A teen country singer from Olds is awaiting the release of a song she wrote with 90s chart topping singer Lisa Brokop.
Lucky Love is Blind is expected to be released in February, says Dani-Lynn, a Grade 12 Olds High School student.
The song has already had a local airing, having been played live by Brokop, her husband Paul Jefferson, and Dani-Lynn during an encore performance at The Jefferson's concert Nov. 7 at the Olds Legion.
The crowd of about 100 was predominantly 35- to 40-year-olds, those who would have followed Brokop when she was growing as an artist in the 90s, said Dani-Lynn.
The local was the opening act for the duo who are now collaborating under the name The Jeffersons.
“The hometown crowd was great. Most had heard my songs before, so getting to play some new songs for them was a blast because I knew they would give me some feedback,” she said.
Dani-Lynn's relationship with Lisa and Paul began over a year ago.
Valuing advice from one of her biggest idols, Dani-Lynn reached out to Brokop through a Facebook message asking if she would listen to her music and give her a professional opinion.
“She messaged me back and told me that she would love to mentor me as an artist and her and her husband Paul were looking for a recording project,” she said.
Not long after she was down in Nashville recording her album You're Not Alone, which Paul produced.
During her second trip to Nashville for the recording of her album, she joined them at Nashville's Bluebird Cafe.
“They invited me up as a special guest, which was a huge honour,” she said.
The ACMA 2011 Nominee for Female Artist of the Year described the last year as “insane,” playing at places like the Big Valley Jamboree, The Calgary Stampede, Summer SendOff, Alberta Showcase, as well as writing songs and playing with a full band at her shows.
When Dani-Lynn found out Brokop and Paul were heading to Alberta again this fall, they were asked to do a house concert in Olds.
The expected audience quickly grew too large for a house, so the venue was changed to the legion.
“They tend to stick to more intimate style concerts, which are really great because you gain a fan base that will never leave you that way. They tell a ton of stories about their songs that really make you feel like you're a part of the performance,” said Dani-Lynn.
She said it was an honour to open for The Jeffersons.
“Their performances are so polished and perfect, so getting to open for them was amazing, just knowing that their show would be so brilliant,” she said.
Her opening act was 30 minutes in length and she sang a wide variety of originals and covers. They included everything from her version of Adele's Someone Like You all the way down to Cowboy's Sweetheart by Patsy Montana - a guaranteed crowd pleaser with a yodelling bit, she said.
Work is now underway to line up gigs for Dani-Lynn next summer. She will be 18 then and said she expects a lot of doors to be opening for summer venues.
“I have grown a lot musically in the past year or so, playing bigger venues, writing more, and getting my foot in the door of the Canadian country music scene. It's been an amazing journey so far, but I can't wait for more to come,” she said.
