Get To Know: Madison Olds Talks Opening For Tate McRae, Dream Gig With Shelter Dogs, New Music & More

Hailing from Kamloops, British Columbia, singer-songwriter Madison Olds delivers bright and introspective indie folk-pop tunes.

Since the release of her first single, “Moments in the Mountains,” in 2017, Olds’ musical pursuit has been an impressive journey. Her 2020 single, “Best Part of Me,” landed herself in the top 30 of various music charts, and she has garnered nearly 4 million streams on Spotify. She also earned iHeart Radio’s Future Star Award in 2021, and her debut single was selected to the Fairmont Pacific Rim’s theme song in 2019. Not too shabby for an indie artist.

Along with many performances across Canada and the U.S., Olds has shared stages with an array of notable artists including Willie Nelson, Kacey Musgraves, and Tate McRae among others. 

Olds released her most recent single, “When I Lost You,” this past Friday October 11th, following the release of “Rich in Dreams,” her September single. Fusing folk, indie rock, and pop elements with her airy vocals, the songwriter delivers a captivating sound.

We had the opportunity to chat with Olds, discussing her new music, her love of dogs, opening for Tate McRae, and more.

So what are three things people should know about Madison Olds? 

Oof, if I had to pick just three things about myself, I would say I love my dogs Luna and Pepper more than I could ever explain and really am one of those crazy dog ladies that would stop traffic to cross a street and pet somebody’s dog.

Second, I have recently gotten into sourdough, which totally was a mistake because my entire kitchen is full of bread and I don’t know how to keep up with this thing but I love it.

And third, I really do love my family and I set them above all else. I think family is the most important thing in the world and my family is truly the reason I fell in love with music in the first place, and I think it’s such a unique connection between all of us. 

What can you tell us about Kamloops, BC? What’s the music scene like there?

Kamloops is honestly such a great city to have grown up in. I danced lots growing up before I took music as seriously as I do now, and no matter what kind of performing arts we have going on in the city, people are always eager to come out and support. It’s a fantastic city for people starting and learning things about themselves creatively and it’s a great city to explore new art forms. I will always be grateful to Kamloops and the people for supporting me all these years and making me feel so loved. 

I’m seeing where you have various accolades including your song “Moments in the Mountains” being chosen for Fairmont Pacific Rim’s theme song in 2019, iHeart Radio’s Future Star award, and other accomplishments. Is there any that mean the most to you and why?

Any type of accomplishment is huge in such a competitive industry, and I always feel grateful to get some sort of win. If I had to pick a favourite, to be honest I think it was opening for Tate McRae in Vancouver. It was such a last-minute event that I didn’t even have a chance to get nervous, so I just got to go out there and sing my heart out and share my stories. Everybody who was there made me so special, and even though they didn’t know me, they learned my songs on the spot and sang with me which is a moment I will replay for the rest of my life. 

Let’s talk about your single, “Rich in Dreams.” What’s the backstory and influence behind it?

“Rich in Dreams” really came out of a session with a friend where we were so tired of getting together just to complain how much of a failure we felt in the industry or how far behind everybody else we felt. It started to feel grim every time we got together, lol. So, we thought it was time we wrote a song as a reminder to be happy with where we are in life no matter how poor you feel or how far behind you feel. That true wealth and happiness isn’t measured by a number or a dollar value, but by a feeling and the people in your life who remind you you’re alive. 

What was the recording process like, and were there any creative changes or alterations that you didn’t expect? 

Ever since Covid, recording has been so different. I remember when we used to get all dressed up to go to a studio that cost more than my car to record vocals and sit with the producer to listen back 100 times. Now, I get sent a track and record 10 takes in my basement with a blanket over my head in my Christmas pajamas in the middle of July telling my dogs to be quiet haha.

I honestly prefer it though, I’m such an introverted extrovert. If anything sounds weird or my producer has notes, it is always such a quick and easy fix and I think it’s because I genuinely love working with him. If I had any advice to anybody worried about the recording part of music, I would definitely advise you trust your producer and shop around to find somebody you really like working with.

Can fans expect to see the single on an upcoming EP or LP?

So far, I’m working on releasing two more singles before the end of the year that I am really excited to share. One is an uplifting ballad on grief and losing someone close to you. It talks about the highs and lows of loss and how sometimes it feels like you lose a part of yourself with them. My second song is such a fun easy listening Christmas tune about how the feeling of Christmas really shouldn’t be limited to one day. That loving people and forgiving and accepting people for who they are should be a sentiment we share all year long. Plus, I really just love Christmas lol. 

What messages or feelings do you typically try to get across in your music?

I feel like that always changes depending on my mood, but for the most part I always want my listeners to walk away from my music feeling empowered and good about themselves. I’ve always treated music as a form of therapy, so I just hope people get to do the same with my music. 

What does a dream gig look like for you?

I wasn’t kidding when I said I was dog nut. My dream gig would be playing shows in different cities and each song a different animal from the local shelter comes out and gets the exposure to find the right home and hopefully throughout the entire tour, we could help empty some shelters and share the word to adopt and not shop animals.  

If you could tour and open for any present-day, who would it be?

If I could open for anybody today, I’d say probably someone like Noah Kahan or the Lumineers. I know I don’t sound nearly as amazing as them, but I am so inspired by them that I think getting to play for fans of music like that would be so electric. I can only imagine how inspired I’d be after playing a show like that and getting to open for such icons.