Kat Harlton
Canadian country trio The Heels recently released their inspiring new single “Work of Heart” on February 3rd via all streaming platforms.
“Work of Heart” highlights The Heels’ signature sound and speaks to their belief that any negative can have a positive spin and that there is always a light at the end of the tunnel.
Vancouver, BC-based, The Heels is an all-female band composed of members Bobbi Smith, Brittni Dominelli and Kyla Rawlins. The trio’s mutual love of singing led them to join forces at a North Vancouver café co-owned by Kyla, where Brittni worked behind the counter and Bobbi was a regular. One thing led to another, and The Heels released their 2017 debut album, Love, Heels, and lead single, “Come Around,” which propelled the band to prominence in Western Canada, garnering them six nominations at the 2018 B.C. Country Music Awards and two BCCMA Awards.
Continuing to build momentum, The Heels released their 2021 album, I Am, including the singles “Catch & Release,” featuring Canadian country superstar Aaron Pritchett and “Hush Money,” which racked up over 1 million views on TikTok and reached #1 in France, #6 in Ireland, #10 in Belgium and #13 in the UK on the iTunes Charts.
In 2022, the band won the Josie Music Award for Best Country Trio, a show during which The Heels took the stage at the Grand Ole Opry House, and continued to tour widely in Canada and the United States.
The Heels continue to expand on their sound and enhance their message of hope and healing as they prepare to release more new music later this year, produced by BCCMA Award Winner Anthony Fiddler. The trio are also getting ready to perform at the 2023 JUNOfest in Edmonton this March.
I had the opportunity to chat with Bobbi Smith about the band’s new single, what they’ve learned along the way, and what’s next.
Kat: Can you talk about the inspiration behind your new single “Work of Heart”?
Bobbi: We wrote “Work of Heart” with Megan Barker & Anthony Fiddler during a time when the world was locked down from the pandemic and full of fear. We had plans of international tour dates that got cancelled due to the lockdown so we took the time to retreat to a cabin in the mountains and write and record a new album. This particular song reflects on personal struggles with anxiety, expectations of society and the journey to self love and acceptance.
Kat: What do you hope fans take from the new single?
Bobbi: We want our listeners to feel great from listening to our music. We layer healing frequencies and sound healing techniques into our songs for a deep healing experience mixed with a mainstream music sound.
Kat: What do you find is the most challenging part of your creative process?
Bobbi: Our creative process behind “Work of Heart” and our upcoming album for 2023 was very inspiring. We had challenges with our international tour dates being cancelled due to Covid lockdowns which was disappointing however we chose to switch gears and embrace the contrast and use the time to retreat to the mountains and write and record new music. We have a lot of faith in life and our journey together as a unit, we keep very positive no matter the course or the bumps in the road, we try to look at everything as a new opportunity to refocus and trust the process. When we first formed the band we discovered we all happened to be living on the same road within a few blocks of each other. Now over the seven/eight years we have been collaborating as a group our lives have changed dramatically and we have all moved in different directions of the province. Many people ask us how we make the dynamic of the band still work while living eight hours down the road from one another now but we are committed to our dreams and we plan working trips regularly. Our locations would seem like our biggest challenge as we can’t get together on a moment’s notice to write an inspiring idea or create a video or record a new track as easily as we used to but it’s made us much more accountable with the time that we do have together. We plan out the entire visit with lists of accomplishments and we waste no time together. It’s made us value our time together even more and appreciate the process and professionalism on a deeper level.
Kat: What has been a career highlight for you so far? What have you learned along the way?
Bobbi: Last fall we were nominated for Group of The Year by the Josie Music Awards. The awards were held at The Grand Ole Opry in Nashville TN. The Josie association chose us to perform at the award show which was a HUGE dream of ours since childhood. Walking the halls of the Opry and standing on a stage that so many of our music hero’s have performed on was an absolute dream! And we won Group Of the Year! To be recognized by the association is a true honour as it’s an award show strictly for independent artists. We know the drive and commitment it takes to make a living in the music industry as an indie artist so meeting our fellow nominees and new indie music family was so humbling and taking home our first American music award in Nashville TN was a magical feeling we will never forget. This moment taught us that we truly never know what is ahead. We opened up our Instagram inbox one day and there was this message from the Josie music awards letting us know that they had nominated us! They discovered us on Tiktok! A long time ago we began saying “YES” to everything and it’s truly life changing because you never know where each moment will take you or how the dots will eventually connect, you just have to keep saying yes and making as many dots as you can!
Kat: What can we expect from you for the balance of 2023?
Bobbi: 2023 we will be releasing four new singles and a new album! We have some international tour dates to be announced and we can’t wait to keep spreading our joy and sharing our music with the world. We are so grateful for every person who listens and loves our music.
Connect With The Heels
Instagram: @theheelsmusic
Twitter: @TheHeelsMusic
Facebook: /theheelsmusic
Website: https://www.theheelsmusic.com