Interview with Lisa Canny

Interview with Lisa Canny

She was given her first banjo at the tender age of five after discovering she had a profound love for traditional Irish and folk music. She then went on to enjoy an illustrious early career with various different trad groups and bands, scooping numerous awards and worldwide recognition along the way.

But now, Mayo woman, Lisa Canny is focusing on her solo career, and has moved into a more contemporary and modern music style. But how did this transition all come about?

"I was a complete 'trad head' up until around the age of 18 or 19, entering into various different competitions and festivals across the country. But at the same time I was also influenced by the other side of me which loved the Spice Girls and Westlife but I just didn't think there was much demand for that kind of music up where I am from. But as I got older and began performing and writing my own songs I realised that it was more influenced by pop music than it was by traditional, so I just thought, why not? It seemed to be the style that fit me best."

One experience that certainly proved to be a major turning point for Lisa as she focused in on pop music occurred while she was performing with Celtic Crossroads in Los Angeles. She caught the attention of Miles Copeland (former manager of The Police) who invited her to take part in ASCAP's songwriting retreat in France, where she worked with some of the biggest songwriters, performers and producers in the music industry.

"It was one of the most incredible and surreal experiences ever. I met some incredible people and my first experience of songwriting was with the best in the world; the biggest songwriters, the biggest producers, who had written some of the biggest hits in the last decade and it really exposed me to the pop world and was a huge turning point in my transition. But that said, I still feel my music is still highly influenced by trad music so I feel as though there is a nice balance."

As I mentioned, Lisa was part of a traditional Irish music group called Celtic Crossroads, where she held a lead role. However, now, she has gone on a more independent venture in trying to establish herself and her name as a solo artist, which is indeed no mean feat.

"I found it difficult at the start. For me, it's like I'm starting from scratch. I am using the things I learned on tour with Celtic Crossroads to help me along of course but it's a totally different ball game. I'm promoting myself, trying to figure out what's the best way to do things, what's the best way to get bums on seats etc, so all those little management things that I never saw happen before proved to be pretty big challenges."

Ah but Lisa... Surely there are some positives too?!

"Oh, the rewards are so much greater because you pour your heart and soul into it. With Crossroads we may have had 3000 people in the audience but if I had 30 new people at a gig of mine, it would mean more to me. And also, it's such an amazing feeling to be getting my own creations and ideas out there for people to become familiar with. So while the rewards may be smaller, they certainly feel bigger for me personally."

Well one such creation that Lisa has come up with is her single entitled 'Lifeline' which she wrote with Jodi Marr, a songwriter who has worked with artists such as Mika, Paloma Faith and Ricky Martin. The song proved to be a huge success and did incredibly well in the charts, something that the Mayo woman was understandably thrilled with.

"I was really surprised at how well it did in the charts because I had just started out and I was sort of putting 'Lifeline' out there to establish myself as a pop artist. I did not expect it to get into the top ten in the charts at all! That was a big added bonus!"

Lisa has two gigs lined up in the coming weeks back in her home county. On Thursday 23rd July she will be playing The Westport Town Hall Theatre and on Friday August 7th she will be performing at the The Royal Theatre in Castlebar. But what does the solo artist have planned for the distant future?

"We have loads of plans in action actually. I'm signed to a publishing company in London called AbFab so I've been over there back and forth writing songs with different producers and writers constantly. So, the plan is that we are hoping to have an album out by this time next year, to be recorded hopefully next spring, but it's still a work in progress."

So her debut album is a work in progress. I'm sure it will be highly anticipated, but as Lisa jokingly said, "You can't rush a masterpiece Eoin!" 

What you can do however is check Lisa Canny's work out in the following ways:

Website: www.lisacanny.com
Facebook: Lisa Canny
YouTube: Lisa Canny
Twitter: @LisaCanny

EOIN!