The Sit Down with Teigen Gayse
Rising Canadian country star Teigen Gayse continues to build undeniable momentum with a growing catalogue of high-impact releases and industry recognition. She first made waves with “If You Show Me Yours” (produced and co-written by Nickelback’s Chad Kroeger), a Top 30 radio hit that has since surpassed 3 million streams. Known for her engaging stage presence and powerful vocals, Teigen has performed at many of Canada’s biggest festivals, including Boots & Hearts, LASSO, Cavendish Beach, and the Calgary Stampede.
Last year was a real breakout year where she swept the awards in her native British Columbia at the BCCMA Awards, received her first nomination at the national Canadian Country Music Association awards and made her first trip across the pond to perform at Europe’s largest country music festival C2C: Country to Country in London. As this year draws to a close, the long awaited new music has begun to arrive with her brand new single “The Best Part” (which is out now and available HERE) being released last week and Teigen told us all about when we spent some time with her over Zoom.
Hey Teigen, how are you doing today?
“I'm doing good, how are you Jamie?”
I’m really good, thank you. It's nice to hang out with you and also be at home at this time in the evening for first time in two weeks because I’ve been so busy.
“Isn't that the best? I haven't been home also in a few weeks and I get that on Thursday, I get to go home, so I'm also excited to just, you know, sleep in my own bed.”
So where is home exactly? Are you living in Nashville now or are you still kind of half BC based?
“I'm living in Nashville now, but I was just home for the Canadian Country Music Awards, which were in Kelowna, which is also a hometown for me as well, so it was really nice to go home and to see my family because they live there and which it was fun.”
I missed you when you were here last year because C2C is just complete and utter chaos, so I was gutted I couldn’t catch you when you were over because you are one of the few Canadian girls that I listen to but hadn't seen before. So many female artists from Canada have been coming over now and unlike the boys who stay up there, half of you have headed down to Nashville, anyway, hopefully you will come back and I’m sure you had the best time at the festival.
“Oh my God, I did. It was amazing, it was my first time in London where just going there period and being a part of it was such an incredible experience and I'm praying, hoping that I can do it again soon. I saw the lineup actually a couple of days ago and I was like, ah, I wish I was going back, I need to get on that.”
Last year was a real breakout year where she swept the awards in her native British Columbia at the BCCMA Awards, received her first nomination at the national Canadian Country Music Association awards and made her first trip across the pond to perform at Europe’s largest country music festival C2C: Country to Country in London. As this year draws to a close, the long awaited new music has begun to arrive with her brand new single “The Best Part” (which is out now and available HERE) being released last week and Teigen told us all about when we spent some time with her over Zoom.
Hey Teigen, how are you doing today?
“I'm doing good, how are you Jamie?”
I’m really good, thank you. It's nice to hang out with you and also be at home at this time in the evening for first time in two weeks because I’ve been so busy.
“Isn't that the best? I haven't been home also in a few weeks and I get that on Thursday, I get to go home, so I'm also excited to just, you know, sleep in my own bed.”
So where is home exactly? Are you living in Nashville now or are you still kind of half BC based?
“I'm living in Nashville now, but I was just home for the Canadian Country Music Awards, which were in Kelowna, which is also a hometown for me as well, so it was really nice to go home and to see my family because they live there and which it was fun.”
I missed you when you were here last year because C2C is just complete and utter chaos, so I was gutted I couldn’t catch you when you were over because you are one of the few Canadian girls that I listen to but hadn't seen before. So many female artists from Canada have been coming over now and unlike the boys who stay up there, half of you have headed down to Nashville, anyway, hopefully you will come back and I’m sure you had the best time at the festival.
“Oh my God, I did. It was amazing, it was my first time in London where just going there period and being a part of it was such an incredible experience and I'm praying, hoping that I can do it again soon. I saw the lineup actually a couple of days ago and I was like, ah, I wish I was going back, I need to get on that.”
You mentioned the CCMAs being in Kelowna this year and it’s not just an awards show, it's everything that goes on around it because it's more like what Americana is, in Nashville rather than what the CMAs as there is the whole music week around it. It must have been really cool to be a part of it in your neck of the woods.
