Shelby Darrall was one of "UPstar. Music's "Artists To Watch: Class of 2024" for a reason. This West Coast born singer-songwriter has a way of being able to transform her eventful experiences, filled with emotion and vulnerability into breathtaking songs that are both relatable and authentic. Becoming a Nashville vet, Darrall has gained some valuable experience over the years co-writing and opening with some of the industry's best. In addition, Shelby is skyrocketing with the success of her newest 6-song EP "Melt". And her latest single, "When I Don't Love You", released in February is also off to the races! It has been an eventful summer for Darrell as she tore it up playing the Hard Rock Stage during CMA Fest in Nashville, performed at Country Summer Music Festival in Santa Rosa, CA and Tailgate N' Tallboys in Bloomington, IL. A true star.
I sat down with Shelby Darrall and talked about her sophomore EP "Melt", how she started playing tasting rooms in Napa Valley at the age of 13 and an important lesson she learned recently that has transformed her music career. Take a look into the life and music of Shelby and how the California native navigates through her career in music city.
Get To Know Shelby
"I'm originally from Napa Valley, but I've been in Nashville for 7ish years now. I grew up on Country Music because my dad was in a band called Silver Creek and I was always around it. When I was 13 years old I was playing in tasting rooms all over Napa Valley. I played acoustic guitar and I could test out songs I had written to see if anyone noticed and see if they were good enough to get a reaction. That was the first time I played in front of people. Continued playing and performing at weddings and things like that. I went to college at U of A (University of Arizona) so I could party. I wanted a big college experience so that I could learn about myself and get a good grasp on who I am. I realized I wasn't a huge party girl, but wanted to move to Nashville and do music. I transferred to Belmont and finished up college in Nashville.
Being in Nashville takes time to find your place and meet the right people. There are also tiers of who you get to write with and who you get to be in circles with and it really is a 10 year town... I hope I'm on the right trajectory! And I have been grinding since I graduated college."
A Master Class On Raw Emotion And Authenticity
As a music listener, one of the most important things when listening to a song is being able to feel the artist's authenticity and being able to resonate with the words they are singing about. Shelby Darrall uses her "Melt" EP to showcase her genuine artistry filled with relatable bad ass anthems for ladies like "Little Man" and "Hope He Hears This". She shows her vulnerable side with "Melt". Darrall put together a perfect recipe of tracks that shows who she is as an artist and individual at this point in her life. From top to bottom, this EP showcases Shelby's breathtaking artistry and songwriting. The "Melt" EP was created by some of Music City's best songwriters including Jake Mitchell, Tofer Brown, Lauren Hungate, Matthew Morrisey, Lori Mckenna and more. A must listen!
Inspiration Behind the "Melt" EP
"This is the second EP that I've released. I describe this EP as my first EP's older sister. I think as a writer and an artist, I write about the chapters of life that I am in when I write the songs, so they grow with me. I think this EP is a mature version of myself in a lot of ways. Especially in the relationship area, it's more mature and self-aware and all those great things. But it also goes back to the petty, edgy songs like "Little Man" because the industry is hard and the majority of the time it pisses me off. I needed to do what I could do as a writer and artist to explain my feelings. "Hope He Hears This" was another one that fit into that mindset as well as "Dancer". This project is a lot of me trying to grow and being held back by things at the same time. I'm so happy with this project and I feel like I've grown so much. I also feel as an artist, in general in this town, you will always feel stunted by other things."
Q & A With Shelby Darrall
Q: What was that "light bulb" moment you knew you wanted to pursue a career in music? What steps did you take early on in your career to get to where you're at now?
A: "I think I kind of knew from a pretty young age. My dad was in a band, and any time I got to be on stage with his band was kind of a moment for me. At 10 years old I never had felt more comfortable than being on a stage. That is weird because I can't even give a public speech without getting all weld up, nervous and can't get words out. But being on stage and playing songs is a completely different thing and comes naturally for me. I knew that immediately after the first time I was on a stage.
When I first started, I had to teach myself guitar and then learn how to write songs. I wrote a bunch of shitty ones to get a good one... and I'm still doing that now. For my career, I needed to get to Nashville, learn the community and get to know people who were like-minded so I could work with them. The rest I would say fell into place for me. I played writer's rounds and I played Key West and things like that. I met my manager, who has a very similar brain. Autumn Ledgin is a big reason I am where I am now."
Q: What was a major failure/lesson you learned from early on in your career?
A: "I think I had mine recently, to be honest. When you first get here and there's so much buzz about you as a new artist, like my first EP, you have no grasp... you lose your humility a little and you're like "wow... everyone loves me and is so interested in me. I could never go downhill from here" and you haven't had your season of "no's" yet, since you're the new shiny toy. Recently, before I put out the new EP, I was switching management and started to hear "no" more. That is hard as an artist. I think that was my first lesson. At the time, I don't think I was ready for the downfall. Things have picked back up and I feel good now. But it hit me hard, since I wasn't the brand new artist anymore. I needed to learn to keep my head on a little bit straighter. I've been working on that!"
Q: Looking back, what advice would you give your younger self?
A: "One time I went to a Maren Morris concert and she said how it was 10 years to the day since she moved to Nashville. She was playing Bridgestone Arena and was talking about giving advice to her younger self. She said "just keep your spot in line, because there are so many talented people trying to make it. As long as you keep your head down and stay in your spot, you will get there. There's no jumping the line or getting out and coming back in". That resonated with me because you are going to get there when you're supposed to get there. I loved that."
Q: What does music mean to you?
A: "To me, music has always been my personal escape and something that made me feel safe and understood. As a kid growing up, I listened to so much different music that helped me understand my own feelings about things. It was a release for me mentally, and still is now. I think music also allows me to express myself in the best possible way. I hope that the way I'm expressing myself allows people out there to take it and understand their own feelings. It's like therapy for everyone. It's so insane. It's one thing to write a song that makes me feel emotional. It's a whole other thing to see someone else get emotional about what I'm singing. It proves what I'm doing is working. Seeing fans sing back songs or get emotional and just be in the moment is an indication I chose the right career path."
If you are just discovering Shelby Darrall follow her on Apple Music, Spotify, Instagram, Facebook and Tik Tok
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