While Jenna and Stuart Walker were in Nashville working on new music, a friend they were staying with was the first to find out that they were nominated for the Juno Award for Country Album of the year.
The sibling duo, known as the Reklaws (their last name spelled backwards), were not expecting the news. But, after they started getting messages that they had received the nomination, their friend knew it was time to celebrate.
“I was staying with our friend, Emily . . . she yelled down the hallway, ‘Are you nominated for a Juno?’ and I was like, ‘No, I really don’t think so,’” Jenna Walker said. “I looked at [my phone] and I was like, ‘I think we are!’ and she was like, ‘Let’s get a drink!’”
What was going to be a regular day in Nashville for the Reklaws turned into an early afternoon celebration with margaritas. After an exciting year of the successes, the group had something new to celebrate.
“It was noon in Nashville, and we went, we did it, and it was a really cool memory to see that all go down,” Stuart Walker said.
As siblings, the Reklaws have been performing together since they were kids. Their parents owned a family adventure farm outside of Cambridge, Ont., where they performed for visitors.
“It was a crazy childhood, but it definitely taught us to shake out the fears of entertaining a crowd at a very young age,” Jenna Walker said. “We continued to just like that and love to entertain people.”
Some of their earliest recognition came in 2013, after winning the Emerging Artist Showcase at the Boots and Hearts Music Festival. But, it was in 2018 that they got some of their biggest national opportunities.
As their songs “Hometown Kids” and “Long Live the Night” made it to national radio, they got noticed by the CFL and TSN. Their music was used during live CFL broadcasts, and this past November, the duo performed as the opening act for the Grey Cup in front of over 50,000 people at Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton.
At the Grey Cup, they performed a version of the song with modified lyrics that relate to football. Stuart said that it felt strange and nerve-racking to be performing the alternate lyrics during the live broadcast.
“It was strange doing it in Nashville . . . but it was even stranger having to be at the Grey Cup, going through an entire summer where you’re singing one version of the song, and then the one day, the most important day of the year, you have to sing the other version,” Stuart said.
Right now, the Reklaws are wrapping up their first headlining tour, which stopped in Ottawa on March 2 at Algonquin Commons Theatre. The Winter’s a Beach Tour featured a tropical-themed stage and brought the group to small and mid-sized venues across Ontario and Quebec. They were joined by fellow up-and-comers Jade Eagleson and East Adelaide.
The duo says that when they were first told about the tour opportunity, they weren’t expecting it to be a solo headliner. The said that they were nervous at first but that the shows had been going well.
“People are coming, and people are singing our songs,” Jenna said. “It’s been very amazing and just to see that because we didn’t expect that.”
The Reklaws said they’re excited and happy about what’s to come. Up next for them is a performance of “Long Live the Night” at the 2019 Juno Awards in London, Ont., on March 17.
“We just want everybody to feel the energy, especially because we’re representing country… and we want everybody to come to a show afterwards,” Stuart said.
Image by Jeff Pelletier
