Paige Rutledge

GOCCM: I’m speaking with Paige Rutledge today. Hi Paige.

PR:  Hello. How are you doing?

GOCCM: Well I’m just fine. We spoke last in December about ‘Take Me Back to Tiki.’

PR: We did, yes. It was so wonderful. That was our first time getting a chance to actually connect and I am really glad that we did.

GOCCM: Well now I have a website where fans can read that interview to get to know your background as well as to watch the ‘Tiki’ video.

PR: Amazing! That is so exciting.

GOCCM: So it’s obviously called godmotherofcanadiancountrymusic.ca, and I looked yours up and it is paigerutledge.com.

PR: It is, yes

GOCCM: Where else may fans find your music and videos?

PR: For sure. I am all over social media, available anywhere you listen to music, Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon music,  itunes if you want to buy it, YouTube and all of that fun stuff. All over social media everything is @paigerutledge Instagram, Facebook.

GOCCM: Okay, have you heard ‘Tiki’ on the radio yet?

PR: No. so okay, I haven’t People have but I have not been lucky enough to hear it just yet.

GOCCM: Oh, that’s too bad. I mean that’s months.

PR: People are texting me. “Oh my gosh I heard it” but I’m like ugh and I missed it.

GOCCM: FB and Instagram Live have become the means for artists to showcase their songwriting, interact with other artist and fans during the pandemic. Would you like to mention any that you have partaken in?

PR: Ya, you know what? I have been super fortunate to, as much as live music has stopped, I have been keeping myself extremely busy with livestreams. Dave Woods has had me on his show many times and he is fantastic and Nicole Rayy has her all woman show that is always a pleasure to be a part of. More recently I too have been playing on Facebook with Christian Price. He runs kind of like the Monday night music hall and I think the last one was called the Country Side. I kind of mess it up. I have been in a couple so I kind of have the names jumbled in my head.

But, lots of different artists have been, just like people around the country community, have been putting together, you know, little songwriter rounds and stuff like that. So I have been participating in those. Those are always fun. It’s a great way, when you play with different artists, to meet them, of course, but also to reach a new audience who tuned in to watch somebody else and they hear your music. It is a really nice way to interact with the community, the Canadian country community, meet new people, new artists and ya, I’ve been really busy. I have way more livestreams coming up too. Funny, when I started livestreaming I was like, everybody was,  I don’t know how I am about this. It is kind of weird you know you talk to the screen, especially when you are by yourself and then you get so used to it that now it is actually pretty fun.  

GOCCM:  Yes, I have seen a few myself. I really appreciate it, especially when it is up on your tv, you know, cast up on your television. You kind of feel like you are at a bit of a show.

PR: Exactly and I have been trying to watch other people’s livestreams too if I don’t have anything going on. I try to jump on Facebook because it is just such a nice taste of what we are missing so much with live music. But hearing people, even if it is through the screen, seeing people smiling and having a good time is so refreshing and a little bit of normalcy whenever we can right now so I really like that aspect too.

GOCCM;  So what song drops today?

PR: Oh my goodness, ‘Broken Record’, my next single and I am so excited to share this song with everybody.  This one has been a little bit of a journey, but a journey in the best way possible. When we started production for this we went into a lockdown and I was like, oh no. How am I going to do this but we were able to work around all of those obstacles and overcome it and I am really proud of this song and how much work has gone into it. I am just so excited for everyone to hear ‘Broken Record’.

GOCCM: Did you write it?

PR:  I did not. This is actually the first song, it was a pitched song. It was written by Emma-Lee, Karen Kosowski and Kira Isabella, amazing Canadians living it up in Nashville doing great things. So it was a different process and it taught me a lot about that side of the industry that I wasn’t familiar with. So I think that was great piece, something different, because I usually do write all my stuff, I thought I’d try. Crazy though, when I first heard the song when it was pitched, I think the first time I listened to it would have been the end of October/early November, it was so personal. I thought oh my gosh if this song is not a representation of my life then I don’t know what is. This song is definitely my next single. I was so excited. Even though it is not my words I wrote onto the paper it is so true to me, this story of looping relationships and all that everyone goes through, felt very, very real. I was excited to hear it, I think everyone who knows me more on a personal, like friendship level will be like, oh my gosh the words are right out of her mouth.

GOCCM:  Well that is great. With ‘Tiki’ your photos were more of the country cottage look, but, now with ‘Broken Record’ you have added fringes to your jacket and pink streamers behind you. How is the decision made for that look that you project?

PR: ‘Broken Record’ is definitely more poppy, has more pop elements written in to it, kind of like Shania Twain; late 90’s early 2000’s definitely that vibe. I also took up rhinestoning during the pandemic. I put so much work into this jacket that I might as well wear it and it feels like when people hear the song, it is very drum heavy, to me it felt like sparkly and I love sparkles so it was a perfect opportunity to deck out in sparkles. It is so interesting and a little more edgy in my look compared to what I did in ‘Take Me Back to Tiki’.  Because you are right they are completely contrasting, the single artwork in itself is so contrasting. The songs are also, there are similarities but, very different from each other. I think it is time sometimes to do things that are different because you push yourself to try new things and we definitely tried a lot of new things with ‘Broken Record’. So, ya, it was our chance to be sparkly and edgy and just try something new, another side of Paige.

GOCCM: That is great. Unfortunately with Covid our summer festivals have been cancelled for another year. At this point, do you know if you will be appearing in any drive-in concerts?

PR: Right now summer is a little bit still up in the air for me. My goal going into 2021- I am an optimistic, positive energy person, I really lean to that side, so I was actually really looking forward to summer 2021, and I still am, but I was, maybe a little too hopeful but I was thinking we are going to have live music, this is going to be great, we’re back. But I understand, obviously, why those decisions have been made and we don’t think anyone thought it would take a turn for the worse in the winter. I went into 2021 with the mindset that I was going to release as much new music as I can. So Broken Record is the first one but then I have a whole bunch of stuff lined up to come out throughout the year that I would love to release. Obviously, if everything should go according to plan, another single in the summertime and then into the fall so that is kind of my main focus for the summer right now is preparing for another single release which is kind of crazy when ‘Broken Record’ is just out. But as of right now I don’t have anything special lined up for performing. I am hoping, as things continue to get better then I’ll have some things come up that way.

GOCCM: Ya, that would be great. Well thanks for chatting with me today, Paige.

PR: Thanks for having me.

GOCCM: So there is a link on your Facebook page leading to where we may purchase ‘Broken Record’ and I encourage everyone to go and follow that link to Spotify, iTunes, Amazon and Apple and I wish you the best on ‘Broken Record’.

PR:  Thanks. always such a pleasure to catch up with you.

GOCCM: You too.