Danny McMahon is a UK singer/songwriter who is fast rising on the music scene, garnering the attention of music fans across the globe with his “own brand of mainstream, slick country-pop radio-oriented material.”
Ever the accomplished artist, Danny has written commercially for Paramount Songwriting and within the UK Country scene for years. He writes, records, and produces his own material at Puzzle Maker Studios in Bristol.
Danny’s debut EP “Making Memories,” dropped in 2017, quickly gaining international attention. From that debut, he and his band became the first UK artists to attend and perform at Springboard West Festival, CA in January 2018.
We sat down with the music man to talk about his beginnings, inspirations, and where he is now.
Bridge: How long have you been making music?
DM: I was fourteen years old and I wanted to go so sports camp, but they’d run out of places. So the only option left was a music one.
I was playing a bit piano and keys at the time, but I’d never written a song. We arrived and the first task was writing a song to an existing chord progression.
I finished the whole thing in forty minutes and the teacher basically told me I had to pursue music at school, so that’s exactly what I did.
Bridge: How would you describe your sound to a first-time listener?
DM: All the feeling of Country, all the danceability of pop covered in 80s production influenced sprinkles.
Bridge: What do you want your fans to feel when they listen to your music?
DM: The entire emotional spectrum if possible. I think that’s what we aim for as songwriters. We all feel such a plethora of emotions in our lives, and I think it’s really important to try and tap into all of those emotions at some point in a record or in a live show environment. Fundamentally I want the songs to feel relevant to the audience and what they’re experiencing in their lives.
Bridge: What is your creative process like?
DM: So all my music is produced at my very own Puzzle Maker Studios, and I work on it with my co-producer and business partner Andrea Succi. My latest EP “Senses” was a huge collaborative project, and I absolutely loved it. I got to work with some incredible co-writers on this record including one my favourite artists Austin Burke who penned “Good Or Gone” with me. We had so many songs to pick from on this record having written so much in lockdown which actually became a blessing, as there was so much material to pick from.
Bridge: What is your go-to song whenever you’re going through some hard stuff…
DM: I love this question. I’m massive on promoting mental health and songwriting can be a really important tool for that. In recent times I think a song that really helps give me perspective in those moments is “Til You Can’t” by Cody Johnson. I think my favourite line from that song is “If You’ve got a dream, chase it because the dream won’t chase you back.” It really is a stunning song.
Bridge: Who would be your dream collaboration?
DM: For me, it would have to be either Keith Urban or Sam Hunt. I absolutely love how both those guys push boundaries in their music with each new thing they put out. I’m also loving how Seaforth and Breland are doing the same thing within their genres too.
Bridge: Tell us about your current projects…
DM: So I’ve just released my new EP “Senses.” We charted number 8 All Genre with it on release which for me was an incredible achievement. I just love the fact that it was the most real thing in terms of just writing and recording songs I really enjoyed, and it seems people have really taken to it. For me, it’s found a really nice blend of everything I love from Country and Pop.
Bridge: What else do you have going on that our readers should know about?
DM: I’m gonna be touring loads this year. I’m currently on my UK Tour. We’ve just played London and we’re now off to Scotland, Birmingham and then we finish with a hometown show in Bristol which I’m absolutely pumped for!
We’re also gonna be heading out to the States in June and then again in September. To the west coast and then Nashville respectively. We played abroad so much before the pandemic, so I’m absolutely over the moon that we’re gonna get to do it again this year.
