Aug. 4, 2024

Living the dream with Canadian country singer, songwriter, and guitarist Pamela Rooney

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In this episode of the Living the Dream with Curveball podcast, we sit down with Canadian country singer, songwriter, and guitarist Pamela Rooney. Join us as Pamela shares her journey from a small town in Quebec to performing with her idols and achieving chart-topping success. Discover how she overcame personal challenges, the stories behind her hit albums, and what's next on her musical horizon. This episode is packed with inspiration, resilience, and the love of country music.

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> Curtis Jackson>Welcome, to the living the dream podcast with curveball. if you believe you can achieve chee chee, welcome to the living the dream with curveball podcast, a show where I interview guests that teach, motivate, and inspire. Today we are joined by canadian country singer, songwriter, and guitarist pamela rooney. Pamela has performed with her idols. She's got a hit record. She's done a lot of great things and still doing more great things. So we're gonna be talking to her about her career, how she got started, and what she's got coming up next. So, pamela, thank you so much for joining me today.

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> Pamela Rooney>Thank you so much for having me. It's such a pleasure to be here.

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> Curtis Jackson>Why don't you start off by telling everybody a little bit about yourself?

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> Pamela Rooney>Well, I'm pamela rooney. I'm from quebec, Canada. It's pretty far away from, let's say, nashville. It's like 1920, 6 hours drive. I was born and raised down here. I am a country. A country music singer. Irish.

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> Pamela Rooney>And, I've been singing since the age of four, and I've never stopped since then, and I don't plan on stopping ever.

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> Curtis Jackson>Well, how did you actually get started?

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> Pamela Rooney>I got started, professionally at around 15 years old. I had my first band here, where I'm from.

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> Pamela Rooney>And, then in 2015, I recorded my first album. And this album was the one that really started my career, like, saying, okay, I want to be this singer. And then I heard my song for the first time on the radio, and I never stopped. So. So I started writing more songs and recording, more albums. And, it's just. It's such a great career, stress wise, whatever the case may be. And I find with music, it helps a lot get through hard times. And, so, basically, country music is my life, and it will stay that way forever.

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> Pamela Rooney>Yeah.

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> Curtis Jackson>Okay, so tell us about the albums you have recorded. Cause you, like you said, did your first album in 2016.

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> Curtis Jackson>You know, you did something in 2019 and 2022.

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> Curtis Jackson>So talk about those albums.

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> Pamela Rooney>Yes, well, like I said, my first album, that was in 2015. Ah, I decided to write my songs. most of my songs for the, second album that I came out with was, bring it on. So bring it on. I wrote the song, six years ago. It's about abused women because I was a woman who was abused years ago. And, so I wrote a song about that, put it on. And with this album here, it took me to many other cities.

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> Pamela Rooney>It was recorded and recorded, up in New Brunswick. And so from that album, the career of music had exploded a lot more for me because I'm not used to having, from where we're from, we don't have many places to perform, like, festival wise. So I had to leave my hometown and go to another city because the music was getting too big.

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> Pamela Rooney>So after that album, I decided I wanted to come up with something that was more me with the traditional style country music. I, wanted to do something that, all my fans had, listened. Like each and every song, I would watch them and see which song they would react to more, and I had to make a decision quick.

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> Pamela Rooney>Okay, what I wanted to put on the album. So with this album, storms never last, I came out with all the traditional, covers, like, Merle Haggard, Waylon Jennings, Dolly Parton, Jolene. And I wanted to switch things up a little bit and make it, like, a little bit more punchier, but keep the same traditional style.

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> Pamela Rooney>So I came out with storms never last with this album. I didn't think it would take me where it took me, actually. I had won twelve weeks in a row, number one in Ireland on, the radio station with the song storms never last. Then the song, ah, then the album had reached, number one in Canada, and it kept going and going and going. And I was like, oh, my goodness, this is, like, too good to be true because where I'm from, it's a french town, and it's very hard for me to be an artist, in Quebec because it's all french singers. So I said, I don't know how it's going to work out, but I came in with my album anyway. And here in, Quebec, it went very, very, very well. But there's some radios that wouldn't play my music because I'm english.

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> Pamela Rooney>So with that album, I said, I'm going to try a little bit further.

