Jenny Scott has been surrounded by music for her entire life.
“Well, my grandmother was a piano teacher, so growing up it was kind of like you didn’t have a choice,” Scott joked.
At first, she resented learning music and practising scales.
“Later on I was grateful for it,” Scott said, adding that her time learning music and later singing in the church choir was what first interested her in making music.
At age 13, she picked up an old guitar and started writing music — and now at 21, Scott, who is known professionally as JENNY, has released three original songs.
Her most recent releases, two singles titled “Indie Upbeat” and “Leave Me Too,” were written after moving to Niagara-on-the-Lake and are the first pieces of music she produced on her own.
“It was very confusing,” she laughed. “Writing is the fun part. It’s doing all the other things that I’m still getting the hang of.”
She found production more rewarding since everything she had to do everything on her own.
“It takes time from when you start writing, to when you learn all of the skills you need to make what you want, out of the ideas in your head,” she said.
After moving to Niagara to study, Scott fell in love with nature and the slower pace of life.
“I moved here from Hamilton, so this is definitely a lot calmer,” Scott said
As she’s transitioned to the lifestyle in a quiet city, her mentality has changed, which has translated into her music.
“Going from one extreme to the other has had a really good effect on me mentally and in my writing as well,” she said.
“Indie Upbeat” and “Leave Me Too,” her second and third singles released to Spotify on Nov. 7, were inspired by a summer spent around Niagara-on-the-Lake.
“I spent the whole summer walking around and writing. I spent time at the Anchor Community Church and writing there, going to the lake,” Scott said.
“I live on a farm, so I go to a lot of vineyards. I was able to find a lot of inspiration through that,” Scott said.
She singled out Christ Church McNab as a peaceful place to collect her thoughts.
“I would just kind of sit there and it was very peaceful. It’s just a good atmosphere to connect with,” she said.
While in Niagara, Scott said she has been to several open mic nights but has been more focused on producing than doing in-person gigs.
Now, she’s ready to get out and perform again.
“Now that I have more access to certain things I’ve been able to experiment more with my music. One of my songs is more heavily produced and there’s different instruments on it,” Scott said.
“But I am partial to just an acoustic guitar and someone singing,” she continued, saying that some of her favourite artists are folk musicians.
“I listen to a little bit of everything: jazz in the morning, metal at noon, pop in the evening,” she said.
Her favourite of all time, though, is Amy Winehouse.
Scott has yet to decide if she will stay in NOTL after finishing up her time in college, but said if she does leave, “it will be with a lot of good memories.”
To hear more from JENNY on upcoming releases or performances, check her out on Spotify or Instagram.