“It was a lot It was fun to, you know, give recommendations to people. Everyone was always asking me where do we go to eat? Where do we go? It's such a beautiful place. I was really excited for everyone in the CCMA community to be a part of Kelowna and see it, but also vice versa, I was excited for Kelowna to get to see the country music world too. I think it went really well and it's so nice because everything's like walking distance, you've got the wineries and everything is just so close. It was just awesome, it was the best and my voice was gone by the end of it, completely gone.”
Well, we know from when people come over here, that folk in the Canadian industry know how to party a lot better than the Americans do. It sounded wild and everyone keeps telling me that the CCMAs is something that I need to get over for.
“It is, because it's just like event after event after event after party after party after party, like such a good networking opportunity too. When first started dabbling into music, I didn't realise that the CCMAs was that. Like, I'll never forget going up to my mom, even before I even released my song that went top fifty, I was like, I really want to go to the CCMAs and my mom was like, well, why you're not nominated? At the time, I thought the same thing too, like you only go to those things if you're nominated, but that's not the case. It's a huge networking opportunity so it makes me really happy when I see artists who are like just starting out, that are going and putting themselves in what is usually an uncomfortable situation because they don't really know too many people, but it's like, that's just kind of what you’ve got to do. Like I had to do that my first CCMAs, right? I didn't know too many people and you’ve just got to put yourself out there, go shake hands and meet people so it was exciting. I did see a couple people there where it was their first time and I was like, I'm excited for you, I was like, go, throw yourself out there, everyone is so nice. It was awesome.”
It's nice to be able to help new people coming into it, but also I read that you have Métis heritage so also you are able to be a voice for the indigenous community too.
“Oh, absolutely, I'm so proud to be indigenous. It’s through my nana, she's passed away now, but I know she's watching me from heaven right now and seeing everything that I'm doing, and I know that she's proud. It’s pretty cool, that heritage is pretty awesome and I’m really proud.”
It’s timed quite nicely to hang out and chat today because we had a new song come out on Friday. Let's just talk about “The Best Part” as a song itself first, you had a couple of cowriters for it so who brought the idea in? Where did it come from and how long has this been kicking around?
“Yeah, so I wrote the song about a year and a half ago with Emily Reid, Gavin Slate and Jenna Walker. I was honestly just going through a breakup as we all do and I was writing a lot of sad songs at the time so I was like, I really need to write something that is like an I just need to turn it around a little bit and something fun, but something powerful too. Something where I can kind of take the power back, so it's just a fun bop. It’s all the guys that fumbled their girls out there so it's definitely one for the girls, that's for sure. Well, it’s any relationship where someone has just decided to check out and they ended up ultimately missing the best part.”
I guess the question that everyone's asking you and has been a focus of while you're doing press for the single is that this is the first music in a quite a long time. It’s been a hot minute so I guess this is leading towards something, it's not just a standalone single and there's probably quite a bit more in the can that's ready.
“Yeah, I’ve got stuff in the bank that I'm really excited to release. Like my follow-up song is in the complete opposite direction than the current song that I have out now. “The Best Part” is just a bop where you know, the follow-up is more a singer-songwriter type, it was the first song that I wrote that I cried to when I was done, when I was finished writing it. It's fun to like have these songs kind of pulling in like all different directions, which I personally love, like the different vibes, there’s a little bit of everything for everybody so I'm excited. It's nice knowing that you have a follow up that you're excited for and proud of. Teigs 2.0 is, uh, she's coming in hot!”
“It was a lot It was fun to, you know, give recommendations to people. Everyone was always asking me where do we go to eat? Where do we go? It's such a beautiful place. I was really excited for everyone in the CCMA community to be a part of Kelowna and see it, but also vice versa, I was excited for Kelowna to get to see the country music world too. I think it went really well and it's so nice because everything's like walking distance, you've got the wineries and everything is just so close. It was just awesome, it was the best and my voice was gone by the end of it, completely gone.”
Well, we know from when people come over here, that folk in the Canadian industry know how to party a lot better than the Americans do. It sounded wild and everyone keeps telling me that the CCMAs is something that I need to get over for.
