Today we have a spotlight on the amazing Miss Emily Woodhull. Every artist we interview is someone we love and respect in the music business. We’ve both become friends with these artists on our own, but Emily? Emily is someone both Kynny and I can truly call a friend. She’s a great person and an amazing musician. She’s also the only artist we’ve gotten to do a live interview with, so getting to do a spotlight on one of our friends here at Get Western is always special. Today, we hope you enjoy learning more about Emily, because really… who is Emily Woodhull?
“My name is Emily Woodhull. I’m originally from Capitol Hill in DC, but I now call Virginia home. I first fell in love with Virginia when I was attending James Madison University in 2019 in Harrisonburg, VA. It’s in the heart of the Shenandoah Valley, and I would see the mountains at almost every turn. I was very drawn to the mountains, and it left an everlasting imprint on me. I realized quickly, however, that college was not for me. I was studying to be a high school teacher but realized that music was what I wanted to do. I moved back to DC and then to Fredericksburg, VA, in 2021. I proudly call Fredericksburg home and love being a Virginia transplant.”
When did Emily first start playing music, and what drew her to it? She said, “I started playing piano when I was 5. I come from a big family, and my mom wanted my older siblings to try piano at least once. We had a baby grand piano in the living room, and I’d hear my mom and older siblings play. I’m not sure how else to explain it, but I was just drawn to it. I had to call my dad for this to fact-check, but here’s what he said: I started playing, which led to my parents enrolling me in a music program where the minimum age was 8, but they took me in at 5. After a while, I got bored with what we were learning and wanted to play songs I wanted to play. My first teacher was kind of mean, and I wanted to quit. But my parents had me try a new teacher, Mr. Martinelli, and he helped me fall in love with playing again. He actually figured out that I could never read sheet music. Everything I was playing before was from what I could hear. The music program teacher would put a book in front of me and play it, and I’d just hear what he did and play that; he never noticed I wasn’t reading the book. I’m thankful Mr. Martinelli gave me the creative freedom of letting me learn songs I wanted to play. He taught me to be the best musician I could be. Because of him, I went on to take guitar lessons, then taught myself drums and ukulele, and eventually started singing and performing. He’s a big role model for me still, and I have massive love for him.”
How would Emily describe her sound to someone who’s never heard her music before? She said, “I take inspiration from artists in a lot of different subgenres (contemporary, red dirt, bluegrass, grunge, and Americana), and I think each of my songs carries a little bit of those in their own way.”
What about who inspired Emily to start making music? She said, “Music has always come naturally to me. My mom helped me start playing piano, and my aunt also played. She lived in Italy, so we didn’t see her often, but we always connected over the piano and played together when she was in town. My dad is a big, big supporter of me doing this. He’s always pushed me to do music and could see early on the love I have for it. I started writing songs with him; he gets ideas for lyrics all the time and sends them to me, and I’ll write melodies to those lyrics. I’m thankful to have many people influence my music journey.”
When it comes to artists that have influenced Emily, she gave a pretty good list. She said, “I’ve had a lot of influences over the years. The staples include Chris Stapleton, Tyler Childers, Luke Combs, Chris Cornell, and Koe Wetzel. Right now, I take a lot of inspiration from The Turnpike Troubadours, Wyatt Flores, Sturgill Simpson, Jason Isbell, Sam Barber, Avery Anna, and Nicholas Jamerson.”
What’s been Emily’s favorite show or venue to play so far? She said, “Honestly, I have a few. I can’t pick just one. One of my favorite venues is Pearl Street Warehouse in DC. They were the first venue to give me a chance, and I’ve gotten to play a lot of cool shows there. The first show I played will always be memorable. I opened for Matthew Fowler, and the number of people that showed up for me was unimaginable. There were some folks I hadn’t seen in years that came, and it made me incredibly grateful for the community I have. That show led to my first headliner show, and again, the community showed up and showed out, and I think I cried, lol. A couple of months later, I got to do a showcase with Brennan Edwards, Leon Majcen, and Bryan Elijah Smith. It was a great and fun night full of amazing and heartfelt songs. A few months after that, I had the opportunity to open for Bryan Martin. It was one of the first shows with my band, and Bryan ended up inviting me on stage at his show a couple of nights later and let me sing one of my songs to his sold-out crowd. I’m forever thankful to him for giving me that opportunity. Then, we’ve got the release parties for my two singles. It was a reminder of how many people believe in me and my dream, and honestly, a reminder of how loved I am. There were fans there who were genuinely excited to meet and talk with me, and that’s something I thought I’d never experience. The second release party was a painful show to get through; one of my best friends unexpectedly passed the day before. But it reminded me how loved I am. I’m incredibly thankful for the fans, friends, and family who show up for me when I need them most.”
