Yorkton鈥檚 own Jackie Guy is busy recording, finishing up work on her latest EP. She has just released the first single off that latest project, Damned If I Do.
A sad song you can dance to, Damned If I Do聽 鈥 co-written by Guy and her producer Rich McFarlane 鈥 has an upbeat sound for a song about someone stuck in a bad relationship. Guy says it鈥檚 a song that she has wanted to write for over 25 years, but decided to take it off the shelf because she can look it at from a new perspective as a mother of seven.
鈥淚 have, right now, four teenage girls in my house. They鈥檙e doing a lot of dating, luckily good guys... It鈥檚 kind of like the old Taylor Swift style song, where so much time has elapsed for me that nobody will know who it鈥檚 about, so there鈥檚 no hard feelings if I release it.鈥
Guy has also filmed a video to go with that new single, and used as much local talent as possible to bring it to the screen. She wants to thank the crew for the work done on the video, including director Nathan Grayston, local actors Kristen Jonassen and Justin Guy as the cast, dancers Arina Stamatinos, Erica Baker and Josie Roden, makeup artist Lateesha Armbruster, hair stylist Jodie Lang, the rest of the local crew, and local businesses providing locations and support, such as Yorkton Hyundai providing a vehicle. Guy is proud of her crew she wanted to give them a chance to show their skills.
鈥淚 remember when I was starting out, sometimes you just want a little bit of a shot. I think with all these youngsters, they鈥檙e just starting out in their businesses, I think it鈥檚 good to give them a chance to shine. I think they鈥檙e going to do that, they鈥檙e very talented young men and women.鈥
With the release of the first single, now the focus goes back to the rest of the EP. Guy is hoping to record seven songs for the new release, and says it鈥檚 going to be a varied song list. She admits that when she writes, she doesn鈥檛 think of an overall theme, but she did have a person in mind when she sat down to write her most recent songs.
鈥淭his album will be in honour of my dad, who passed away in September. He鈥檚 the one who got me started in music, so one of the singles on this EP is a song I wrote for him called 鈥楾he Last Night.鈥欌
This is a personal project for Guy, and she hopes that makes it her best release yet. It was a tough year for Guy and her family, and she contemplated giving up her music career. She found that writing a song about her father was liberating.
鈥淚 feel him pushing me to finish this one.鈥
She also hopes that her experience with her father is something that other people can relate to when they go through their own struggles with diseases like cancer. Her song is about her experience, but it鈥檚 something many people can relate to, and she wants it to help others who are going through treatment.
鈥淚 just want to say that it鈥檚 important for everyone to take that time, no matter how busy your life is, and spend it with those people going through the treatments, because you never regret it.鈥
One of Guy鈥檚 goals as a songwriter is to branch out and work with more people, an example of which is the song 鈥淟onesome From You,鈥 written with Ontario-based songwriter Richard Vande Sompel, who Guy met on social media, and her regular co-writer McFarlane.
鈥淚 just think after you鈥檝e been doing a lot of songwriting, when you release a song and it does well you have more people to share that excitement with.鈥
This will be a busy summer for Guy and her band beyond the writing and recording. They will also be doing a tour of provincial parks, an outdoor jamboree at Big River on June 23, and a showcase in the run up to the CCMAs.
鈥淟ife is really busy but it keeps me out of trouble.鈥
Keep up with Guy at www.jackieguy.com. The video for Damned If I Do is embedded above.