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> Pamela Rooney>I sent it to, all over in the United States to get the reaction, see what the, what it was like, you know, and the reactions was unbelievable.

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> Pamela Rooney>And since that, I had went to, the wheeling jamboree. I had opened up for Marty Stewart, which was one of my idols growing up.

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> Pamela Rooney>And then from there, with the album continue going, it was touching, base more to the listeners, as in like a, like the old country style. And I was really starting to get really proud of this because, you know, it's. It's hard to bring back the old country like it was before. So by doing this with this album, it really, really, like, people started saying, oh, my God, that's Johnny Cash or Tennessee whiskey, for an example. They said, oh, you done a Chris Stapleton song?

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> Pamela Rooney>No, it's George Jones's songs. That's why I came in with the old Tennessee, whiskey, to bring George Jones back. Then from on there, when I seen that it was going better and better and better, I had received an email from Marshall, Texas. But at first I thought it was like fraud of some kind. You know, you get all those weird emails. So I opened it up and I checked it. Well, and sure enough, it was the Texas sounds international competition, for the CMAs. So I said, well, I'm going to try this, but Texas from where I am is 76 hours up and down, and I drive everywhere I go.

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> Pamela Rooney>So I went up, and so I'm going to try it out. And if you don't try, you'll never find out for yourself, right?

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> Pamela Rooney>So I left on my journey and got up there, leaving with two awards, the heritage and the spirit award. And this is still coming from the album storms never last.

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> Pamela Rooney>So I went back, last year of October, and I performed Storm's everlast. I performed a, song that I had written, and then I came out of there with the entertainer of the year, and I said, okay, this is, one of the biggest awards we can win as entertainer of the year. And I said, okay, I'm not stopping now. I had a contact from nashville, tennessee, curtis dryle. And, I went up to record with curtis my new single that just had come out. I fell down the stairs 40 minutes before I recorded my song, and I broke my ankle in nashville, 19 hours away from home. So I went there anyway, and I said, there's no way I'm coming up to nashville. 19 hours. I'm not recording my song.

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> Pamela Rooney>So I went into the studio, I recorded my new song with a broken ankle, and I drove back the same night to Quebec, which was a 19 hours drive, drove back, and sure enough, the broken ankle. But I have not stopped. And there's more to come for next year. We're going to be writing more songs with Curtis ryle in, nashville, and we want to come up with a new album, country classic style, with a little punch of new country into it and see where we go from there. But, for sure, I'm not stopping now. My goal now is to get to the grand ole Opry, and, I'm not going to stop until I get there, hopefully. But it's a long journey. It's a beautiful career. It's a beautiful journey. There's lots of bumps, ups and downs in the road when you're into this career, but, it is worth everything, honestly, I'm enjoying every second that I do this. You meet so many different people. And as I'm going, I'm learning on the way. I have no manager, so I'm learning everything on the way. And, and the people who is supporting me and helping me, they're so kind, like, you know, it is, it is the quite of a good career. Honest to goodness, I, I'm proud of what I do. And I would never quit. No, not now.

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> Curtis Jackson>Wow. Well, congratulations.

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> Pamela Rooney>Thank you.

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> Curtis Jackson>You talked about your idol, Marty Stewart. So tell the listeners who Marty Stewart is.

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> Pamela Rooney>Marty Stewart, well, Marty Stewart is, he's been all kinds of different, kind of music over the years. Country and bluegrass. Ah. But I've been listening to Marty Stewart since he was on the Ralph Emery show for sure. I watched him on there, the grand ole Opry, many, many times. And, the style of music that he does, well, that is the style that I am with less bluegrass, mind you. But, it's those guys that is not being played as much on radios anymore. And if it wasn't for that style of country music, I don't think I would be here today because I don't think I'd be able to sing the pop style or anything. But, like Marty Stewart, Travis Tritt, all those guys, they're, the old, the old country. The old country is the best style that I like.

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> Pamela Rooney>And honestly, to meet him was quite an experience because when I was in my changing room, everybody was ready to go up on stage. And, I heard a knock on my door and I turned around and here it was, Marty Stewart. And he told me, said, mister Rooney, he said, I was listening to you in your sound check.

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> Pamela Rooney>And he said, you are the next star about to hit for the country music. And I almost fell. It was quite surprising, here that coming from one of my idols and for him to tell me the same thing back, it, it was priceless, honestly.

