Despite writing songs since she was a primary school pupil in Peterhead, Jennifer Masala never pictured herself becoming a recording artist.
Yet, over the past 18 months, the former music teacher has been turning her real-life experiences into songs for her debut EP.
“I’ve been doing music since I was wee – singing before I could speak,” she said. “I just loved it.
“I wrote a little song in my Spice Girls tribute band in primary school and all throughout my teenage years, but I didn’t think a lot about doing anything with it.”
The 36-year-old grew up in Peterhead, attending the town’s secondary school where her parents both worked as teachers, before moving to Glasgow to study music and psychology at university.
She later qualified as a teacher, sharing her love of music with youngsters at primary and secondary schools across the north-east.
Finding her tribe
After getting married, Jennifer moved to Germany with her husband – where her two constants were her music and faith.
“I didn’t know anybody or the language, so for a wee while I didn’t do anything apart from songwriting,” she said.
Twelve years on, the couple have settled in Hanover with their three young children who have been a big inspiration for Jennifer’s music.
“I’ve been leading the music team at our church for the past seven years,” she said. “I took part in an online conference here in Germany about 18 months ago for young mums coming out of maternity leave, which felt like the start of something new.”
About 18 months ago, the mum-of-three came across an advert for the The Songwriting Academy’s professional mentoring programme where she was able to “find her tribe”.
“It all exploded from there,” she said. “I felt like I was hearing my own heartbeat again for the first time in a long time.”
First single release this week
Although she had planned to focus on songwriting, she was encouraged by her fellow songwriters and peers to also record and release her music.
She will share her debut single, titled Hold On, with the world on May 26 and her EP will follow in September.
The songs are mainly piano-based with a country pop feel, with one she described as having a “Scottish flavour” featuring the bagpipes.
“I wasn’t sure all the songs would sit together on an EP, but people who have heard them say it works due to my stories and the writing style,” she said.
“The songs are about faith, family and identity – all from my own journey. And, my music is my way of connecting with others. There will be some who feel understood through these songs, so I’m keen to get them out to those people.”
Conversation