In this interview, we talk with Nancy McCallion about her songwriting, her influences, and the struggles of playing live in the present day.

Introduce yourself to our readers and describe the style of music you create.

I am a singer/songwriter and I play a mix of Americana, folk/rock and Celtic Music. I perform as an acoustic trio and also in an Americana Band called Nancy McCallion and The Scarlet Lettermen. My father is a first generation Scottish immigrant with Irish parents, and my mother is a farm girl from Texas. I grew up listening to Irish and traditional country music along with rock, pop and R&B that was playing on the radio at the time; a variety of styles is reflected in my music.

Who or what influences your playing and/or writing styles? Also, what motivates you to keep creating?

My songs on “Opossum and Praties” are influenced by traditional Celtic and Appalachian folk ballads as well as brilliant songwriters like Shane MacGowan from The Pogues, Bob Dylan, Richard Thompson, Hank Williams, and Tom Waits, to name a few. I’m also a great fan of the Irish singer, Christy Moore. A big focus of my songs is storytelling and creating interesting characters. I like to depict real life situations from an individual’s perspective. I also love a good melody and am fortunate to work with wonderful musicians.

What keeps me going is a need to create something, and a need to communicate with other humans. Growing up, I was a shy kid and spent a lot of time with books and music. I was able to connect with others and feel less isolated because of the words on the page and the music through the airwaves. I’m not a particularly religious person, for me, it’s the arts that give life meaning, the catharsis that comes from a great song. It gets me through the day.

What was the last song you listened to?

“The Heart of Saturday Night” by Tom Waits.

Other than the digital era overwhelming us with access to an abundance of music, what are one or two of the biggest challenges you face when trying to attract listeners to your music?

Playing live has become increasingly difficult. There are not as many venues as there used to be, and people don’t seem to go out to the clubs as much to hear bands. I find that very sad. There is a sense of community at a live performance, people dancing, singing, sharing a moment. We spend too much time looking at screens and not enough time looking at each other.

Do you gig, tour or perform through any live streaming services? Where can music lovers see you perform?

These days I play primarily in the Southwest, mostly Arizona. I’m working on a tour for spring and summer 2017 with my acoustic trio: Heather Hardy on violin, and Danny Krieger on guitar and slide guitar. People can find my touring schedule at http://www.nancymccallion.com. I have a few videos online of myself and my former band, The Mollys. People have posted quite a few videos on YouTube. I’m filming a concert next month here in Tucson with my band, The Scarlet Lettermen. I plan to edit it and get it out there on my website and YouTube.

Where is the best place to connect with you online? Discover more of your music?

You can hear my new acoustic Irish album, “Opossum and Praties” on YouTube at this link:

You can hear my new Americana album, “Dancing Days” by Nancy McCallion and The Scarlet Lettermen at this link:

Other Links:

• https://www.facebook.com/nancy.mccallion/?fref=ts
  https://www.nancymccallion.com
  http://www.cdbaby.com/Artist/NancyMcCallion
  http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/nancymccallionandthescar
  http://www.nancymccallionlyrics.com
  https://twitter.com/nancymccallion

Any last thoughts? Shout outs? Words of wisdom?

Get on out there and listen to live music! And if you can, support musicians by paying for their music. Yes, musicians play for the love of it, but they also need to eat!