Stephanie Quayle Is a Better Observer Because of Her Difficult Past [Interview]
The Stephanie Quayle that people encounter today isn’t the same Stephanie fans might have met before her newest deeply tender album, On the Edge.
This 8-track album is a story of refinement and redemption, a journey of a 13-year period of finding out her boyfriend’s infidelity after he died tragically in a plane crash, and the complex emotions waiting on the other side of that.
“The Stephanie people are getting to know better is the 'why' behind you get through this,” she tells Taste of Country. “I think for all of my career, I’ve always said whatever you’re going through, keep going, get back in the saddle.’
The singer is naturally optimistic, but as a side effect, Quayle recognizes it has sometimes birthed the feeling of being unrelatable. Which, for Quayle, is far from the truth.
As people listen to the storytelling in these songs, she anticipates that through her vulnerability, people learn that they can trust her, and that there is space where opposing emotions can co-exist, one not negating the other. She’s been on the highest of mountains and in the deepest valleys, using both as personal refinement to the woman she is today.
She notes there’s a big takeaway she reflects on often from all she's endured, one that she tries to implement into her daily life.
“I hope I’ve become a better observer,” she shares. “My nature is to jump in. Sometimes it’s okay to let the feelings be.”
For Quayle, her podcast that has accompanied her album has caused more discomfort than the music.
“Speaking it out loud is much heavier than singing it,” she shares. “Because music is so comforting. You have the melody and bounce of a lyric to kind of ease you through. Whereas when you speak it, it’s just naked.”
For Quayle, this new season of life she’s stepped into is a breath of fresh, boundless air.
“The songwriter side of me is hitting a new place, and that’s because it’s unguarded,” she shares.
With her past on display, she now can express her current feelings in real time.
“That doesn’t mean that you ignore the muck of it, as we say on the farm,” she warmly expresses. “I now know what it feels like to recover, so now my hope is others will hear things and flip that switch quicker.”
When she listens to the album now, it doesn’t take her breath, but still catches it.
“Being as present as I am,” she shares when asked what is bringing her joy after having this album out. “I want to impact as many lives as I can… where we aren’t talking about toxic relationships anymore. Is it narcissistic to want to eradicate narcissism?!”