Meet Mallory Johnson | Artist & Songwriter

We had the good fortune of connecting with Mallory Johnson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Mallory, we’d love to start by asking you about lessons learned. Is there a lesson you can share with us?
The most important lesson I’ve learned thus far is that the music industry owes me nothing. Sure I’ve put in decades of work and have tried to invest my time, efforts and budget in the right places, but at the end of the day none of it is guaranteed. The reward for hard work is more work. I try to celebrate every win because you never know when the momentum will slow down. For real, I keep a bottle of Prosecco in my fridge at all times.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I’m a singer/songwriter originally from Conception Bay South, Newfoundland, Canada! I grew up around a very musical family and was influenced by a broad range of genres: primarily Country, Folk/Celtic, and Musical Theatre. My mom is a country artist so I was introduced to the stage at a very early age and fell in love with artists like Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn and Shania Twain.

From ages 11-16, I recorded multiple albums and toured across the country with my Celtic family band ‘The Cormiers’, which inevitably set me on the path I’m on now — Living and pursuing big dreams in Music City. I can’t imagine doing anything outside of writing and performing.

I feel like if I said it was easy getting to where I am now, I’d be lying. This may be a broken record statement, but you truly need a strong backbone in this industry and be decently good at hearing the word “no.” At the end of the day, the most important opinion is the one you have of yourself, but it doesn’t mean it doesn’t suck when other people don’t wanna jump on your band wagon. Apart from obvious challenges like trends, virality, “commercial” appeal, budgets, and gender (sadly), one of the biggest challenges is comparison. It’s easy to fall into the trap of comparing your timeline and milestones to somebody else, so I actively try to avoid that rabbit hole. I also think having a strong support system around you is key to working through and overcoming those challenges, whether that be family, friends, or a team.

I’m really proud of who I am and what I’ve accomplished, but like most creatives I’m always hungry for the next song, the next show or the next project. I love to make music and I love connecting with people, so I hope I get to continue doing that!
I’ve been working on my sophomore album with Andrew Petroff this year and we’ve been dabbling in some different sounds while still honouring my roots. I’m excited for everyone to hear the finished product 🙂

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Nashville is definitely a touristy town catered to bachelorette parties, country music fans, and fried chicken connoisseurs, but there’s so many gems around town that I always recommend to friends and family passing through! Favourite late night snack after a night on Broadway? A burger at Jack Browns. Best espresso martini? Pinewood Social. Favourite Broadway Honky Tonk? Robert’s Western World. Best place to see a show? Ryman Auditorium. Cute place to go for a walk? Radnor Lake. Honorable mentions: Skulls Rainbow Room, Music City Bar & Grill, The Nashville Palace, Bartaco, The Listening Room Cafe, Arrington Vineyard, Tiger Bar, The Station Inn, Geist (especially at Christmas), and The Bluebird Cafe.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d like to dedicate my shoutout to my manager and long time friend, Dani Strong. I believe that success has a lot to do with who you surround yourself with, and I know that I wouldn’t have hit many of my big milestones without her. Outside of my family, she’s always been my biggest supporter and she’s been a bulldog for me in the best way. Good managers are hard to come by and I feel lucky to have someone like her in my corner.

Website: https://www.malloryjohnsonmusic.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/maljohnsonmusic/

Twitter: https://x.com/maljohnsonmusic

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/malloryjohnsonmusic

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/malloryjohnson

Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@maljohnsonmusic

Image Credits
Tabitha Turner, Sandra-Lee Layden, Jeremy Harnum, Lieve Boussauw