Conversations with Hadley Kennary

Today we’d like to introduce you to Hadley Kennary.

Hi Hadley, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself
I’ve been a musical person for as long as I can remember. I took piano lessons growing up, had a guitar I messed with on occasion, and was always THAT girl who sang all the time. When I was deciding what to do after high school, I wasn’t sure what direction I wanted to go in/what I wanted to study. Part of me knew that wherever I ended up, I’d be trying to do music in some capacity, so I decided to fully lean into it. I studied music business at Berklee College of Music, and I moved to Nashville immediately after graduating.

When I first got here, I had an internship at a publishing house on Music Row. I learned a lot about the songwriting business, but the biggest thing I got from it was that I wanted to be on the other side of the desk: I wanted to be on the creative side of things. Ever since I’ve been working on my craft as a writer and my voice as an artist. I found myself in a community here that is both supportive and collaborative, and I’m so thankful for the growth I’ve gotten to experience as an artist and a songwriter.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
When I first moved here, I wasn’t sure what lane of the music industry I wanted to run down. Between genuinely wanting to be involved in a lot of different musical mediums, and a handful of meetings where people didn’t really know what to do with me, I had a bit of a slow-burn professional identity crisis. It felt like people were confused by me, always asking whether I wanted to be an artist, a songwriter, a background singer – making me feel like I had to choose one because choosing all of the above would be too confusing.

For a long time, I struggled with choosing a “path”, always feeling like if I’m running down one I’m ignoring the others, and dealing with the anxiety that followed. The last couple of years held up a lot of mirrors for me, and the clearest one was finally realizing I can choose all of the above. It’s all music. Being an artist, a songwriter, and a singer are all shades of creativity I get to paint with. Why not blend them together and create my own colorful music career? Coming to that conclusion has given me peace when it comes to making my own path.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I have what I call a polychromatic music career. I perform and release music under my own name for my artist project. I co-write with other artists to help carve their stories out. I also sing background vocals with a few artists in town. Sometimes I joke that on my tax form, my line of work is listed simply as “Entertainment.” As broad as that is, it’s kind of freeing. It can mean what I want it to mean. I’ve been in Nashville for seven years, and my music career has taken a few different shapes. I’m grateful for that growth, and I’m excited to see what the next chapters here bring.

Right now, I’m most proud of the work I’ve gotten to do co-writing with fellow artists/songwriters for their projects. The past few years, I planted a lot of seeds and put in the work to grow as a songwriter. Now, after the whirlwind that was 2020, some of those seeds are blooming. As wild as the past couple of years has been, they have also felt like a beautiful harvest of a lot of the songs I’ve helped bring to life. I’ve gotten to write with friends like Bre Kennedy, Emily Hackett, and Casey McQuillen for their projects, and I’m really proud of how far these songs have come.

What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
My favorite part of this city is the community. I am very grateful that I’ve found myself in a community that thrives on support and a collaborative spirit. It feels like a crazy shade of luck that the people I write with, play music with, go to shows with, and am genuinely a fan of are friends of mine.

I don’t have too many personal downsides about living in Nashville, but I could do without the seasonal allergies. The greenery here is beautiful, but do I have to be allergic to something different every season?

Contact Info:

• Email: hadleykennarymusic@gmail.com
• Website: https://www.hadleykennary.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hadleykennary
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hadleykennary
• Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/hadleykennary
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/hckennary
• SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/hadleykennary

Image Credits
Jason Lee Denton and Hayley Gjertsen