About

At the age of 10, I realised my passion for music. Surrounded by the sound of a piano growing up, I initially thought it was the perfect instrument for me. I loved playing instrumental versions of popular songs, but like many kids, my interest waned quickly. That’s when I thought, “Guitar would be pretty cool!”

In 2011, while moving to Cleadon, we discovered an old, battered Westfield guitar in the attic. My grandad took it upon himself to rebuild this guitar, replacing the back with plywood and repainting the surface. What he accomplished was simply amazing, and I felt obligated to give guitar a try.

The first thing my grandad taught me was to read tablature, a form of music notation designed for guitar. This approach, learning the tools before the songs, worked wonders for me. I have strong but distant memories of being perched up on a bed, surrounded by music sheets, learning “Foot Tapper” by The Shadows note for note.

Shortly after this, I discovered Chet Atkins—a moment that changed my life.

At 13, my parents realised my passion for guitar was not a passing fad. My dad promised me that if I washed his car every week for 40 weeks, he would get me my dream guitar: a Maton EBG808TE (Tommy Emmanuel’s guitar).

I went for it, and every week without fail, I cleaned his car, dreaming of the day I would open up the case on a new guitar. This new guitar became a pivotal point in my development, allowing me to play at open mic nights and small local gigs with a really good sound!

Performing at open mic nights weekly helped me understand what’s important in a performance, and I’m forever grateful for the thousands of miles my mum likely drove to help me chase my passion. Shortly after, I had the pleasure of meeting my guitar hero, Tommy Emmanuel. He was gracious with his time, and a few years later, I had the pleasure of playing with him at the Glasshouse in Gateshead—an evening I’ll never forget!

The pandemic hit, and I won’t dwell on what that meant for musicians—you can probably guess. Unfortunately, a few months into the start of Covid, I broke my arm. Three surgeries later, I realised I would never play guitar quite like I used to. I now have a missing muscle called the FPL, which controls the thumb, making guitar playing even more difficult. It was a huge, devastating setback.

During this time, I got a full-time job in marketing and worked hard to build a new career while secretly rebuilding my guitar skills with new techniques. In 2023, I played over 40 gigs—a huge accomplishment considering in 2022, I couldn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. I started to feel like I was ‘coming back.’