Jolene Harnish continues her meteoric rise with the release of “Blueberries”
Nova Scotia’s Jolene Harnish was born into a family of musicians and has been performing and entertaining since she could walk.
In August, Jolene unveiled her second single, “Blueberries,” which followed the previous track, “Heart Too Big To Break.” Both of these releases are part of her upcoming four-song EP, coming out in early 2024.
“Blueberries” is a special song and was inspired by a secret code that she shared with her father when she was a little girl. Jolene shares that when her parents would have company over, she was given the floor for the first 15 minutes to entertain, and when her time was up her dad would gently say “Jolene go pick blueberries”.
First off, care to introduce yourself to our readers?
Born in Nova Scotia, I’ve always had a huge passion for music and was surrounded by music, even from a very young age, being born into a family full of musicians.
My parents would host parties and she would perform for their guests singing anything from Madonna to Janie Fricke, Tanya Tucker, and more.
I only hope that my music will be able to take her listeners on a journey and I’ll be able to connect with them through my lyrics.
You have unveiled your latest single, “Blueberries.” Tell us a bit about the writing process behind the release.
This song is so special. I’ve been carrying this idea around in my phone notes for a year or so. I wasn’t exactly sure how or when it was going to get written in a song at the time. I just knew it was going to be special. When Roberta Michelle and I sat down to write I started talking about my childhood and about this special code between my dad and I. The more we talked the more I could see how much my parents encouraged and supported me and from there the positive message of this song was born. I, unfortunately, lost my dad 7 years ago, it’s another way I can keep a special memory alive.
“Blueberries” follows your previous single, “Heart Too Big To Break.” Do these two songs follow suit with the other two on the EP?
They do, This EP Courage in the Chaos is my story – and how and why I am where I am now. What inspired me to be here and to keep chasing my dreams. It’s also a peek into where my head and heart are and how I’ve grown as a woman- let’s just say I’ve had my Oprah AH-HA moment and nothing is gonna slow me down!
When songwriting, where do you tend to pull influence from?
My heart is deeply rooted in Country music. I really love 90’s country and even though my first two singles are not a traditional Country sound ..the rest of the EP will be transitioning that way. I get influenced in many ways … could be any genre of music.. depending on how it makes me feel.
If you had to describe your sound to a potential new listener in ten words or less, what would you choose?
Unique. A distinctive but familiar blend of country roots.
You were born into a family of musicians. At what age did you know you were destined to follow suit?
I was about 7 – my brother was learning the guitar so I started singing whatever he was learning. I would hear my mom singing Janie Frickie and Charlie Pride, so I would join her!
Looking back to childhood, what was the first song you remember singing in public?
The first song I ever learned was “ Speak Softly” by Gene Watson – my brother would play it on guitar. When I got a bit older and hit the stage for the first time it was Carlene Carter’s “Come on Back “ and Alanna Myles’ “Love Is.”
If you could work with any fellow Canadian artist, who would you choose?
OOH, that’s a great question! So hard to choose we have SO many incredible Canadian artists. I would love to work with Meghan Patrick. I’ve been following her career for a while, she’s an incredible songwriter and performer.
What’s next up your sleeve for the end of 2023 and early 2024?
I’m finishing up my EP” Courage in the Chaos” for early 2024 which means I’m focusing on writing right now.. looking forward to the ECMA‘s in 2024 and working on more shows for the new Year – “Blueberries” just went to Radio this September and we are thinking about producing a video for it.