Chalee Tennison
(Q)- Your first album wasn’t well received. This album “this woman’s heart” is dramatically different musically. Why?
Chalee Tennison (CT)- This is my second album. As an artist you know you put your heart and soul and everything you’ve got into your music and videos.
I’m a single mom, who comes to this town (Nashville) who has been through three divorces, and has kids and I’m doing something that is so unsure. I might be a newcomer in this business to some people but I’m not going away.
(Q)- What have you learned since you’ve come to Nashville and entered into the highly competitive world that the country genre has become?
CT)- The biggest thing I’ve learned is eve though I didn’t have a Number 1 song off of my debut album, I touched a lt of people with my music. I learned that there are people out there who really want to hear my story Which is I’ll say a typical everyday story that a lot of women have/. I think that in all too many cases, the fans look at a singer or a songwriters life and they have this idea that they’re life is different from their own. Now mine is anything but the average story that most artists have in this town. I didn’t grow up around music or in the music business. I came to town and go a record deal after my third divorce. I mean having three children to support. So the whole first album to me was a learning process, I learned what radio wanted and I learned what the fans wanted to hear. I guess with this second album I wanted to give the fans more of what they reacted to in the first album. Which is my life story. I mean real life stories are what country music is all about. I think that now, probably what touches me more then anything else is to have a fan write me a letter from listening to my album. When I bear my soul to the fans and give it to them and really bear my soul, there’s a real fulfilling process going on within that.
(Q)- The lyrics to country songs seem to be quite different then years ago.
(CT)- I’m all about reality oriented song lyrics. That’s me. The feedback from my fans is important. I’ve had some really incredible stories from the fans telling me that they really have had wonderful experiences listening to my songs and the messages in the lyrics.
(Q)- The big question is do the folks at radio want to let their listeners hear reality oriented song lyrics that tackle tough subjects?
(CT)- That’s a good question. The fans do, but as far as radio goes, when it gets to a certain level with radio, everybody is so heavily consulted that they’re afraid to lose their jobs if they take a chance on a new style. That hurts the genre.
(Q)- Isn’t there ribbons of hope throughout all of your songs.
(CT)- Absolutely. This album is a compilation of my heart. It’s everything I’ve lived through and everything I’ve wanted to have so badly. I want to share with the people out there the things that I’ve been through because I consider them wisdom. I have three children who look up to me. They look up to me because of everything that I’ve been through. I am trying to make them proud but in the same way by them watching my career, they realize that we all have roller coasters in life. WE all have ups and downs in life. That’s life. I want to share my stories with people because I don’t want anybody to go through the pain that I’ve experienced or the pain that I’ve seen.
(Q)- Would you provide your children’s names and ages please?
(CT)- Tiffany (14). Haley (9). Tyler (5).
(Q)- Wouldn’t you be better of getting your message out via the TV talk show circuit?
(CT)- Yes, I probably would. I think that music is the one thing besides a talk show, that reaches people. No matter what format it is. And that’s my way of telling my sorry through my music. And what’s sad about it that, within the format I’m in right now (country music) I have to compete against radio-friendly songs. Some people(at radio) are scared of real life stories in the songs that they’ll hear on an artist’s album. Then they(radio programmers) ask me why am I so open with my own story. I don’t know any other way in the same way that Oprah Whinfrey (correct) has never known any other way. My way of telling my stories is through my music. Music reaches people, no matter what format it is, that’s the case for me. The only thing I can do is see the light at the end of my tunnel by looking at a woman like Oprah and seeing where she came from and where she’s gone with her life. And then, following stories like that. I mean, there are fans out there who “Get It” with my music. But the problem is nobody has heard my music (on radio). And, until we figure out a way to get them to hear my music, I won’t have anymore fans. Because the only way the fans get to hear it is through that thing we call the radio.
(Q)- Do you see a change coming where there will be an increased demand for more “reality-oriented” country songs?
(CT)- Right. Yes I do. I see the winds of change blowing in this direction. That’s what “real country” is about. So I know that it(change) will come. It will come and the reason I know it will is because country music is a format and the only reason that people still relate to country music is the real, live lyrics in the real country songs. It will turn right back around to that. Because light-hearted lyrics don’t make an impact on people. And country music has always made an impact on people. At least it used to until the past few years.
(Q)- How do you feel to see that you have such a battle ahead of you?
(CT)- I cry. I cry when people give up on what I stand for. But it just gives me that much more fight and reason to convince me that they need to be as passionate about it(real country music) as I am. That fact inspires me.