“Me and Sandy, together ‘til the end, it broke my heart to know that we would never ride again”

The 2017 CMAA Academy of Country Music junior course graduate co-wrote the song with legendary country artist Allan Caswell during the course in Tamworth.  Through the single, Trinity tells of how her and her best friend would do everything together, until Sandy, her pony, died but knows that she will always be with her.  Listeners will be surprised to know that this emotional song is the first song Trinity has ever written.

“It was something I struggled to talk about for a long time, so I figured that instead of talking about it, I’d sing her story,” she said.  “I’d tried to write it on my own, but I didn’t know how to go about it, so when I went to the Academy, it was the perfect opportunity. Writing with Allan Caswell was amazing because he made the words come out so easily and it was like the song wrote itself.”

Sandy died almost three years ago and Trinity said she still feels the loss deeply, but immortalising her best friend in song had helped.
“Songwriting helps you to get things out on paper and to share those thoughts with others,” she said.  "When I play to crowds who are sitting and listening to the songs, most often there are some people who get upset.”

With the release of this single, the 15-year-old Newcastle artist said she aimed to get more people listening to her music.
“I want to get my name out there and share my music with people,” Trinity said. “It’s a personal song, so people listening to Me and Sandy will get to know me a bit better, too.”

Trinity is working hard to achieve her musical goals, having supported Amber Lawrence and Travis Collins, appeared as part of the Taste of Tamworth tour with Carter & Carter, played in the Music Makers Show in Gympie and opened for Amber Lawrence and Catherine Britt with the 2017 CMAA Academy of Country Music graduates.  The singer-songwriter has also appeared at festivals including the Tamworth Country Music Festival, Hats Off to Country Festival, Bluewater Country Music Festival and the Central Coast Country Music Festival.

Me and Sandy is available on iTunes, reaching No. 62 on the Country Songs Chart on release day, August 17.

“When it charted, it was overwhelming,” Trinity said.  “We were on the car ride home from the Gympie Music Muster and Mum called and told us – it was so surprising.” 

 

As her debut single release continues to garner plenty of attention, the young Newcastle artist is building on her trophy collection.  At the weekend’s Steel City Country Music Club Talent Quest, on September 22, the 15-year-old took first place in the Duo/Trio Section with Kevin Goodbun, second in the Junior Vocal 13-17 years, and third in Instrumental.

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“Kevin and I don’t normally perform together, but we do perform at a lot of the same places, just not as a duo,” Trinity said.  “We’ve written some songs together and we have performed some songs together for fun, but then he asked me to go in the competition with him. This section had the most competitors of all the sections I entered. We performed Country Roads and it obviously went down well.”

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Trinity sang Mama’s Broken Heart by Miranda Lambert in the Junior Vocal and then played Cam’s Burning House in Instrumental.  “I only use the guitar to back my vocals normally, but someone talked me into entering this section, so I played the music to Burning House and it went surprisingly well,” she said.

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The singer-songwriter said she enjoyed talent quests because it was a good environment to meet new people, particularly in the age categories where you can meet others of similar age with the same interests.  “The judges’ feedback is helpful and the judges are so willing to help, too,” Trinity said.

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She walked away from the weekend with three trophies and prize money, with two more competitions on the horizon. 

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Trinity debuted at No. 28 in the Official Tasmanian Top 30 Charts with her debut single, Me and Sandy, “The reaction has been really good with lots of people giving positive feedback about it,” she said.