in the world before that moment.
What’s your biggest session highlight so far?
I’ve had moments in sessions with some of my heroes, like Lori McKenna, Vince Gill and Dan Wilson, that I’ll remember for the rest of my life. The highlight beyond the magic of a song in those rooms for me, is walking away learning that they’ve struggled in the same ways I do. That sometimes they feel uninspired, intimidated, and doubt their own internal compass the same way I do. But we all just keep writing and showing up anyway. This idea that no one has the answers when it comes to creativity is incredibly freeing.
How much do current market and track trends impact your creative process?
I create my best work when I let go of the need to please or the desire to fit in with market trends. But that doesn’t mean I don’t believe in intention or being in a mindset of creating something with potential to reach out and mean something to somebody. I want my songs to be wings that go out in the world and help someone else feel less alone, and that starts with the way it makes me feel less alone. I do my best to create from that centered place and let my art evolve with me as a human.
Listen to Tenille Townes on Amazon Music, Apple Music and Spotify.
