A lot has happened to Guelph singer-songwriter Danielle Todd since late January when she last spoke to GuelphToday by phone from her adopted home in Nashville, Tennessee.
“I was getting ready for my radio tour and I remember because I was sitting in my bedroom on the phone,” said Todd. “I had just released my first single Crazy in Canada and was preparing to release it in Australia.”
She filled us in then on all that had happened to her since she moved to Nashville in the spring of 2016 and told us all about her plans for promoting her new single.
“It did a lot better than I was expecting for my first single,” she said. “You have no idea how people are going to receive it. I have my dedicated fan base in my home town and the surrounding area but outside of that area they don’t owe me anything.”
It was her dedicated fan base collectively known as the Hot Toddy's that made all the difference in getting Todd the attention she needed.
“One of the hardest places to get support especially for a hometown artist is in Ontario,” said Todd. “I have been told that by multiple people. I guess it is because it is so saturated with music in Ontario. So, I wasn’t expecting much support in Ontario but the Hot Toddy's really pulled together and got my song on Magic 106.1, that isn’t even a country station. Kitchener played it. London plays it all the time. Sirius XM in Toronto plays it all the time. These places might not have played me if it wasn’t for my fan base requesting, which was really cool.”
The same is true for radio stations in Australia.
“KIX Country is one of their biggest stations there and they ended up playing it so much that I debuted at 37 on their Country Hot 100 across Australia,” said Todd. “I think it was 84 on the country charts across Canada and stayed around 80 – 84 for pretty much half the time it has been out. I know 80 doesn’t sound all that impressive but I was really happy with it.”
Todd has since made her relationship with record producer and fellow country artist Grady James official and the two were spotted on the red carpet at the CV Weekly Music Awards June 2 in Coachella California where James took home two awards for best male vocalist of the year and best country band.
“I flew out for the day to go to the awards show then went back to Canada and drove back down to Nashville,” said Todd. “I am so excited for Grady because he is so talented and because it was all based on votes and all the Hot Toddy's voted for him as well.”
Todd had been in Guelph to visit with family and to perform two free private shows for the Hot Toddy's at Ernie’s Roadhouse in Hespeler May 30 and 31.
“It was just for the Hot Toddy's,” she said. “I only invited them because they have just been so supportive and I wanted to do as many thank you gifts as I could.”
Her fans were introduced to Grady James when he opened for Todd at the Stampede Ranch March 17 during the local launch of Crazy.
The couple met through a mutual friend shortly after Todd moved to Nashville in 2016 and James recorded a demo for her.
“We ended up working on a bunch of stuff together,” she said. “He produced and performed every instrument on the single and he has written songs about me and played them at live shows. He performs and he writes but he also does the production side of things so we help each other out.”
Todd is gigging regularly in Nashville and writing new music by herself and with collaborators such as Bobbi Holiday who was a co-writer on Crazy. One song Todd and Holiday wrote together reflects the sacrifices they have made chasing their dream.
“Everybody’s out there getting their college degrees. Every time I turn around I see a brand new wedding ring. People always asking why I’m chasing this same old dream. Hey, I’m just trying and surviving.”
Todd is grateful to all the people who have helped and supported her along the way including her father Jamie Todd who inspired her to play and the rest of her family and fans.
“I am so lucky that Grady is a producer because he helps me in so many ways,” she said. “That I have these friends in the industry like Matt Connell at Northwood Studios who helps me with the videos and lets us use his studio. I am pretty lucky I have those friends.”