What’s Emily’s dream venue to play at? She said, “I think for almost every artist, it’s the Ryman and the Opry. As a DC native, I’d love to play a show at the 9:30 Club; it’s an iconic venue in the city. I’ve also got Red Rocks and Cain’s Ballroom on my list. Red Rocks is beautiful and would be so cool to play. Cain’s is historic in red dirt, and I’m such a big fan of that subgenre and would love to say that I played there.”
What have been some major turning points in Emily’s career so far? She gave some tough answers, saying, “There are definitely a couple of moments. A big one would be losing Molly, one of my best friends. We met the summer going into our freshman year of high school, and she was very close to me and my twin brother. She unexpectedly passed when visiting our friend in Italy this past April. She was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer in the fall of 2019, but she never let it dictate her life. She truly lived life to the fullest, traveling to Italy to visit our friend and even going all the way to Australia for a semester abroad. She was also a massive fan of my song ‘Virginia, I’m Home’ and would send me voice memos of her singing the song. Losing her made me realize I need to make more time to see the ones I care about. I had an opportunity to see her in March but didn’t take it because I was tired after a show. I realized that while yes, I am pursuing my dream, I still need to take the time to see the ones I love and spend time with them.
Another turning point would be when my ex and I broke up. We were together for two years, and he was a big supporter of me chasing this thing. He got my dream guitar for my birthday, supported us financially when I quit my job, and was always there to support me. But I got lazy. I’d be home all day on the couch, doing nothing but the bare minimum and playing with our new puppy. It got to a point where he couldn’t do it anymore, and that opened my eyes to change, change my work ethic, change how I was approaching certain things, and truly give my all. When we were breaking up, he asked me, ‘Do you believe you’re doing everything in your power for your music?’ and I wasn’t. Not having him in my life anymore pushed me to change. Since that day, even though it’s sometimes painful, I’ve been doing everything I can for my career and think I’m doing a damn good job at it.”
What’s something about Emily that people might not expect? “A fun fact, not really music-related, but I have a twin! We have a big family, five siblings, including my twin brother. Almost everyone has a significant other, so when we’re all together, there are 13 of us. Super chaotic at times, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.” She also said, “We also do our own version of some pop songs that are always so much fun. Like, no one ever expects a country version of ‘…Baby One More Time’ by Britney Spears. The look on people’s faces when we do that song is always so funny.”
What does Emily hope people feel when they hear her music? She said, “I hope people feel authenticity. I’ve always wanted my songs and lyrics to have some kind of meaning to them. Even if it’s a goofy song, I want them to feel that I put my all into it and that it’s not some song I wrote just to fill up space on an album or something.”
Now, what does success look like for Emily in music? She told us, “I’ve always wanted to help others through my music. Certain songs helped me through a dark time, and I’ve always wanted to do that for someone else. I’ve also always wanted someone to sing my song back to me at a show. If I can do those two things, then this whole pursuit is worth it. I’ll be set.”
How does Emily balance music with the rest of her life? She said, “This is something I continue to struggle with. I have a hard time taking a break from music and pursuing everything. Losing Molly opened my eyes to changing how I navigate my schedule. Not seeing her when I had the chance is still a big regret I’m coping with. Now, I make sure to spend at least one full day during the week relaxing and seeing my friends and family without doing too much work. I’m still working through it, but I remind myself I can’t do this career without taking care of myself first.”
What’s one piece of advice Emily would give to someone just starting out in music? She said, “Even in the low moments when you feel discouraged, especially about social media, don’t give up. It can get really hard, but it’s worth it in the end. Also, start boots on the ground running. If there’s one thing I could change about my career, it’s that I would give 110% when I started. I was terrified of failing and disappointing everyone, so I played it safe and did the bare minimum, which eventually led me to disappoint some important folks in my life. Losing those people made me realize I needed to change my work ethic and truly give 110% into everything I was doing. One more thing: appreciate those who are supporting you. I wouldn’t be able to do this if I didn’t have the support of my incredible friends and family. Big shoutout to my mom and dad, and my manager, Ben.”
Does Emily have any upcoming releases or projects in the works? She said, “Nothing is set in stone yet, but I’ve been talking to a producer I’m excited to work with on a song that means a lot to me. I’m excited to release it!”
Thank you for reading this week’s artist spotlight! We hope you enjoyed getting to know who Emily Woodhull is behind his music. Go check her out, and go catch her at a show. As always, be good to yourself, stay western, and stay tuned!
Get Western 
Leave a comment