Description
From being cradled as a baby in the arms of Roy Orbison, to performing a duet with Willie Nelson, you would think that Tami Neilson lived a country music fantasy life as part of The Neilson Family Band with Tami’s parents, and two brothers in Canada, but who between official paid gigs, often had to busk to eat.
And then Tami left to start her own family on the other side of the world in New Zealand, where she now resides. Her busking chops served her well, as she took to the streets of Auckland looking for her big break.
From open mic nights to clubs, to then headlining theatres and major festivals across New Zealand, Tami has now won almost every music award possible her adopted homeland New Zealand can muster, but the queen of Kiwi country deserves a wider audience..This fifth album may help locate it, boasting a duet with Willie Nelson on Beyond the Stars, a waltz full of tumbling guitars and sweeping strings with Neilson soaring effortlessly above.
The songs of Kingmaker exposes industry systems, exploding patriarchal structures of the industry, society, and family. These are not new themes for Tami – both her 2018 album Sassafrass! and 2020 Chickaboom! called attention to misogyny and patriarchal structures.
