"I got up on stage and thought — I'm going to do this for the rest of my life."
Some artists write songs. Jaclyn Kenyon writes confessions raw, honest, and powerful enough to make strangers feel less alone. With her debut single SCARS out now, the Canadian born Nashville artist is finally ready to show the world exactly who she is.
There is a particular kind of courage required to stand in a room full of strangers and bare the parts of yourself you have spent years hiding. For Jaclyn Kenyon, that courage didn’t arrive overnight it was forged on stages, in Nashville writing rooms, in music classrooms, and through two years trapped in a record deal that nearly extinguished everything she loved about music. SCARS is the result of all of it.
The single the first of three ahead of her EP this summer is named for the very thing most people spend their lives concealing. But Kenyon isn’t hiding anymore.
The Beginning
You’ve been performing since you were 12 years old what do you remember about that very first moment on stage?
It was the experience that changed everything for me. I remember being up on stage at the Mod Club in Toronto with Honey Jam they launched the careers of Nelly Furtado and Jully Black and I was performing live for the first time with my band. I got up on stage and thought: I’m going to do this for the rest of my life. I love this. And I haven’t looked back ever since.
"It's not easy to chase any dream, especially in Nashville where everyone is talented."
The Leap
You moved from Canada all the way to Nashville to chase this dream. What was the scariest part?
It was new and scary. All of my friends and my boyfriend at the time who is now my husband were far away from me and I had to make a lot of sacrifices. I knew though that if I wanted to do this I had to be involved in the music industry outside of Canada as well, and I had to make that choice to go and to keep going.
I really think my love for music and wanting to share it kept me going on some of my hardest days. It’s not easy to chase any dream, especially in Nashville where everyone is talented.
The Birth of SCARS
The story of how SCARS came to be is itself a kind of miracle a song born in under an hour that managed to capture something every person in the room had been carrying for years.
The Single
Tell us about SCARS where did the idea come from and what do you want people to feel when they hear it?
I am so excited to finally start this next chapter in my life. It’s been a long time coming. SCARS is the start of three more singles before the EP drops this summer. I wanted to start with it because it sets the tone for everything that follows.
The idea came from my own struggle with perfection being ashamed of the damage and the things I’ve gone through in my own life. When I brought the title to the writing room, the other two writers immediately said: yes, that’s the song. It all came together in under an hour.
We all shared our own scars with one another things we’d been through and it was a very vulnerable and healing process for me. There is one line in the song that says “your damage it ain’t a damn weakness” and when I sing that line it’s almost like I am singing it to myself, because I believed the opposite for way too long. I hope people can heal like I have when they sing that line too.
The Process
Walk us through your creative process does a song begin with a lyric, a melody, an emotion?
It’s kind of a mix of everything. Sometimes it’s the lyric, other times it’s the melody, or talking in the room with writers about the emotions or overall mood of that day. It’s magic creating music and you have to be around the right people to capture the moment. Or if I’m by myself, I have to really be feeling something to open myself up and write about it.
I don’t like to write just to write. I personally love to live life and see what flows through me while I’m living it.
"This project is all about lived experiences. I wanted to be as vulnerable as I could — every song represents a season in my life."
The Real Moments
What's one moment in your career that genuinely stopped you in your tracks?
I was in a writing room in Nashville and in the room there were four writers who had all written some of my favorite songs sung by some of the biggest artists in Nashville. I was just shaking my head at one point thinking: they are writing MY song right now? We’re actually here? This is what we are doing?
Also when I opened for Nickelback I couldn’t wrap my head around that being real. From the start of the day to the end of the day I was in complete shock. It really set in days later haha…..
Finding Music Again
The Teacher
You also teach music to students of all ages. What brought you to teaching?
I love kids and I love mentoring the next generation. I want to use my voice for more than just singing.
I lost a lot of passion during a period when I was locked up in a music contract where I couldn’t release music for two years. I decided I wanted to teach. Through it, I found my passion and love for music back again because I saw how excited these kids were to just sit down and learn how to sing or write songs. It was so refreshing to see music without the business side again.
It also made me rethink my own approach to the music I was creating. Some of the songs these kids wanted to sing felt too mature for 8–12 year olds, and it reminded me that I want to make sure my music is impactful, powerful and positive not just a song.
What's Next
What can your fans expect in the coming months?
They can expect a lot of new music and a whole new chapter. My listeners I call them Team Kenyon, because it really does take a village to make this happen have been waiting a long time for this with me. I am so grateful that they stayed and followed my journey up to this point.
Every stream, save, like, and concert ticket allows me to keep doing this. Every single one of them matters. I can’t wait to see where we all end up together.