INTERVIEW WITH DANNY MCMAHON
Welcome to my first blog of 2018 which is an interview with the lovely and talented British singer-songwriter, Danny McMahon.
Hey Danny.
Thank you for agreeing to this interview with us. This will be the first interview on 2018 and I look forward to sharing it with our readers.
How old were you were you decided to start writing your own songs? And when did you write and perform your first song?
I wrote my first song when I was 14 years old. I was dragged along to a studio session at school with a group of friends. I wasn’t planning on being involved, but I was asked to help write a melody line over a chord progression. I wrote the whole thing in about ten minutes and the guy who owned the studio suggested I have a look at doing song-writing. I then began saving and bought myself a keyboard. By the time I was 16 I’d already written about 25 songs. Again I was 14 when I performed my first song.
How long (on average) does it take you to write a song?
Writing a song can take as little as 15 minutes on the right day when I sit down with my guitar and feel the right melody. However, I also work as commercial songwriter and producer so I self- produced my own record. My point is that the production of the track is just as important as the actual writing itself. When you start exploring things like vocal effects and right synth sounds as well as layering guitars etc. I think I would say each song on the record from writing to completion with mastering was probably about a 5 day process.
Where did you first perform any of your songs and how old were you?
As a Country singer, my first show was actually the day my record was released on the 17th November 2017. Performing Country has been such a different experience for me. The crowds are what I would describe as “listening crowds.” They want to hear about your life and how your experiences are reflected in your song-writing. That for me has been a really refreshing experience as my songs try to focus on real human emotion as much as possible, therefore having the opportunity to share emotional honesty with an audience is incredibly exciting.
What's the biggest audience you have ever performed to? What's the smallest audience you have ever performed to?
When I was 18 I supported Westlife on tour with a Pop/Rock band I was in. We were playing at stadiums on that tour so I would say that the biggest we played to was just over 10,000 people. The smallest audience I’ve ever played to was probably about 5 people in a village hall to women selling pots. They hated us because we were too loud and kept making the sound limiter peak so every time we played, we’d shut the electricity down in the whole building. This happened about 5 times before some woman invaded the stage and screamed in my face and told me to “SHUT IT!”
What is your favourite country song and who is your favourite country artist (can be more than one)?
My favourite Country song of all time is Rascal Flatts “Bless the Broken Road.” The melody and harmony throughout the song just melts me! The vocal performance is also outstanding. I’ve already decided it’s going to be my wedding song! In terms of defining my favourite Country artist that’s a really tough one, but I’m actually going to have to go with Chase Bryant. I saw him play at Country 2 Country festival in March at 11:30 in the morning to a half empty room, and he literally blew me away! He loved every second of his performance. I stood there and thought “I wanna do that!” So for being so inspiring and making believe I’ve got to give the title to Chase!
What is the most inspirational song you have heard?
This one’s got to be Brad Paisley’s “Letter to Me.” It was the song that made me start listening to Country Music. I just loved the authenticity and realness behind the lyrical concept. I always feel like I know Brad Paisley personally and that we’re having a conversation when I listen to his music. He’s an incredible lyricist.
And finally, I have to ask what are your plans for 2018?
So I wrote 3 songs and had 1 written for me a few months ago because I liked Country music. Having been nudged by some people who have shown such belief in me, I decided to release them properly. Since then we’ve had radio play all over Country radio and been featured on Keep It Country TV. I couldn’t have dreamed that the country community would have got behind the songs in such a way. So as a result on this response to my debut EP, in 2018 I aim to get a number of gigs together across the UK and in March I am looking to re-enter the studio and begin working on my next record. I already have a couple of songs written that I am really looking forward to producing.
You can follow Danny on his Social Media
Twitter
Facebook
Thank you for agreeing to this interview with us. This will be the first interview on 2018 and I look forward to sharing it with our readers.
How old were you were you decided to start writing your own songs? And when did you write and perform your first song?
I wrote my first song when I was 14 years old. I was dragged along to a studio session at school with a group of friends. I wasn’t planning on being involved, but I was asked to help write a melody line over a chord progression. I wrote the whole thing in about ten minutes and the guy who owned the studio suggested I have a look at doing song-writing. I then began saving and bought myself a keyboard. By the time I was 16 I’d already written about 25 songs. Again I was 14 when I performed my first song.
How long (on average) does it take you to write a song?
Writing a song can take as little as 15 minutes on the right day when I sit down with my guitar and feel the right melody. However, I also work as commercial songwriter and producer so I self- produced my own record. My point is that the production of the track is just as important as the actual writing itself. When you start exploring things like vocal effects and right synth sounds as well as layering guitars etc. I think I would say each song on the record from writing to completion with mastering was probably about a 5 day process.
Where did you first perform any of your songs and how old were you?
As a Country singer, my first show was actually the day my record was released on the 17th November 2017. Performing Country has been such a different experience for me. The crowds are what I would describe as “listening crowds.” They want to hear about your life and how your experiences are reflected in your song-writing. That for me has been a really refreshing experience as my songs try to focus on real human emotion as much as possible, therefore having the opportunity to share emotional honesty with an audience is incredibly exciting.
What's the biggest audience you have ever performed to? What's the smallest audience you have ever performed to?
When I was 18 I supported Westlife on tour with a Pop/Rock band I was in. We were playing at stadiums on that tour so I would say that the biggest we played to was just over 10,000 people. The smallest audience I’ve ever played to was probably about 5 people in a village hall to women selling pots. They hated us because we were too loud and kept making the sound limiter peak so every time we played, we’d shut the electricity down in the whole building. This happened about 5 times before some woman invaded the stage and screamed in my face and told me to “SHUT IT!”
What is your favourite country song and who is your favourite country artist (can be more than one)?
My favourite Country song of all time is Rascal Flatts “Bless the Broken Road.” The melody and harmony throughout the song just melts me! The vocal performance is also outstanding. I’ve already decided it’s going to be my wedding song! In terms of defining my favourite Country artist that’s a really tough one, but I’m actually going to have to go with Chase Bryant. I saw him play at Country 2 Country festival in March at 11:30 in the morning to a half empty room, and he literally blew me away! He loved every second of his performance. I stood there and thought “I wanna do that!” So for being so inspiring and making believe I’ve got to give the title to Chase!
What is the most inspirational song you have heard?
This one’s got to be Brad Paisley’s “Letter to Me.” It was the song that made me start listening to Country Music. I just loved the authenticity and realness behind the lyrical concept. I always feel like I know Brad Paisley personally and that we’re having a conversation when I listen to his music. He’s an incredible lyricist.
And finally, I have to ask what are your plans for 2018?
So I wrote 3 songs and had 1 written for me a few months ago because I liked Country music. Having been nudged by some people who have shown such belief in me, I decided to release them properly. Since then we’ve had radio play all over Country radio and been featured on Keep It Country TV. I couldn’t have dreamed that the country community would have got behind the songs in such a way. So as a result on this response to my debut EP, in 2018 I aim to get a number of gigs together across the UK and in March I am looking to re-enter the studio and begin working on my next record. I already have a couple of songs written that I am really looking forward to producing.
You can follow Danny on his Social Media
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