Amy Sheppard (born 23 September 1990) is an Australian singer-songwriter, and along with her siblings George and Emma, is a founding and current member of indie pop band Sheppard.[2][3] She released her debut extended play, Nothing But Wild in September 2022.
In 2009, Sheppard and her brother George formed a musical duo which they named Sheppard. Amy had asked for help on a music assignment: "I had to write a song, and I really wanted to put in harmonies, but I'd left it to the last minute. George was the only one at home".[4] For the duo Amy provided vocals, while George was on lead vocals and piano. In 2011, Jay Bovino – George's friend from Sydney – joined as the third songwriter and rhythm guitarist. By 2012, their six-member line-up also included Amy's sister Emma on bass and backing vocals, Michael Butler on lead guitar, and Jared Tredly on drums.[5]
Their debut studio album, Bombs Away, was released on 11 July 2014, and peaked at No. 2 on the ARIA Albums Chart and was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association, and its lead single, "Geronimo", spent three weeks at No. 1 on the ARIA Singles Chart and was certified 5× platinum.[6] The album's second single, "Something's Missing", was issued to coincide with that tour, which peaked at No. 35 on the ARIA Singles Chart.[7] In March 2015, "Bombs Away" debuted on the American Billboard 200 at No. 31.[8] Sheppard supported Meghan Trainor on the North American leg of her That Bass Tour across March and April 2015.
2016–2018: Second studio album
On 1 November 2016, "We Belong" was released by Sheppard. On 1 December 2017, they released a 4-track covers EP titled Undercover, featuring the lead single "Waves". In January 2018, Sheppard announced their single "Coming Home" had been certified gold and announced their second studio album Watching the Sky would be released in June 2018.[9] The album debuted at No.1 on the ARIA Charts[10][11] and the band announced their Australian tour in July.[12]
n December 2018, it was announced that they were among the acts who will be participating in Eurovision – Australia Decides, the Australian national final to select the country's representative for the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 in Tel Aviv.[13] In February 2019, Sheppard released "On My Way" and performed the song at the final of Australia Decides, placing 3rd out of 10 performers.[14]
2019–present: Solo career and continue Sheppard success
After she attended the CMC Rocks Festival in Ipswich in 2019, Sheppard began exploring country music.[2] Speaking to Pario in 2022, she said, "I'm a huge fan of country music. We grew up listening to a lot of country music. In fact, I was hearing that music when I was learning how to song write so I've always had a lot of country influences." She added after she "somewhat lost her identity as an individual to the band" and wanted to rediscover who she is as an artist. She said "My whole adult life has been Sheppard and building this amazing career that we have managed to build up. This solo project is actually forcing me to take a deep dive into discovering who I am as an individual, which I think is going to be a huge learning curve for me. But I am looking forward to going on the journey."[2]
On 22 October 2020, the band announced the title of their third studio album, Kaleidoscope Eyes and its release date of 19 February 2021. The album was released on 26 February, one week after its original release date.[15] On 8 November 2021, they announced their first Christmas single "Christmas Without You" would be released on 14 November.[16]
Sheppard's debut solo single, "Nothing but Wild" was released on 21 April 2022.[17][18] She said "'Nothing But Wild' explores my innate desire to regularly escape the city in order to reconnect with my wild side and natural surroundings."[19]
On 5 August 2022, Sheppard released her second solo single "Blue Guitar" and announced the release of her debut EP, Nothing but Wild.[3] It debuted at number 16 on the ARIA Charts.[20]
In February 2023, the band announced their new single, "Good Time", will be released on 17 March 2023.[21]
^"Awards". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Archived from the original on 20 October 2014. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
^"Most Played Australian Work". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). 2014. Archived from the original on 11 March 2015. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
^"Pop Work of the Year". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). 2014. Archived from the original on 11 March 2015. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
^"Most Played Australian Work". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). 2015. Archived from the original on 19 March 2016. Retrieved 24 March 2016.
^"Pop Work of the Year". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). 2015. Archived from the original on 19 March 2016. Retrieved 24 March 2016.
^"Song of the Year". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) | Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS). 2015. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
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