Trending 23rd April 2021 by Denise Curtin

18 Things You Didn’t Know About Stephanie Rainey

The Cork native's brand new track Ross & Rachel is out now!

1. I have a super cute beagle named Freddie. He’s the best boy but he once ate through a couch at an Air BNB. We came back from dinner and saw the couch and we had to go tell the owners. It’s definitely one of the top 10 most horrifying moments I’ve ever experienced. We’re now really good friends with the owners of the place but Freddie is not allowed back to their house.

2. My favourite time of year is Spring or early Autumn. I love when the weather is nice but there’s a freshness in the air. Pure heaven.

3. I can sing all of Westlife’s ‘Flying Without Wings’ in Irish – it’s a long story.

4. I have 3 amazing older brothers and I’m the only girl in the family. I think that gave me a double whammy of privilege growing up – the youngest and the only girl. It was a sweet deal – it kind of still is.

5. I experienced a huge loss when I was younger when my nephew passed away suddenly from meningitis. I think that shaped me as a person and has made me very close to my family. It also had a huge impact on what I write about and how I interact with people. It made me want to make music that’s honest and real.
6. I once broke three of my toes at the start of a gig. I dropped a Fender Telecaster guitar on them but I had to play the entire 2 hour show. That was a dark day.

7. I have had a fringe for most of my adult life. When I was shooting the video for 100 Like Me in London – we realised that my fringe was just a little too long on camera. The hair stylist had left and I had to go around the corner to a little barber shop and my manager explained to the guy that I needed a really, really good fringe trim and that if it went wrong it would be bad. You could cut the tension with a knife. He nailed it – shakey hands and all.

8. My career highlight would have to be when my song Please Don’t Go went viral. That was such a crazy experience that nobody could have prepared me for. Being flown to all different parts of the world and meeting such amazing people is something I’ll never forget.

9. I do a meet and greet after every single show and stay until I’ve met everyone who wants to say hi. I love getting to know the people who are fans of my music. They always have a reason that they started listening and it reminds me of why I do it. It’s my favourite part of any gig.

10. I think new stationary is one of life’s most amazing things.

11. I’m obsessed with reality TV. Give me an episode of Teen Mom or Keeping Up With The Kardashians. I don’t know why – it’s all just so easy to watch. I also love anything crime related.

12. It’s not my drink of choice but every now and then I love to have a pint of Guiness.

13. I once got a spin from Sligo to Cork in a helicopter to make it back for a gig. It was amazing.

14. I once went parascending out the back of a boat in Spain but I kinda ended up in an awkward position in the harness. My friend was next to me and I was turning to her being like ‘I can’t breathe’. She was super confused but then I passed out up in the air and she was waving for help but they just thought she was waving at them. After a minute or two they realised I was just dangling there and crash dipped us in the water. An iconic moment.

15. In terms of food I’m obsessed with anything spicy. I have chillies on everything – eggs, beans, hummus – everything. My favourite meal is a thai red curry with extra chillies. If you come for dinner in my house, that’s more than likely what you’ll get – a really good curry. That being said my post gig go-to meal is beans on toast. You can’t beat it.

16. My dream collaboration would be with Coldplay, Finneas, Maren Morris or Paul McCartney.

17. The best place I’ve ever visited is Lake Bled in Slovenia. I went interailing a few years ago and this was one of our stops. I remember looking at pictures of it before we got there thinking it couldn’t actually look that beautiful in real life. It was. Another place that I absolutely loved was Santorini in Greece, that place is magic.

18. The music video we shot for No Cowboy in LA was done completely on the fly so all the people you see around me and the different moments that happen are completely unscripted and real. Walking through a packed Hollywood Boulevard at peak tourist time singing to camera was one of the most mortifying but amazing things I’ve ever done. I was convinced I’d end up on influencers in the wild.

You can listen to Stephanie’s new track here!

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