You don’t get much more down-home country than writing songs while you’re out in the field cutting hay. But then again, that’s just who Danita Lynn is: a local girl with deep country roots making a mark through her love of music.
After stepping out of the spotlight for a couple of years, Danita is back and ready to make that mark – so expect to see a lot more of the little lady with the big voice. You can even catch her Feb. 16-18 at Casino Dene in Cold Lake.
The youngest of six children, Danita grew up in the Hamlet of Plamondon – which was founded by her great-grandfather Joseph Plamondon. After spending her adult life as a farm-mom in the area, the mother of two decided to follow her dream of lighting up stages as a country-rock singer.
“I would write songs as I was out cutting hay in the field,” Danita said, who dropped the Lynn from her stage to avoid typecasting as a country singer. “I found I just had a lot of time to think when I was out on the tractor and it came easier than sitting in front of a piece of paper.”
These days, Danita is belting out rocking-country covers and some of those tractor-originals in front of paying crowds across northern Alberta. And she recently won a battle of the bands contest at the River Cree Casino, beating out dozens of contenders and won a paid gig and a regular spot on the performing roster at the venue.
Although she may seem like a natural these days onstage, the pint-sized 50-year-old didn’t perform publicly until she was 37 – too shy to even sing at family functions.
“I come from a very musical family, my mother plays the fiddle and my brothers were always in bands, but I was a bit of a late bloomer,” Danita said. “I’d always listen to the family play music. But I was extremely shy, almost to the point of it being a phobia.”
After decades of hiding in the musical closet, she finally pushed herself to sing at the Homemade Jam at Pow Wow Days in 1999.
“That’s how I got my feet wet,” Danita said. “And there was so much cheering and clapping after we played that one song. It’s kind of crazy – I was so nervous, but after hearing the crowd I just wanted to do more.”
After that first taste of the stage, she was hooked. She played in bands locally before scoring a gig as a harmony vocalist for country-singer Priscilla Morin, where she opened for big-name acts like Aaron Pritchett, Prairie Oyster, Emerson Drive, and Grand Ole Opry entertainer George Hamilton IV.
Then she let her powerful pipes be the focus, joining country-rock band Sweet Tequila as the lead singer. They recorded an album in Nashville in 2007 and toured extensively through western Canada.
But the hectic performing lifestyle took its toll, and Danita left Sweet Tequila after four and a half years of non-stop travelling. Now, after a couple of years to regroup and focus on her own music, she is looking to get back into the scene as a solo artist.
With a new band behind her, and the support of her family and friends, the local entertainer said she is once again ready to commit to her passion for performing.
“I’m going for it,” Danita said. “My love for music never left and I’m excited to see what will happen.”
If you want to hear some of Danita’s original music or see her upcoming concert schedule, visit www.danita.ca.
“What I do comes from the heart,” she said. “I just love entertaining.”
