This morning Country 106.7's Dara Currie was joined by country music star Jo Dee Messina to chat about her upcoming tour, making a stop in Regina in August.
For fans of 90’s country music, Messina’s name is instantly recognizable. Her career kicked off with the single “Heads Carolina, Tails California” back in 1996 and now she is touring under the now iconic title.
“We’ve never toured under that,” Messina noted, adding that when the song came out she was more of an opening act and didn’t have a headlining tour to go with it. “When we put the tour together last year we were like man we’re going coast to coast and we were like it should be Heads Carolina, Tails California and we made a joke of it. But then we were like, ok, I’ve never toured under that banner so let’s just do that.”
The tour launched in February 2023 and is continuing right through the summer.
“We’ve been playing nonstop, it’s been a hectic summer,” she said. “My boys play hockey, so when we are anywhere we try to find hockey to play and then when we are home we have practices, clinic, all that stuff. So heading into the fall we’re going to slow down a bit since it’s hockey season. During that time, I’m going to be finishing up writing for a new project and we share some of the new songs with people when we go out live.”
Speaking of live, she will be playing in Regina at the Conexus Arts Centre on August 1st and gave us a sneak peek at what people can expect.
“Lots of fun,” she laughed. “We are having so much fun touring. We get the audience involved and just a lot of energy and fun and everybody has a good time. The people on stage really appreciate being with each other and I think that vibe rolls off into the audience and then the audience is brought into the show.”
Along with all the success Jo Dee has seen, and the current massive tour, Messina also received extra attention after Cole Swindell’s “She Had Me At Heads Carolina” was released.
“I was not part of it in the beginning, I found out from the songwriter, Tim Nichols, who wrote Heads Carolina, Tails California,” she said. “He’s like ‘oh man, I want you to know what’s going on, give it a listen’. I listened to it and was like ‘Oh my gosh, that’s really cool’. And what I understood, I could be wrong, was that it was not originally supposed to be a single. The people asked for it to be a single and at that point, Warner Brothers reached out to me to do the video with them and to do a different version with me singing on it and so then everything went from there.”
With all the success she has seen over the years, it’s no surprise that some people would be inspired by Messina but she does not let that go to her head.
“I don’t think of that,” she said. “I just, try to keep my nose down and do my own thing and if that’s the case it’s wonderful but it’s not something that I focus on.”
She noted that instead she just focuses on the music.
“Since I was a little girl music was my company,” she said. “It kept me company and consoled me when I was sad and it made me not alone when I was lonely and it’s just such a part of my life and who I am and so it just seems like a natural thing.”
She also had a special message for those trying to enter the industry.
“Oh, run away,” she laughed. “No, just don’t sell out who you are just to be successful because a lot of people will do that. I myself did that and I’d look in the mirror and be like....I don’t even know who this is. So just stay true to who you really are.”
Messina reiterated that point when asked why it’s important to her to be authentic and real and down to earth in interviews and on social media.
“It’s real,” she said. “I said to somebody the other day that we live in the land of smoke and mirrors so I try to be as real as I can be and as honest and forthcoming as I can be.”
Tickets for the August 1st show can be purchased here.
“Come on out,” she ended “We’re going to have a great time. See you there!”
