#8 - Josh Rennie-Hynes

I just love music and it's always felt like magic to me

This week, we are interviewing Josh Rennie-Hynes, an Australian artist (yes, again!) who plays a lot of different genres of music which makes each of his track unique.

He decided in 2018 to leave his home country for the USA and pursue his career there. His journey is unique and led him to Nashville where he decided to stay and released a two albums and a few singles since then.

Don’t wait more, read his interview below

Can you present yourself in a few words? Where is your artist name coming from?

My name is Josh Rennie-Hynes. I'm an Australian born Artist now residing in the US - Nashville, Tennessee, to be exact. My last name happened when my Grandfather signed up to WW2 in New Zealand. He was an orphan and underage for the war I believe, so he took his middle name 'Rennie' and joined it with his last name 'Hynes' and there you have it.

When did you start your musical career? What motivated you to start it?

I grew up on a farm in the state of Queensland, about one hour outside of Brisbane, Australia. My childhood was surrounded by music. My father was very musical, my mother was always playing records and encouraging it. Throughout high school and my teenage years I played in bands and such. Then I started out as a solo Artist in my 20's. I just love music and it's always felt like magic to me.

What genre of music do you play?

Indie/pop/electronic/rock/folk/psych/singer-songwriter. Some weird amalgamation of all those worlds lol

Is there an event, an artist or a band that inspired you?

I grew up going to a folk festival right near me called 'The Woodford Folk Festival' This is the largest Folk festival in Australia so I was exposed to a lot of great music from a young age going to that every year. I remember seeing bands like Midnight oil and Powderfinger there, Paul Kelly etc. This all had a big impact on me when I reflect on it in hindsight. When I really started writing my own solo songs I was 21/22 living in British Colombia, Canada. At the time I heard some early Ryan Adams, Cold roses era and it really struck me. I remember thinking ahhh, I can do that. The songs were so honest and raw, backed by great musicians and recordings.

Is your music your principal work? If not, what else are you doing?

I have a good side hustle here in Nashville but I can't go into details due to ahhh.....the man. Music is no.1 though.

Where do you perform most of the time? On which platform is your music available?

I've not been performing a great deal these last few years. I've been incredibly focused on writing and recording and kind of waiting for this whole covid thing to die down. I have about three recorded albums in the bag now. I'm starting to perform again now though and have a single release show coming up in Nashville that I'm very excited for.

Where is THE place or country you would like to perform ?

Man, everywhere hey. I haven't been to Europe yet! I want to get over there so bad. Just to take in all the history and food and culture while also getting to perform my songs, fuck yes! South America is high on the list, too.

What are the songs you want to share with people that don’t know your music?

Listen to my new single - “When we Touch”. It's a totally different direction for me and I'm feeling it. Then listen to my last album - “Day Rage”. I recorded it over covid and had a fucking blast making that record. Then my album before that is called “Patterns” and it was the first album I made upon moving to Nashville. It is a rock n roll album recorded live to tape with a badass band I put together here. I also have a band called 'The Ahern Brothers' which is more folk/indie that is really worth a listen to.

Is there an artist you would like to make a song with?

Paul Kelly

What is the song you are the most proud of?

My new song - When we Touch

What are you using to record your performance ? Are you doing everything by yourself ?

In terms of live performance I've been experimenting lately. I go between full band, a backing track with a drummer or just solo/duo. Nashville is a great artistic community with a lot of cross pollination so one night I might be singing country songs with a friend and the next I might be playing electronic music with backing tracks. It's whatever I want it to be. I love that side of it. There are no rules. In terms of recording I've made my last three albums with my producer and friend, Kyle Henderson. We've written and worked together A LOT these last few years and have a pretty special musical bond. I trust him a lot and we just got done on another album's worth of songs.

If you could recommend a small group or artist to people, which one would it be and why?

TWEN. They are a great Nashville band and they just released a new album called 'One Stop Shop' and it's the best thing I've heard in ages (I mean it)

Do you have any new songs in preparation? If so, can you give us a little hint about it?

I have about three albums worth of material to come! Like I said I haven't stopped writing and recording these last few years so I'm so excited to now be releasing them and moving forward. Muchos music!

What are the places where people can follow you ?

I use instagram and Facebook the most! But I'm on all of the platforms, find me and let's be friends - @joshrenniehynes

Do you want to add something?

I really hope whoever is reading this takes time to go and listen to my music and connect with it. Reach out on social media if you do! And thank you for these questions. They were thoughtful and fun to answer. Cheers!

With his next releases just around the corner, now is the best time to follow him for future updates.

Thanks again to every follower of the newsletter, see you next Friday

His official website : www.joshrenniehynesmusic.com

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