Courtney Dickinson

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Courtney Dickinson

Interview conducted on November 10, 2020

By Dan Locke

Following two Top 40 singles on the Music Row Country Breakout Chart, Courtney Dickinson brings love and loss together with her new music video for her latest single, “See You Here”

What is your upbringing?

I am an only child, so I am very close to my parents. I never felt alone as a kid because I always had friends and cousins to play with. I also was very lucky to have extremely close relationships with all three of my grandparents. I never attended a traditional public school. I attended a private Christian school until the 5th grade, except for a few months when I went to school in Hollywood, CA while I was working as a child actor. I completed high school and college online, so I could spend more time on music.

How did you discover music?

I discovered country music in a car seat, in the backseat of my Dad’s truck. I was singing Garth Brooks Longneck Bottles when I was 4 years old. I knew all the words!

How did you start to write music?

At first, I mostly wrote stories, not songs. I met a songwriter in Hollywood, and we co-wrote my first songs at twelve years old. He taught me how to put my ideas into the form of a song.

Describe your music

I really like telling a story. I like to write about the things I know about. I love Shania, Trisha, and Reba. I think my music, phrasing, and style is influenced by them.

How did you get your first guitar, and do you still have it?

I still have my first guitar that my Grandparents gave me for Christmas when I was five years old. I took lessons and learned how to play at twelve years old. but didn’t really get serious about playing until I was around 20.

What is your guitar of choice now? Year, make and model?

Martin DCPA4R Dreadnought Acoustic-Electric- I love it!

What was your first performance at like?

My first performance as a kid was at the talent portion of a beauty pageant. I did a lot of Disney songs and the costumes were really good! I was Belle from Beauty and the Beast, Ariel from The Little Mermaid and so many others. I honestly don’t remember a lot about it, but I can’t forget them because they are all on VHS Tapes.

What makes a good songwriter?

When I think of good songwriters, I think of people I have written with who always can bring an idea to the table and turn it into something beautiful. A good songwriter is not set in their ways and is always trying to improve and step out of their comfort zone.

Do you belong to any to songwriters’ organizations like the International singer-songwriter association, BMI or ASCAP?

I belong to BMI.

Tell me about the first time you sang the National Anthem for the Atlanta Braves?

It was awesome to sing the National Anthem and perform a pregame show for the Atlanta Braves. There was a huge crowd and singing the National Anthem was a dream come true! I’m a big Braves Fan, so being able to sing out on the field was crazy!

What was the title of your first original song? Did you record it?

The title of my first original song was called Do You Like Me, which was recorded in LA.

How was I to win a duet with Billy Ray Cyrus?

My Mom entered me in the contest and didn’t tell me, so I had no idea that I had won the contest to sing with Billy Ray Cyrus. The station called on my way to school to congratulate me and I was like “what”? The principal let me come down to her office to listen to the recording of the call on the radio.
One of the best experiences I’ve had! Billy Ray was the kindest, and most complementary artist I’ve ever met. It was an amazing experience!

Did he have his daughter Miley Cyrus (she used to travel with him) with him?

No, and that’s how I got the gig. She could not travel with him to Atlanta to do the show, so he was looking for a young girl to sing her part of the song.

How was it to hear yourself on the radio for the first time?

It was such a cool feeling to hear myself on the radio for the first time. I was twelve years old the first time I heard myself on the radio in Atlanta on Kicks101.5. They recorded and played my version of Ready Set, Don’t Go with Billy Ray for weeks after the show.

Your kind of a DIY person. You have a degree in Marketing with honors while touring radio stations, performing all over the USA promoting a Top 40 single on your own without the help of a promotion team. What were a good point and a bad point about doing this?

The great part about doing that was getting to meet all the people at the radio stations! There are some amazing people at country radio and many I now have great friendships with. The bad was there was not enough time in the day to do everything I needed to do. While I was completing my degree, I didn’t have as much time as I needed to reach out to radio, book shows, and keep up with social media. It definitely got a little crazy!

How were you invited to Chicago to perform on “WGN Midday News”?

At the time, I had a manager in Chicago, and he was able to make the contact and the PR company made the arrangements.

Tell me about you doing a Dodge Dart Commercial?

