Singer-songwriter Francesca Panetta is aiming for a recording deal after releasing her first professional EP earlier this month.

The 22-year-old Thornton resident has always had a passion for music and says Barrie today she started singing when she was quite young.

“I sang in the school choir and then started taking lessons with a local teacher around the age of 12,” she says.

Panetta also participated in musical theater as a teenager and learned to play the piano and guitar along the way.

“I had tried songwriting, but over the past two years I got back to songwriting for real and have been doing it over and over since,” she says.

It was her first time working in a recording studio for the graduate from Sainte-Jeanne d’Arc, as well as her first time with a producer.

“What drove me to do the EP was that I had a visit from a distant relative shortly before I decided to do the EP who asked me how things were musically. “, she says. “He mentioned he had a contact at a record company in Nashville.”

While Panetta was still writing her own music, at the time, she hadn’t done anything public with it yet. After the family friend contacted her contacts, Panetta learned that the record company executives were interested in seeing a portfolio, which was when she realized it was time to put together something. professional thing.

“That’s what drove me to do something in the studio in the first place,” she says.

Panetta worked with Your Production producer Jeff Wardell to create the six-song EP.

“He was very patient. We did that a lot through COVID, so it was pretty tough. We talked a lot remotely, by SMS. When it was a little safer I went to record … and then we got to talk a little more in person about how we wanted it to sound.

Panetta admits that recording an album during a pandemic was a difficult process. She recorded all the demos in a small studio set up in her bedroom – most of which were used in the final EP, titled When the Sunshine Rains.

While Panetta can’t quite put her finger on a specific reason she was drawn to this musical path, she says growing up in a music loving family is probably a big part of it.

“(Music) has always been a part of my life. It’s very therapeutic and the songwriting itself is a good way for me to release my anxieties and focus on my sanity as well, ”she says.

Although she grew up listening to a mix of musical genres, the album that inspired her the most was Shania Twain’s. The biggest hits.

“I remember Party for two was like my song. I have always jumped on this trail. My dad loved classic rock and my mom loves some crooners like Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin. So I grew up with two very retro genres, and I think that also had a huge impact on my sound, ”she says. “Although I really like modern music, my own style is very close to the 1980s… (or) at least, it comes from that time. “

Although she is reluctant to classify itself in any particular genre of music, Panetta says her sound tends to lean more towards “folk pop with a bit of country”.

“I want to continue to be creative in the way I explore creating new music, so I don’t really want to conform to a specific genre,” she says.

Panetta hopes her music will catch the attention of record labels now.

“I’ve been to music my whole life. I struggled a lot when I was in high school to see if I wanted to give this music a chance in its own right. When entering the arts, a lot of people tell you that it is impractical and that it should have a back-up plan, but eventually I decided that I am young now and that I might as well try this, ”says -she.

“I’m lucky to have the opportunity to try this, so I can too. If in 10 years I don’t get anything, I’ll go to school and play music at the same time, but for now, I really want to give it my all.