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> Pamela Rooney>You meet so many different people. It is such a great, great career. I don't know how many times I can say that, but it is a great career. Honest to goodness. I just love every part of it.

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> Curtis Jackson>Okay, what, besides Marty Stewart, tell us, who else influences you musically?

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> Pamela Rooney>my influences, first of all, my influence would be my parents. My mom and dad, they had a band years ago, called the exceptions. And I used to listen to them, almost every week, and they would have friends over and playing, the guitar and fiddle, and I used to watch my mom and dad, picking on the guitar. So I went in my room one time at twelve years old, and I started to play, and I said, if I want to sing the songs, I'm going to have to learn to play the guitar because I didn't want to bother my mom and dad all the time, you know.

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> Pamela Rooney>So I started to sing my idol songs and my influences is Waylon Jennings. My all time favorite is Merle Haggard, Dolly Parton, patti, loveless, the old, the old style country. But I must say that Lainey Wilson, she is a new artist, and, she is going for, I don't know, she is unbelievable. She's bringing out the old country, and that is basically what I want to be. I want to be that style that has a little bit of fun on the stage, keep the classic, country music. So, yeah, that's my, that's my all time favorites is the old guys. I have many, so I would be here for hours naming them. but my all time favorite is Merle Haggard.

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> Curtis Jackson>Okay, well, tell us about any upcoming projects that you're working on that the listeners need to be aware of.

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> Pamela Rooney>Well, my upcoming projects, I have many coming up this year. right now I'm on vacation with my mom and daddy, but next week, and I have to leave, where I am in gatsby, Quebec. It's a, nine to ten hour drive. I have to leave here Thursday, go and sing Friday night, then I have to leave there and come straight back down to my parents, which is another ten hour drive.

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> Pamela Rooney>The same night I'll be driving all night long. I have two shows down here. it's a big, huge festival.

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> Pamela Rooney>It's called the Festival de Boudermaunt. It's a, festival at the end of the world, they call it, and there's all kinds of artists from all over the world. So I'll be performing there for, the first time in, I think it exists over 20 years.

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> Pamela Rooney>So I'm really proud to be able to perform in my hometown with all my family watching. And then after that, I have many shows in Montreal, in Ontario, but in October, sorry, in September, I had the opportunity to go to Ireland and perform for one week in Ireland. Every night is a different town, Dublin. And so I'm pretty amazed about this. I've never been Ireland in my life. I'm irish, and to be able to do a one week tour down there, it's going to be very, very, very special. Then after that, I have to leave Ireland, and a week after, I have to be back in Texas, Marshall, Texas, for the Texas sounds, international cmas. And because I had won entertainer of the year last year and spirit and Heritage award before that, it's a rule that after two years of winning, you can't perform the year after. So being the entertainer of the year, they had asked me to be the judge. So this year, I'm going to be the judge for the Texas sound CMA's. I'm looking forward to this. There's a lot of talent in this competition, so anybody who's looking, forward to trying in competitions, look at Texas Hounds International. They are amazing. You meet great people. It's like a big family. Then after that, I got to come back down to Canada, perform, for other festivals, as in Ontario as well. Then I got to get on, on the ball and start writing the songs with Kurt Ryle and getting the new album out, because, I think next year is going to be a big year for me.

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> Pamela Rooney>A lot of touring. I'm going to have to start checking for tour buses because this is crazy, all this traveling got to do. Like I said, I don't fly a lot. I like it, but it's just the airports that are long. So I travel everywhere, and I stop and see all kinds of different things. I went and seen Johnny cash museum on the way, but, with this career, like I said, I've touched many people. During COVID season especially, we had no, no contracts. So I used to do a show one day a week for 3 hours, me and the guitar, to try and, you know, to get the people smiling. And, you know, it was a hard time for everybody, and especially in canada. Here, we weren't even allowed

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00. So by doing this, I saved a lot of people from depression, which I didn't know. They were contacting me and telling me, pamela, if it wasn't for you, I even had a lady that wanted to commit suicide. And from me doing this and talking about suicide to them, she is now living a wonderful life. So this career that I'm doing is not only for me, I love it. I will do it till the day I die. But to see others following, my dream and by me helping them to overcome their obstacles in life that they never thought they could get over.