It was a Dodge sponsored contest. We wrote a song for the contest and Dodge chose a few artists to sponsor. Dodge paid for all the production of the song and asked viewers to vote for their favorite. It was a very cool experience!

In “See You Here”, you filmed the video on your family farm. In which you shared part of your family in the video. It seems to me you are very positive with this video. How comfortable were you filming the video?

I loved every minute of it! I always enjoy shooting video, especially when it’s at a place that feels like home.

How do you stay healthy while touring?

At the moment, I’m only doing local shows and I’m taking every precaution that I can to stay safe.

What are you’re feeling about streaming music?

Streaming is extremely popular and isn’t going away in today’s world. I am into any means available to share my music!

Tell me about your Mission Trip?

I was raised in church and traveled all over the southeast doing mission projects when I was younger. I’ve been to Mexico, Nicaragua, and Haiti. It is such a blessing to help people who have so little. I served on the construction team in Haiti and Mexico and the recipients were so appreciative and grateful. It is one of the most humbling experiences. I love meeting the kids too, there’s something about my “red hair” that fascinates them.

Digital vs. vinyl?

Keepsake wise, vinyl. Digital for the convenience and cost.

Do you feel the Covid-19 virus going to affect the music business in the future?

I think the music business will be affected in the future by Covid-19. I am still unsure of how exactly, but it will be interesting to see. Live shows will be different, and more people than ever will be listening and watching music events virtually. I believe more artists will also start streaming more virtual events as an option.

During the pandemic, you started to refinish furniture. Which piece of furniture has been the biggest challenge for you to get done?

The piece of furniture that was the biggest challenge for me was a dining room kitchen table and chairs. It was the first time I had ever sanded, stained, and refinished a table like that. I had to sand the table down to raw wood and then stain and varnish it. I also had to repaint the chairs and refinish the padding and cushions on the seats. It took a lot of time and a lot of patience. I tried not to get frustrated at how long the process took. It turned out beautiful though and was worth all the hard work and challenges.

Have you discovered or rediscovered any new hobbies?

During the pandemic, I discovered how much I love to cook and refinish furniture!

95% of people said that they have changed the way they watch television. This includes people who don’t have television and using their computers to do streaming of programs and movies. Which is your favorite streaming channel?

We changed our TV habits. We tried a lot of different streaming cable options and finally decided on YouTube TV. We love it! I still love to binge watching on Netflix here and there though.

Many artists are doing nightly concerts over either YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. In October that is going to change at least on Facebook. Facebook is cracking down on livestreamed shows that include recorded music with new terms of service, preventing artists from using the platform for “commercial or non-personal” purposes, unless they have obtained the relevant licenses.

The updated music guidelines state that users “may not use videos on our products [which include Instagram] to create a music listening experience […] This will include [Facebook] Live,” and stipulates that such content should be posted for the enjoyment of friends and family only.

How do you think this will change the landscape of Facebook?

Most artists including myself have been unable to play live shows due to the pandemic this year. If we didn’t have another outlet to still connect with our fans, it could hurt our career. A lot of us have depended on social platforms to keep us relevant during this time. If Facebook takes away the option for artists to livestream cover songs, along with their music, artists and fans will be forced to find another platform that allows them to do this. Artists need an outlet to entertain, as fans need an outlet to listen.

How can bands keep their fans if they cannot play live in front of the fans and sell merch to them at the show?

Social media has been an amazing tool for me during the pandemic as far as keeping my fans interested. Not being able to play live and sell merch definitely hurts, but social media has been a great alternative. I have actually made new fans online during the pandemic that have truly been amazing to me!

What about Holographic concerts in our living room?

I love this idea! I think this pandemic has taught us that large, in-person shows aren’t the only way people can enjoy live music. I would love to be involved in something like this and feel like it will definitely be popular in the future.

Is pay to play still a thing? Now pay to play also means thinks like playlist on the internet?

In a way pay to play still exists. There have been many times over the last few years I have lost money on a show for the opportunity. I didn’t have to pay the venue, but I had to pay the band and didn’t get paid to play. Since a lot of people discover music through streaming now, playlists are very important. All artists are dying to be on the coveted playlists that reach large audiences.

If you can’t do music what would you like to be doing?