Ontario’s country-pop artist, Paige Rutledge has released her new single, “Take Me Back to Tiki”.
Check it out below, and find out more about Paige via our Five Questions With segment.
Care to introduce yourself to our readers?
Hey Canadian Beats!! I am super stoked to be answering these questions today. My name is Paige Rutledge, and I am a country singer from Oakville, Ontario. I found my love for country music at a young age after listening to Shania Twain. The authenticity of the lyrics and sound immediately captured my interest and encouraged me to want to tell my stories through my music. I started writing and performing at age 10 and have been chasing this crazy dream ever since.
I just released my brand new single, Take Me Back to Tiki, on October 30th and I am so excited to share this song with you. Here’s the story behind Take Me Back to Tiki. We built the Tiki Bar at our cottage about 10 years ago and the cottage just happens to be my favourite place in the world. There’s a joke on our cottage road where everyone is like “so Tiki tonight?” and everyone heads down to my place every single weekend. That’s what this song is about.
This started as a fun quarantine project between my cousin, Alex DiMauro, and I. We co-wrote the song and then decided to actually record it and now here we are. We turned the cottage into our own recording studio using all of the equipment we had and did all of the recording looking out at the lake. My favourite part about this song is that it’s about Tiki and everything we worked on was at Tiki or inside our cottages.
Tell us a bit about your music and writing style.
I’m a country girl through and through but my recent music definitely draws on pop influences, especially sounds that you would hear in a Shania Twain song. I love 90’s and early 2000’s country music and try to draw on the pop influences from that era into my music now.
As a songwriter, I really try to stay true to myself when I am writing. One of the things I respect most about country music is the authenticity behind it. When I am writing, whether it be by myself or in a co-write, I always try to find the truth in what I am saying. I want my listeners to be able to relate to my music and for us to be able to share what we are feeling if they have been through a similar experience. I also try to stay fun! I love having fun and a genuinely happy person and I want that to come through in my music.
Do you have any upcoming shows? For someone who has yet to see you live, how would you explain your live performance?
I was super fortunate to have quite a few live shows throughout the summer when venues/restaurants opened back up but that has settled down since the Fall arrived. That hasn’t stopped any of my virtual shows/live streams though! I have been busy keeping up with a live stream every week so that I am still engaging with listeners and interacting with other artists. Some of my upcoming live streams include fellow country artist and CMAO female artist nominee, Nicole Rayy’s “All Women Music Live Facebook Show”, and a live stream with CMAO industry person of the year, Dave Woods.
Live performances are my favourite part about being involved in the music industry. I feel so comfortable and at home when I am on stage and bring an energy to the stage that has been said to captivate audiences. I am a very outgoing and vibrant person, and I work to create a dynamic live performance that will make you remember me. I want to keep people coming back and listening to my music, and the stage is where I feel that I can really let people know who I am.
If you were asked to suggest only one of your songs for someone to hear, which would it be?
Take Me Back to Tiki!! This is my latest single that I released on October 30th and it is the best reflection of who I am as an artist currently. I spent a lot of time during quarantine really reflecting and rebranding myself, and I am so excited for this single to be that representation. It is a really special song to me, and I am really excited to have the opportunity to share it with everyone.
Canadian Beats is all about Canadian music, so who are your current favourite Canadian bands/ artists?
I LOVE Canadian music! I truly believe that we have some of the most talented people here in Canada. On the country-side, I am currently a huge fan of Meghan Patrick. Patrick is so unapologetically herself and I really respect that in her. I love her voice and her songwriting is so captivating. I also love the indie-pop group Valley. The music Valley is releasing is so unique and I cannot wait to see what the future holds for them.
One of my favourite artists of all time is Shania Twain. I still find myself singing and performing Shania all the time. She is so timeless and really paved the way for young women like me to find their way in Canadian Country Music.
Connect with Paige Rutledge:
Website
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram