When I can’t fall asleep at night, I imagine being in a cabin in the mountains, sitting in a rocking chair, and feeling at peace. Calamity Jane has truly captured this feeling of peace in nature in their music. The beautiful violin sounds of Lucy Cantley paired with the powerful vocals of Camille Rae still hit me every time since interviewing the duo when they first formed. You can read more about their start here CALAMITY JANE’S INSPIRING NEW SINGLE REMINDS US WE HAVE TIME IN “THE CHASE” TO OUR DREAMS
Since starting “The Chase” to their dreams of creating music together five years ago, Lucy and Camille have started families and written music that embraces sounds of country, folk, and bluegrass while staying true to themselves. After their early music releases with a more pop-country Nashville sound, they started writing how they naturally would to become the most authentic version of themselves. This landed them in the bluegrass world and they are fully embracing this new direction with their artistry. They believe instrumentally it makes sense with Camille being from Appalachia and Lucy being a fiddle player.
Their recent releases, including “Man With No Demons”, are featured on several Spotify playlists including Women of Bluegrass. “It’s been cool to see that transition. It’s music that makes us happy and makes us feel ourselves. The cool thing is that as our sound has evolved, the Nashville sound has also evolved and become a lot more open to these grassroots sounds and sub-genres of country,” says Lucy. They both feel it was a natural transition to bluegrass when they didn’t limit their songwriting to a specific sound or genre. “It finally feels at home when we’re in the studio and writing. It’s a natural thing that comes to us. I never ventured into the bluegrass genre even though I was surrounded by it growing up, so it’s cool to bring my culture into it as well,” says Camille.
While writing “You, The Mountain, and Me”, Calamity Jane started tapping into a bluegrass sound. Writing this song came to them so easily when they were in a cabin in the Smoky Mountains. “When we finally allowed ourselves to write what we wanted it happened so easily. Even though I had never written a bluegrass song or ventured down that path at all, it was crazy how easy it was. ‘You, The Mountain, And Me’ was the first one that did that for us,” says Camille. She also enjoys embracing her upbringing and accent in this style of song. “I didn’t know how much bluegrass influence was in my voice… I realized through writing how I naturally sing things with my natural accent. I tap into little Camille on the farm,” says Camille. She also keeps in mind how a song will be performed live and likes how bluegrass music is interactive with the audience.
“Now I’ve down and out,
– Calamity Jane
I’ve stormed the castle by myself,
You’re like a steady stream,
When I lose faith you don’t leave,
It’s just you, the mountain, and me,
Now it’s just you, the mountain, and me.”
Lucy was inspired to write “This Valley” when she was going through a hard time. While she was vacationing in Idaho, she was able to reset and found it so peaceful and beautiful there. She also came across some writing on the wall in a restaurant bathroom inspiring the first verse that said, this valley will heal you. “I didn’t want to write just another sad song. I wanted to write a song acknowledging the pain, but also that there is hope and beauty in the world to be appreciated, and I’m going to come out of this at some point,“ says Lucy, “This song ended up being deeper than I thought it was going to be… the second verse talks about being reborn when you’re out in nature and you stumble upon a clearing in the woods…It almost feels like you’re in heaven. It evolved into this deep beautiful song about grief and hope.”
“The scars I have are now mine to keep,
– Calamity Jane
but there’s green grass far as the eye can see,
and I’m hopeful now this valley can heal me.
I stumble on a spring and I wash my face,
the sun shines down I’m reborn today,
and I knew in my heart this valley can heal me.”
This song also makes Camille think of home since her parents live in a valley surrounded by mountains. They love to be inspired by their surroundings, being in nature, and being at home as it brings a sense of peace and comfort they hope to share through their music. See the beauty of “This Valley” from Lucy’s trip to Idaho.
Future Plans
Calamity Jane plans to continue writing music true to them and fully embrace the sounds of bluegrass. They have plans to rerecord a song in their current musical style as a fifth-anniversary edition. While they are busy being moms and writing music, they plan to take their little ones on the road in 2025 as they play live to new audiences full of bluegrass lovers. To keep up with their new releases and shows visit calamityjaneofficial.com and follow them on YouTube and Instagram @calamityjaneofficial. You can also listen to their podcast, Why Aren’t You Famous Yet?, where they interview other artists about their music and experience in the industry. Check out this one with Lucy interviewing Carley Arrowood here.
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Farm Girl With Curls 