Carli and Jule Kennedy, known as the musical act Twin Kennedy, will be returning home for their homebound tour this summer.
Now residing in Nashville, Tennessee, the country music capital of the world, the Kennedy sisters are looking forward to performing their album Homebound in front of familiar fans.
“Powell River is so exciting for us,” said Carli. “We’ve just been dying to get back since we had to postpone our last concert because of COVID-19. It’s been a long wait.”
Julie said a lot of life has happened for the sisters since they last performed here.
“It has been the good, the bad, and everything in between,” said Julie. “I was diagnosed with breast cancer in December 2022. A week after my diagnosis I started with chemotherapy, so we couldn’t be on the road and playing. I’ve just finished treatment and I just got the cancer-free check.”
Julie won a Canadian Country Music Award for fiddle player of the year in 2023, so it was “a huge highlight in the middle of treatment.”
Also on the joyful side of life, both sisters are now married and Carli has a one-year-old daughter.
“I had just found out I was expecting our first baby and that is when Julie was diagnosed,” said Carli. “So, it has been a whirlwind of highs and lows, for sure.”
In addition to Julie winning fiddle player of the year, Homebound was also nominated at the Canadian Country Music Awards for alternative country album of the year in 2022, so the Kennedy’s musical excellence has been recognized in the upper echelon of Canadian country music.
“We had written and recorded this album Homebound and had planned a whole tour around it, ending in Powell River,” said Carli. “In 2021, things all fell apart. We kept postponing. That tour was the whole vision for this record, and we put off touring twice until Julie got sick.
“Now it feels like the homebound theme was actually meant to be because coming home now feels even that much sweeter. So, you know, it took us four years to do it, but it is going to be worth it.”
The sisters, currently, are spending a lot of time writing. Julie said Nashville is the hub of music creation in the country music world.
“We write a ton, not just for ourselves, but we’ve also been writing a lot for other artists,” said Julie. “We’ve also been writing for film and TV and actually had a song in a Christmas movie this last Christmas season. So that’s been a really fun side of our career that we are building on.”
Carli said it’s nice that they are still creating and seeing songs come out into the world. Julie said other artists will travel to Nashville simply to write for a record, and the sisters have adapted to scheduling writing sessions.
“Often, it’s just an amazing thing when you schedule this creative time,” said Julie. “For Carli and me, we can write when the inspiration strikes us, but writing for other artists is a really fun side of our career. That’s grown a lot more since we’ve moved to Music City.”
Carli said the sisters just won an East Coast Music Award for a song they wrote with a Newfoundland artist named Mallory Jonson.
“That was really cool,” said Carli. “When you write for yourself, it is really personal. You’re digging into everything that you want to share and feel from your life. But it’s fun to also just totally flip and do that for other people and just sort of be able to be creative without necessarily worrying about how it fits into our story. It’s a whole different creative process, but it’s fun.”
In terms of the move to the United States, Julie said they love it.
“There’s so much music,” she added. “You’re surrounded by like-minded people. We meet so many creative souls. It’s been just wonderful.
“We both met the loves of our lives here. So, we’re here to stay, but it doesn’t mean we don’t miss home. Returning to Powell River is going to feel so good for our hearts.”
While the sisters have in past performed here in the Max Cameron Theatre, the Homebound concert will be held in Evergreen Theatre on August 15 at 7 pm. Carli said the Max is not available for shows during the summer.
“We decided to try the Evergreen Theatre and make room for even more folks,” said Carli. “So, I think it will be really, really great. We’re excited.
“The show is going to be up close and personal. That’s what we’ve been doing for the last five or six years. We will have a variety of instrument styles that we will bring. The airplane is going to be pretty full of instruments, from banjo, bass guitars and guitars, and of course, fiddles. Now that I have a baby, I don’t know how I am going to do it.”
Carli said Twin Kennedy is excited to share live music again.
“With COVID-19, we went so long not being able to play in front of people,” said Carli. “When we get to play together on stage, we have such a renewed appreciation for that. What a blessing that is, and playing in front of our hometown crowd, it will be extra sweet.”
Julie said all the songs on Homebound were inspired by their lives growing up here and it will be the first time they have played these songs in front of a Powell River audience.
“We’ll play the album but also lots of other songs that people know, plus some instrumental classics,” said Julie. “We’ve started to put the set list together and we’ve had people messaging us with requests, so you know, we’ve got to get some of those in.”
The sisters are now working on another album. Julie said getting a new lease on life has inspired a lot of music.
“We’ve always written about real things,” said Julie. “It’s now more real than ever before. There’s a lot that everyone will relate to, with the happy and the tough stuff. The way we share it is always going to be through music and through songwriting.
“We’ve got some new tunes that I think Powell River will be the first to hear, which is really special. It means a lot.”
Carli said those attending the August 15 concert will be treated to a comprehensive and joyful night of music that will provide great insight into where their lives have been and where they are headed.
“Our fans are our friends and I feel that in this world, in general, we’re all wanting to connect,” said Julie. “We’re going to celebrate and we’re going to be ready to party. We’ll be homebound for sure.”
Tickets for the concert are available at Powell River Recreation Complex, or online at twinkennedy.com/shows.
The sisters will run a contest in July for the opening spot at the show. Local musicians can submit a performance video to twinkennedy.com/post/powellriver for a chance to open the show for Twin Kennedy on August 15 and win a prize package, including front row tickets for family and friends.
