Review Fix Exclusive: Amanda Jordan Talks ‘Driving in the Dark’

October 17, 2019 Patrick Hickey Jr. Music 0

Review Fix chats with singer-songwriter Amanda Jordan, who discusses her origin in music, future and new single, “Driving in the Dark.”

Review Fix: How did you get involved in music?

Amanda Jordan: My mom loved music and played guitar for years even before twin brother Thomas and I were born. During her pregnancy, she was taking lessons so I really did hear a lot of music right from the start.

You could say that I started very early as I was singing before I was speaking. When I was only 18 months old, my caregiver saw me standing in my crib and singing “Nobody Knows the Trouble I’ve Seen.” It was a Patsy Cline version of the song that was part of a nursery rhyme collection on a tape that we would listen to when we went to sleep.

I’ve always learned songs really easily and music has just always been part of my life – whether it’s playing, singing, or performing. Today, it’s still my main focus. I have a degree from Carleton University in the singer-songwriter program, I have my new single “Driving in the Dark” out, and I’m living in Nashville where I get to write my own music and be featured on the SongBird Tour Bus. It’s a dream come true!

Review Fix: What’s your creative process like?

Jordan: The way I go about songwriting really depends on where I am. If I am on my own, I block out some time and find a quiet place where I can concentrate. That quiet place can sometimes be my closet! I focus on the music and melody to start with. The lyrics develop after that.

Review Fix: What inspires you?

Jordan: More than anything else, music inspires me – always! For me, I love how it affects all of us in different and very meaningful ways. Sometimes, it’s physical or emotional. At other points, it can also be spiritual and very healing. The way music moves and touches us is beautiful.

Review Fix: How would you describe your sound to someone who has never heard you?

Jordan: People have said that my voice is comforting and smooth. One artist I am compared to a lot is Colbie Caillat!

https://youtu.be/946jD0NSTYo

Review Fix: How are your live shows different from your studio work?

Jordan: My live shows are different in that I usually perform some really traditional country songs to go along with my originals. “Jolene” and “Tennessee Whiskey” are two of my favorites.

Review Fix: What inspired your latest single?

Jordan: My first songwriting trip to Nashville inspired “Driving in the Dark”! I was complaining about the long drive from Ottawa to Nashville. It’s about 17 hours. My twin brother was driving and he went on about the feeling of driving on the open highway at night and all the way through to the sunrise. It was a long drive, but it inspired the song. 

Review Fix: How is the Canadian music scene different?

Jordan: One of the biggest ways that Canada is different is that we have a lot of support systems and resources. The Country Music Association of Ontario creates many chances for artists to collaborate and get creative together. In addition to that, FACTOR offers funding opportunities for newer artists to develop and create their recordings. I’m lucky to have access to these organizations in Canada, but I love the inspiration that comes from living in Nashville and being part of the scene here. Nashville has allowed me to grow as a performer and songwriter in a short amount of time.

Review Fix: What are your goals for the rest of 2019?

Jordan: I was recently invited to be part of the Wild West Songwriters Festival from October 10th to October 12th in Deadwood, South Dakota. It’s a tremendous honor and I’m very excited! “Driving in the Dark” was just released on September 30th to Canadian radio, so I’m playing in Ottawa on October 19th and Toronto on October 25th to support the release and doing a radio tour of Ontario as well.

Review Fix: What’s next?

Jordan: Well I want to keep writing with my songwriters in Nashville and keep performing on Songbird Tours as a songwriter. I’ll be buckling down and working on selecting my next single from my catalogue and focusing on an EP release in 2020.

Review Fix: Anything else you’d like to add?

Jordan: I’d like to thank my fans for their love and support for “Driving in The Dark” – the song, the music video, and the radio release so far. I really appreciate the time they take to listen and watch. It means a lot.

I hope your readers will follow me on Spotify (open.spotify.com/artist/5UzX8YYER6nwjEoJjt6QCv), Instagram @AmandaJordanMusic, Facebook @AmandaJordanMusic, and on Twitter @Amanda_T_Jordan!

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 13866 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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