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It's. It's really. It touches me. Yeah.

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Ah. Like the song I wrote behind is golden Doors. This was a song about a young girl that had committed suicide down in my home. Well, where we're from here in Quebec. And she was bullied all her life.

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And then, she just decided one day she was going to take her own life.

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So I went and I wrote the song behind this golden doors.

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And, that song, there's people that call me, like my interview yesterday, the man was crying when he heard the song. So this is why I do it. This is why I write songs. I've had a rough, not childhood. I had a beautiful childhood. But like I said, I was an abused woman. And it's not easy. You think you're alone, but me thinking of being alone.

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I used to go in my room and try to write songs and just sing songs to get, you know, music is, It's better than the hospital. It helps. It really helps.

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And, to have people call me back and saying, pam, you know, if it wasn't for you, I don't know what I've done. And it's so worth it. It's so worth it. It's not easy. Like I said, I've done 50,000 km in like four months of driving by myself. And, If you don't want the career, then. Not that. If you don't want the career, if you want the career, you have to work hard. It doesn't, it's not given to you on a silver platter. You have to work very hard. There's many steps into being a performer and just make it clear to people who think that we get on the stage and drink and party, that is not what it's about. It's many, many days away from your family. A lot of times you're in suitcases, in motels, come back home to your family, you're tired, you know, and today it's much better. It's going easier for me. But it wasn't an easy ride the whole way. There was many times that I almost gave up and I said, I can't do this because where I'm from, like I said, being English in a Quebec and a french area wasn't easy for me. And I almost gave everything up and I said, no, this is not going to happen.

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I kept going. And then here's where I am today, like with the big guys. So, no, I'm proud. I'm very proud, honestly.

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> Curtis Jackson>Once again, congratulations. So everyone can keep up with everything that you're up to. Throw out your contact info.

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> Pamela Rooney>Well, my contact info, they can contact me on Facebook. I have a fan page and a personal page. And I talk with every person who writes to me. Sometimes it takes me a while because I have thousands of people, but I write back to every fan, and that writes to me.

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> Pamela Rooney>if they want to order albums, I'll be having USB keys coming out, very soon. And if they want to order any album, they can contact mail, send it by mail, not a problem. Autograph every one of them. And all my information of all my shows is always on my Facebook page.

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> Pamela Rooney>And right now, if you do go on my facebook, I would like to ask for one little vote from people. I'm right now in the top hit maker. I'm in the contest for top hit maker, for Rolling Stones magazine and to sing. And right now, I'm in number two spot. I have one one week left, so we're going to cross your fingers. But that's another thing that I tried for, this contest. I didn't even know about it. I seen it pass and I said, I'm going to give it a try. You never know. Sent them all the information, and then they sent it back that I was into this contest. And again, don't give up. I didn't ever. I never gave up. Keep trying. If you get thrown down, don't stop. Don't get discouraged and say, well, they don't like me. I can't do it. I was discouraged many times and I was, thrown, like to the side. I never gave up.

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> Pamela Rooney>Never gave up. And I got to sing with my idols. So, I'm still on cloud nine. Honest to God, I'm still on cloud nine. And I'm so proud of myself. I'm so happy, and I'm meeting so many interesting people and, like radio stations. All of you people, thank you so much for being there for us artists, because if it wasn't for you, we wouldn't be here either. We needed the publicity. We need people to support us. It's. And by having you all there supporting us, it means a lot to us.

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> Curtis Jackson>All right, ladies and gentlemen, please be sure to check out Pamela Rooney. Check out her music. Keep up with everything that she's up to. Get on a Facebook page. Vote for push up the number one follow rate review share this episode to as many people as possible.

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> Curtis Jackson>Jump on your favorite podcast app. Give us a review a follow if you have any guests or suggestion topics. Curtis Jackson, 1978 t.net is the place to send them. Thank you for listening and supporting the show. And Pamela, thank you so much for joining us.

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> Pamela Rooney>And thank you so much for having me. Curtis, it was a pleasure.

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> Curtis Jackson>For more information on the living the Dream podcast, visit www.djcurvefall.com.

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> Curtis Jackson>until next time, stay focused on living the dream.

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> Pamela Rooney>Dream.