Shelley Segal grew up in a musical family. Melburnians would likely know of her dad, Danny Segal – of Segal and Glass – who is well-known on the simcha circuit. It is where Shelley cut her teeth in the musical world.
“I was lucky enough to be able to get up on stage with my dad when I was around 11 for the first time. I’d sing with the band,” she told The AJN over Zoom from the US. “He was so encouraging. By the time I was 15, I was doing the whole thing at weddings and bar and bat mitzvahs.”
For Shelley, it was always music. And growing up around a successful musician as well as other working musicians showed her that following her dream to be a musician was possible.
“There’s never been anything else I wanted to do.”
After some gigs with Segal and Glass, Shelley started writing, performing and releasing her own music as an original artist, before making her way to the US. She toured the country, booking everything for herself, describing herself as a “real troubadour, on the road, playing in a different city every night” building her individual fan base.
After several years touring throughout the US, she moved there permanently in 2016. She would spend at least six months of the year travelling throughout the country. That is, until COVID-19 hit and like many other artists, Shelley was forced off the road.
“I had to stop touring,” she recalled. “So, I spent time in LA working on other peoples’ projects from a management and label perspective. And I also spent time doing session work, song writing and ghost writing for other artists.”
She describes her life as “everyday music” and explained that it’s quite a different experience writing songs for yourself compared to for others.
“When I was a kid and I would write for myself, it was always very much like, something has happened and I need to get it out, whether anyone hears it or not. It was always for my own wellbeing, it was my outlet,” she said, explaining that working with other people means there’s often a timeline and a deadline, creating a very unique experience for a creative person.
“The session finishes at a particular time and the song has to be finished. It doesn’t matter whether you’re inspired or how you’re feeling or whether you’ve had a good or bad day. You have to learn to tap into that emotion under every circumstance. It’s an amazing skill to develop. I love it.”
When asked how she knows which song is for her and which song she feels she can hand over to others, Shelley explained that she has been caught in that trap before.
“For me, it’s the fact that I’ve perfectly expressed my own feeling, that’s when I know it’s for me,” she said. “I recently wrote a song for another performer, but when it came down to it, I realised that the song was actually for me.”
She said though, that she loves helping other artists achieve what she refers to as “that feeling that gives you shivers”.
“I’m helping someone achieve that for themselves, get out what’s inside and have that experience. It means a lot.”
Speaking of getting out what’s inside, Shelley recently released a song in honour of her mother, something she said meant a lot to the whole family.
“My dad is a performer. I’ve always been very close to him. But I don’t think, until I got older, that I fully appreciated how amazing my mum is,” Shelley said. “She puts her family and friends first. She’s so giving of herself. I’ve really learned to appreciate her.”
Shelley described one moment when she walked past a mirror and, seeing her reflection, she thought for a split second that it was her mum. At that moment, Shelley said she processed her reflection differently than she would have if she thought it was herself.
“Sometimes you look at yourself and there’s a level of judgement – I don’t look good here. And then some days, you don’t necessarily see the whole picture, you just see parts and think oh I feel good about myself. Young girls especially absorb these thoughts,” she said.
“But when I saw the reflection and saw glimpses of my mother, I didn’t break it down like that. I didn’t view it negatively. It was a big awakening to think that I would never view my mum like that, so why do I view myself like that? It allowed me to have a deeper sense of self love through that context which was really empowering.”
What’s even more beautiful is the song, Mother, is a family affair, with Shelley’s dad Danny playing the violin on the record.
The song was released in time for Mother’s Day and Shelley said it serves as a beautiful tribute to all of the mums out there.
“It has been really meaningful [to hear the feedback],” Shelley said. “People have told me that they shared it with their mums and that it was a vehicle they could use to express their own connection with their mothers. That gratitude has been very rewarding.”
For more about Shelley Segal, visit her website: shelleysegal.com
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