“It is, because it's just like event after event after event after party after party after party, like such a good networking opportunity too. When first started dabbling into music, I didn't realise that the CCMAs was that. Like, I'll never forget going up to my mom, even before I even released my song that went top fifty, I was like, I really want to go to the CCMAs and my mom was like, well, why you're not nominated? At the time, I thought the same thing too, like you only go to those things if you're nominated, but that's not the case. It's a huge networking opportunity so it makes me really happy when I see artists who are like just starting out, that are going and putting themselves in what is usually an uncomfortable situation because they don't really know too many people, but it's like, that's just kind of what you’ve got to do. Like I had to do that my first CCMAs, right? I didn't know too many people and you’ve just got to put yourself out there, go shake hands and meet people so it was exciting. I did see a couple people there where it was their first time and I was like, I'm excited for you, I was like, go, throw yourself out there, everyone is so nice. It was awesome.”
It's nice to be able to help new people coming into it, but also I read that you have Métis heritage so also you are able to be a voice for the indigenous community too.
“Oh, absolutely, I'm so proud to be indigenous. It’s through my nana, she's passed away now, but I know she's watching me from heaven right now and seeing everything that I'm doing, and I know that she's proud. It’s pretty cool, that heritage is pretty awesome and I’m really proud.”
It’s timed quite nicely to hang out and chat today because we had a new song come out on Friday. Let's just talk about “The Best Part” as a song itself first, you had a couple of cowriters for it so who brought the idea in? Where did it come from and how long has this been kicking around?
“Yeah, so I wrote the song about a year and a half ago with Emily Reid, Gavin Slate and Jenna Walker. I was honestly just going through a breakup as we all do and I was writing a lot of sad songs at the time so I was like, I really need to write something that is like an I just need to turn it around a little bit and something fun, but something powerful too. Something where I can kind of take the power back, so it's just a fun bop. It’s all the guys that fumbled their girls out there so it's definitely one for the girls, that's for sure. Well, it’s any relationship where someone has just decided to check out and they ended up ultimately missing the best part.”
I guess the question that everyone's asking you and has been a focus of while you're doing press for the single is that this is the first music in a quite a long time. It’s been a hot minute so I guess this is leading towards something, it's not just a standalone single and there's probably quite a bit more in the can that's ready.
“Yeah, I’ve got stuff in the bank that I'm really excited to release. Like my follow-up song is in the complete opposite direction than the current song that I have out now. “The Best Part” is just a bop where you know, the follow-up is more a singer-songwriter type, it was the first song that I wrote that I cried to when I was done, when I was finished writing it. It's fun to like have these songs kind of pulling in like all different directions, which I personally love, like the different vibes, there’s a little bit of everything for everybody so I'm excited. It's nice knowing that you have a follow up that you're excited for and proud of. Teigs 2.0 is, uh, she's coming in hot!”
Where you have had all the time to work on stuff, I guess you've been able to think more about what you are wanting to do with things, like you sort of said, the next track is this and there's a process behind why you’re doing it.
“Oh, for sure. This last year, it's like, yes, I maybe was not releasing music, but it doesn't mean I wasn't working hard behind the scenes for the new music that will be coming out so it's nice knowing that there's a road. It's not just like, I released a song and that's it, that's what I've been doing, it's like, no, there's more.”
Then hopefully you would like to get back over here, is it something that's on your radar?
“Oh, yeah, I definitely want to get back there. The last time I was there, I think I ate a Cadbury’s Mini Eggs chocolate bar every night. In the week that I was there, I got home and I gained five pounds just because I was loading up on all of your Cadbury’s chocolate. Every night I would eat a chocolate bar and then some, and those are big chocolate bars!”
They are big chocolate bars but more importantly we have inherited one of the greatest things from Canada over here now that Tim Hortons is appearing more.
“Do you love it? Have you tried it?”
I have it whenever I can. There is only one in London and it's not too far from where I am, but there's loads in the north of England. I’m not big on the sort of lunch element of it but I love Timbits and I'm a basic bitch that lives off Starbucks at the best of the times but I think Timmy's coffee is so much better and I'm all for it!
