Born and raised in Canada, Emily Taylor Kelso was surrounded by country music from day one. At 2 years old, if you asked Emily who her favourite singer was, she wouldn’t hesitate to tell you, “George Jones.” Growing up, she idolized fellow Canuck, Shania Twain. As she got older, Emily’s appreciation for country music deepened. She fell in love with Loretta Lynn and Merle Haggard, and she knew without a doubt that country music was in her soul.
In 2009, Emily taught herself to play guitar and started a YouTube channel where she initially posted covers of popular pop songs and started growing her fanbase. Within a few years, Emily had transitioned into covering country songs and even began sharing songs she’d written with her viewers.
Off-line, Emily performed regularly for years as a part of a local summer dinner theatre, where she not only performed country music and her original songs, but she also got the chance to star as Loretta Lynn in a biographical musical about the life of the country legend.
Although she has written over 500 songs to date, it wasn’t until 2017 that Emily finally decided to head into the studio and make her debut album, called “Something Beautiful.” Emily’s goal with her debut album was simple: to create music that would make her heroes proud. Since then, Emily has continued to consistently release projects, including “Vices” in 2019 and the “From a Room” EPs in 2021.
Who are some of your musical influences?
As cliche as some of these might sound, Miranda Lambert, Shania Twain, Loretta Lynn, Merle Haggard, Kacey Musgraves, Dolly Parton, Taylor Swift, and SO many more.
Recent release you cannot stop listening to?
I’m obsessed with so much music, but it’s still the latest Brothers Osborne album! “Make It a Good One” and “I’m Not for Everyone” are forever stuck in my head.
Do you start off with the music or lyrics first? Why?
It depends. A lot of the time I’ll try to write both simultaneously. I tend to get this “feeling” that I need or want to write, so I’ll pick up my guitar and work it out. Sometimes I have a lyric or a theme in mind, but mostly I freestyle until I hit something that I like and go from there.
What’s the best way a fan can support you?
I’m actually a non-touring artist, so for me, it’s all about streams and downloads. Bandcamp is absolutely the best way to show some support, but I also love meeting folks on social media (Instagram in particular)!
What’s the first concert you ever attended? What do you remember about it?
Jonas Brothers, July 4, 2008 in Toronto. I remember it was the best night of my entire childhood; we had great seats, we took awesome photos and videos, and I dragged my mom through a massive crowd at the end of the night to try to catch a glimpse of their tour bus (we didn’t). It was my first time in Toronto and it was life-changing.
Emily Taylor Kelso — YouTube, TikTok, Facebook