A born-and-raised Calgary musician with growing ties to Airdrie's country music scene is counting down the days until the release of her third single on Feb. 9.
Country-pop artist Megan Dawson splits her time living in Calgary and Airdrie, where she's been able to collaborate with members of the city's burgeoning country scene, including Flaysher, Kyle McKearney, and Steve Jevne.
“I’m very blessed because I was able to meet with Brad and Ryan from Flaysher, right before the pandemic hit,” said the 25-year-old singer/songwriter. “We and one of our other friends, [Chelsea Haeslo], started to co-write together. That was my first intro to the talent that was here.”
On Feb. 9, Dawson will release her third single – a song called “To Fall in Love.” The track follows on the heels of her first two singles released in 2022, which include “Influence” and “Kissed Me Like That.”
Dawson said her latest song is based on the idea of self-rediscovery and re-learning to love yourself. She co-wrote the track alongside Haeslip and Hannah Gazso back in 2021.
“I’d written a few lines about the idea of, when you fall in love with yourself and give yourself some space – say, after a heartbreak – you really take the time to learn about yourself and find your passions again,” she explained of the song's genesis. “You really just fall in love with the relationship you have with yourself, and within that, you end up finding clarity on what love means to you and how you want to go find love in the world.
“We ended up coming up with that concept and rolling with the idea that love is definitely imperfect and can hit you out of nowhere, but when it does, it’s just a really cool feeling.”
While singing was always something she dabbled in growing up, Dawson said it wasn't until she was an adult that she played on stage in front of an audience for the first time. Dawson said when she was 18, she was out with some family friends who happened to be musically inclined and were performing at a gig in 2016, when they invited her up to sing along.
“It was one of those moments where it just became clear to me that it was a safe place, to be up on that stage, and [music] became something I really wanted to give a go,” she recalled.
Following that public debut, Dawson said those same family friends – Darren and Kimberly Hafner, who comprised the country band Prairie Heat – invited her to sing back-up during their performances at the 2016 Calgary Stampede.
“From there, I started to get more stage experience,” she said. “I still wasn’t playing an instrument at the time, but I just rolled with it and learned from them about being on stage.”
After the Hafners moved away that September, Dawson said she wanted to continue playing music, so went out and bought her first guitar, which she learned how to play by watching YouTube tutorials. Once she'd learned how to play the instrument, she started writing songs and performing at open mic nights in Calgary.
Her career progressed quickly, to the point Dawson was nominated for Solo Artist of the Year during the 2021 YYC Music Awards. She then released her first two singles the following year.
“I just continued to co-write and build my catalogue of songs, so I’ve basically been performing ever since then,” she said. “I’ve grown a lot in the last six years and have expanded out, so it’s been really cool.”
Dawson describes her musical style as “country with a pop flair,” adding her influences include everything from Shania Twain to Avril Lavigne and Britney Spears.
“I think having a very wide range of musical tastes allowed me to find my own style, with pop-country feeling the most at home,” she said.
Now boasting three singles to her name, Dawson said she could eventually see herself putting out an EP or album in the future, but added at the moment, her focus is more on producing singles.
And though she doesn't have any gigs in her new city lined up in the near future, Dawson mentioned she'll be performing at the Blue Jay Sessions in Calgary from Feb. 10 to 12, alongside fellow Airdrie artists Flaysher and Jevne.
“It’s a really cool singer-songwriter circle where we all share the stories behind our songs, she said. “It’s acoustic and super laid back in a really cool room, so that’s one I think people should definitely check out, for sure.”
“To Fall in Love” comes out on Feb. 9 and will begin radio play the following day. Airdrie music fans can check out megandawsonmusic.com or follow @megandawsonmusic on social media to hear it, as well as her other songs. Dawson's website and social media also include links to her Spotify account.
