DB: You are currently touring with Jann Arden. How are you enjoying the experience?
TE: Jann is such an inspiration and I really respect her views on life; she's an incredible person. Before our first show she sent flowers to our dressing room to welcome us on tour with her. She came in and told us not to be nervous, and was very welcoming. She is also very hilarious. She's great and we got the chance to sit in the audience and watch her full show. We sat there laughing our heads off. There were times when I couldn't hold back the tears. It was an emotional roller coaster, for sure.
DB: What has been your most enjoyable experience of your success so far?
TE: This (making music) has always been what we've wanted to do. So to have a career that you love is great, especially when you know that there are people who get up in the morning thinking "oh no…I've got to go to work". With us, that never happens. We do what we love to do. Things like being able to play in North Carolina, opening for Mary Jane Carpenter, are amazing. There were 75,000 people there. Another huge thing is when you look out into the audience and see people singing along to your song "It's Not About You"…that's huge. When people can sing along to your song and then tell you that it helped them get over a relationship, or the death of a very close friend, is an amazing feeling.
DB: Have you found anything scary about success so far?
TE: Not really scary, no. About the only thing about the career we're in so far that's a little different is that it involves a lot of travelling. Really long plane rides and van rides, that's the only thing that wears you down. Still, it's all worth it. Having people hear you and going onto your website and writing in your guest book how much your songs mean to them makes everything worthwhile.
DB: When you're on the road, what do you do to keep yourself energized?
TE: That's a good question. We have each other; it's amazing to get to travel with your sisters. Maureen, Karen and I are all best friends. Whenever one of us gets a little bit down, we are always there to pick each other up. We are away from home a lot, so we do get homesick, but we have each other and that takes a lot of pressure off of us.
DB: Speaking of home, how do you think that your life in Newfoundland is going to change now that you are known Canada-wide?
TE: People in Newfoundland are very supportive of what we do. And at the same time they respect our space. It's really cool. They know what we do and they are very happy to see us doing it. They already know who we are, so we don't get a lot of people mauling us or anything like that (laughs).
DB: You've met and played with Jann Arden. Are there any other music stars that you've stopped and said to yourself "Oh my god, I can't believe I just met…"
TE: Not up to this point. I know last year at MerleFest, Maureen got to meet Ricky Skaggs, who we all love. We've met a lot of amazing artists and musicians and the Junos are coming up in St. John's, so it should be a good chance there.
DB: Personally, do you have a favourite music artist that you would love to meet or play with?
TE: I love this group from Australia called Bachelor Girls. It's a guy and a girl, and they're a pop act that writes their own stuff. I heard their single on the radio and I had to go out and buy their CD. It cost me about forty bucks (since it was an import). I loved every single song on it. I listened to it so much I was driving people nuts.
DB: I just asked you if you've ever had the feeling of "wow, I just met so and so". How do you feel knowing that there are now people that are thinking the same thing about meeting The Ennis Sisters?
TE: I think that's incredible! It's the coolest thing. I look up to so many people and to know that someone is looking up to me, or us, is definitely a thrill.
DB: You've got a tonne of fans so far and have really won over the East Coast, and are working on the rest of Canada. What's the craziest thing you have seen a fan do while on your quest to win over Canada?
TE: We have this one fan that is a huge supporter of what we do. Every time we are in Ontario or whenever he comes to the show, bringing a picture from the last time he saw us, and has us sign it. He has an autographed hat and shirt outfit where he has all the pictures he has taken of us with all of the autographs on the pictures and then he gets us to autograph the shirt on the picture and on the sleeves. It's really crazy, but he's such a supporter of what we do. We think it's great.
DB: What's "crazy" in your life?
TE: Our lives in general are crazy. I spend a lot of time laughing. I usually get made fun of. Maureen and Karen know exactly what to do to make me laugh.
DB: You mentioned that you and your sisters are really close and that they are what get you through the down times. Still, is it ever difficult combining the family and business aspects of making music?
TE: We're so close that it doesn't even come into the picture. We understand each other and it is never to the point where we can't approach each other. If anything, that aspect (us being family) makes it easier for us. With travelling away from home for so long life can become pretty lonely, but when we're together, a lot of pressure is off. It is really cool to experience difference places, cultures and music together...like one long family vacation.
DB: If you had to describe you and each of your sisters, how would you describe yourselves?
TE: I would be the comic relief in the group. When things get to be a little bit monotonous I always come up with something to relieve the tension. Karen, she has a lot to do with the business. She is totally a businessperson and she looks after the money. Maureen is creative. She is the motherly figure. She makes sure we are okay and aren't out too late partying our asses off. Besides that, she is the songwriter; something she is great at.
DB: Where, ultimately, do you want to go with your music?
TE: We just want to try as many things as possible. This CD is our original stuff. It is amazing how many of our fans supported us from our first CD of traditional music and told us that they loved where we went with the new release. We want to be able to touch as many people with our music and our songs as we can.
DB: And where do you see yourself in twenty years?
TE: We were talking to Jann Arden a couple of days ago about her career and how far she has come. She has been doing this for 25 years. It would be amazing to still be doing this in 25 years. This is our first love; this is what we love to do. Hopefully, we will be able to buy houses and a car and just make a living.
DB: Do you see yourself returning home to Newfoundland?
TE: I think that Newfoundland will forever be my home. Yes, I might go down and visit the south, but definitely Newfoundland.
By Dave Brosha, CanEHdian.com (March, 2002)