Lastly, I sort of touched on before, but what we notice about artists from Canada, is that male artists with Josh Ross being an obvious exception to this, tend to stay in Canada but the girls seem to move down to Nashville like you have done. Did you did you feel you needed to move to Nashville because there wasn't the same opportunity in Canada as a female artist or did you move to Nashville purely because of what was on offer for you there?
“The thing about being in Nashville is that it is a songwriter's town, it is a networking town and being in Nashville, when you're there, you can write. I mean, you can do Zooms and stuff too, like people make it work doing Zoom, but there's just nothing quite like being in a room, in person with somebody. In Nashville, that's what it's all about every day, you know, there's so many writers there, everyone is hungry, everyone is driven and it doesn't stop, it’s just go, go, go. I mean, there's so many great opportunities in Canada, but you know, in Kelowna, for instance, I can't wake up, walk outside and walk down Music Row or just walk into a bar and meet ten writers, you know. There's just so many more people there that are chasing the same dream as you are where you’re just in this constant world of music and work and when you're in that, it pushes you to work harder and push harder. That's kind of why I wanted to go down there, I wanted to live and breathe it and when I'm there, that's where I can live and breathe it non-stop.”
Thank you so much for your time, and fingers crossed that you can get back to see us soon.
“Yeah, I want to come back, if I could go there every year, I would. It's literally the best place ever, you guys were awesome, it was so fun.”
The new single “The Best Part” from Teigen Gayse is out now and available HERE whilst you can keep up to date with Teigen socially by following her on INSTAGRAM TIKTOK FACEBOOK & X.
“Oh, for sure. This last year, it's like, yes, I maybe was not releasing music, but it doesn't mean I wasn't working hard behind the scenes for the new music that will be coming out so it's nice knowing that there's a road. It's not just like, I released a song and that's it, that's what I've been doing, it's like, no, there's more.”
Then hopefully you would like to get back over here, is it something that's on your radar?
“Oh, yeah, I definitely want to get back there. The last time I was there, I think I ate a Cadbury’s Mini Eggs chocolate bar every night. In the week that I was there, I got home and I gained five pounds just because I was loading up on all of your Cadbury’s chocolate. Every night I would eat a chocolate bar and then some, and those are big chocolate bars!”
They are big chocolate bars but more importantly we have inherited one of the greatest things from Canada over here now that Tim Hortons is appearing more.
“Do you love it? Have you tried it?”
I have it whenever I can. There is only one in London and it's not too far from where I am, but there's loads in the north of England. I’m not big on the sort of lunch element of it but I love Timbits and I'm a basic bitch that lives off Starbucks at the best of the times but I think Timmy's coffee is so much better and I'm all for it!
Lastly, I sort of touched on before, but what we notice about artists from Canada, is that male artists with Josh Ross being an obvious exception to this, tend to stay in Canada but the girls seem to move down to Nashville like you have done. Did you did you feel you needed to move to Nashville because there wasn't the same opportunity in Canada as a female artist or did you move to Nashville purely because of what was on offer for you there?
“The thing about being in Nashville is that it is a songwriter's town, it is a networking town and being in Nashville, when you're there, you can write. I mean, you can do Zooms and stuff too, like people make it work doing Zoom, but there's just nothing quite like being in a room, in person with somebody. In Nashville, that's what it's all about every day, you know, there's so many writers there, everyone is hungry, everyone is driven and it doesn't stop, it’s just go, go, go. I mean, there's so many great opportunities in Canada, but you know, in Kelowna, for instance, I can't wake up, walk outside and walk down Music Row or just walk into a bar and meet ten writers, you know. There's just so many more people there that are chasing the same dream as you are where you’re just in this constant world of music and work and when you're in that, it pushes you to work harder and push harder. That's kind of why I wanted to go down there, I wanted to live and breathe it and when I'm there, that's where I can live and breathe it non-stop.”
Thank you so much for your time, and fingers crossed that you can get back to see us soon.
“Yeah, I want to come back, if I could go there every year, I would. It's literally the best place ever, you guys were awesome, it was so fun.”
The new single “The Best Part” from Teigen Gayse is out now and available HERE whilst you can keep up to date with Teigen socially by following her on INSTAGRAM TIKTOK FACEBOOK & X.
