In Her Own Words: Amanda Marshall's Triumphant Return
Amanda Marshall allowed me to pull the conversation to places I think most interest the curious. The early hits, rocking management, twenty-year quiet period, and renewed energy and embrace of recording and touring.
By Bill King
Amanda Marshall possesses one of those welcoming voices that linger past each play. Warm, soulful, and honest. The same can be said for this extended conversation. Music folks are the best interviews. Promo-confined chats are mostly shallow and uninteresting. Marshall allowed me to pull the conversation to places I think most interest the curious. The early hits, rocking management, twenty-year quiet period, and renewed energy and embrace of recording and touring.
The hits came in bunches and album sales. She has released three studio albums; the first was certified Diamond in Canada, with the latter two certified 3× Platinum and Platinum, respectively. It was the award-winning Birmingham that charted internationally and climbed to #3 on Canada’s charts, solidifying her presence and place next to the pillars of the Canadian woman's power movement in recorded music.
Marshall speaks freely, with much to say positively about the journey ahead. This is where we start today on this FYI Music News podcast!
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It has been more than a decade and a half since Amanda released new music and her brand new single I Hope She Cheats was released on March 31st via Coalition Music /The Orchard. Her new album, Heavy Lifting, is currently slated for release early this summer.
Amanda is also hitting Canadian stages with a cross-country tour that kicks off on June 11 in Moncton, NB with stops across the country including performances at Toronto’s Massey Hall and Ottawa’s National Arts Centre. Tickets are now on sale.
Amanda is extremely excited to return with Heavy Lifting, a record she is proud to have made on her own for the first time in her career. Originally the new collection of songs was going to come out in 2020 in celebration of Amanda’s Diamond certified self-titled debut album, but Covid sidelined those plans and Amanda is thrilled to get this new music out there, and to connect with fans again.
Powered by her trademark soulful voice, Amanda Marshall’s self-titled debut album has the distinction of being one of only 24 Canadian albums to achieve Diamond certification in Canada, the result of sales exceeding one million copies domestically. Worldwide, the album has racked up sales of over six million units since 1995 in the wake of seven Top 10 singles including Let It Rain, Dark Horse and Birmingham. It launched the Toronto-born Marshall onto the international stage and made her the chosen tour opener for Tears For Fears, John Mellencamp, Simply Red, and the incomparable late Whitney Houston, among others.
Amanda followed up her debut with two more multi-Platinum selling albums, 1999’s Tuesday’s Child and 2001’s Everybody’s Got A Story. After spending more than a decade away from the scene and re-tooling her career, Amanda is extremely excited to be returning with Heavy Lifting.
The new 11-song collection shows that Amanda’s voice remains a force of nature and that her skills are as sharp as ever. It’s clear on the opening track and first single I Hope She Cheats, featuring a searing lyric about getting over heartbreak and Marshall seamlessly blending her trademark soulful blues-rock approach with modern R&B.
