00:05Hi, my name is McKenna Faith Winters. I am 18 years old and I am a country pop artist who
00:10has
00:1021 songs out and my 22nd song is coming out September 15th and I'm here with Yaya Diamond.
00:31Yaya Diamond, dream chasers, we won't wait. Subscribe today before it's too late. Inspiration flowin' just like the breeze. Chase
00:42your dreams and feel at ease.
00:47Be good. Be very good.
00:51And I would like to thank the Academy for this award. That's what she said. I am not lying to
00:58you. That is my dream.
00:59Like to get, wait, hold on a second. Hold on. Hold on. Yes. Oh my gosh. Thank you so much.
01:06That's what she, I mean, come on. It's like a dream come true. You rock on stage. Like, and I
01:11would like to thank the Academy.
01:15Blew my mind when I found out about this next guest. Okay. Stella award winner. She's 18. I'm so far
01:25behind.
01:27Oh my gosh. I am so excited to have her on the show though. This is just a blessing. This
01:32is, this is what I do for a living.
01:34My name is Yaya Diamond. I am the host and founder of dream chasers radio. We have been broadcasting since
01:402006 and I'm an OG, but I am not tired yet because this next guest just blew my mind.
01:49Do I have to leave and show you again? I would like to thank the Academy. No, we got to
01:54get her on here. Thank you so much for joining us. McKenna Faith Winters is here today. Girl, when you
01:59walked on the stage, what did you say?
02:01What did I say? What did you say? My name is McKenna Faith Winters and I'm 18 years old.
02:07That's it. That's it girl. What? What?
02:12McKenna, thank you so much for joining us. Thank you so much for having me.
02:17Oh my gosh. So, okay. Okay. So you win the award. You go on the stage. How was it?
02:25Um, well, obviously it's the Grand Ole Opry stage. Yeah. The circle and everything. Um, so I kind of just
02:34gave a generic speech, thanking my parents and my producer and everything for they've done for everything they've done for
02:40me.
02:40Um, it really was a night to remember for sure. And we're actually going back for the Josie awards and
02:46about two and a half weeks here, three weeks. So we're really excited.
02:52Yeah. I'm telling you just everybody's going to the Josie or the Josie's.
02:57There's so many people go. I was outside the Josie's last night. I mean, not last night, last year. What
03:02am I talking about? Hello. Last year I was outside the Josie's.
03:06I had something going on and I wasn't able to attend and it was just like, Oh, but man, I'm
03:12so happy for you. Okay. So how you're 18. How did this start for you? Don't be talking about I've
03:17been in this for years.
03:20Well, so, um, it really started one day. I came home from school. Um, my school had a little, I
03:27say kind of talent show the spring or winter concert.
03:30I can't remember which one it was, but it came home and told my parents that I had a solo
03:34in our concert. And I think I was in third or fourth grade.
03:37Um, my job was the shyest kid ever when I was younger, uh, still am a little bit, but they
03:43were very surprised.
03:44And then, um, when COVID hit around sixth grade, uh, singing was still something that I love to do.
03:50And my dad and I, yeah, I was about 12 when we started posting videos on YouTube and stuff.
03:57And then, um, and then we just, we just kept going with my social media and we've met so many
04:05new people and so many amazing people that help have helped me live along the way too.
04:09So somebody get my cane. I feel so old right now. She's talking about when I was in third and
04:18fourth grade when COVID hit, when I was in sixth grade.
04:21Like, whoo! It's been that long?
04:24It has. It has. About six years.
04:26It feels like it was yesterday.
04:28It does. It really does. Yeah.
04:30I'm still recovering.
04:32I know. I think, I think we know more.
04:35My gosh. So that is good though. I mean, the talent.
04:38Now, a lot of people don't understand how much work goes into this.
04:46Pictures, recording studios, writing, musicians.
04:50Um, have you gone on tour yet?
04:52I have not, but I do have my own band back home.
04:55We, we travel a lot between Wisconsin and, um, Chicago area, the suburbs, um, and a little bit farther south
05:02in Illinois to, um, to do shows and stuff.
05:05So I'm not touring yet, but we are doing shows about every week.
05:09So it's really exciting.
05:10Wow. That is so good. That's so good.
05:12You make me feel old.
05:16I know it's okay. It's okay.
05:18You know, I was just going to keep all that to myself, but tell us about your music.
05:26I mean, you know, it went from a talent show to winning an award.
05:31I mean, come on.
05:31Yeah. Um, well, it really started.
05:35Um, my dad and I went to this kind of writers.
05:37I say we were like writers retreat in Nashville.
05:40Um, it's called full circle music, um, by Seth Mosley.
05:44He puts it on.
05:45And I was 14 when I went to this.
05:48Um, and that's where I met songwriters who eventually, um, showed me a song that they wanted me to sing.
05:54Cause I was not a writer. I was only 14.
05:56Um, and I really just wanted to start getting music out there and start getting myself out to the world
06:02more.
06:03And, um, that's when they handed me, I'm doing country night, which I released July 4th in 2023.
06:08Um, I absolutely love this. Absolutely love this.
06:13You know, when you think about your music today and the future, cause you're 18, just, yeah.
06:21Listen, I'm going to be 54 years old in the next six days.
06:27Happy early birthday.
06:30But my grandchildren could be 18.
06:42Excuse me.
06:43I'm going through a midlife crisis, I guess.
06:45I don't know.
06:47But what I do know is that I'm very proud of you.
06:50Because at such a young age, you're going after what you know.
06:53So what is that process like for you, for writing, for rehearsals, for your shows?
07:00Is it different than just sitting around hoping and wishing?
07:06Oh yeah, for sure.
07:07I mean, there's definitely times where you kind of feel like let down in certain days.
07:13I mean, but you really just gotta keep your hopes up because this thing is an up and down thing
07:18in the music industry.
07:18So going to rehearsals every week and having shows every weekend really keeps my mindset on what I want to
07:24do.
07:25Mm hmm.
07:26I see that you have your website and I absolutely love it.
07:30I'm going to go ahead and feature that right now.
07:31So McKenna Faith Winters and your website is right underneath your name.
07:37It's McKennaFaithWinters.com.
07:39So I'm going to go ahead and go back to your website.
07:41I love your pictures.
07:43Love what you've done, you know, behind the scenes.
07:46You have your EPK, your store, your shows.
07:50What's the future for you?
07:51Because I know that you said that you have, and we were talking about this earlier, that you have new
07:56music coming out too.
07:57But what's out right now and what's out for the future?
08:00Yeah, so right now I actually released my debut album called How Do You Miss Me in February.
08:07I haven't released anything since because I've been really working on promoting that and getting my music out there more.
08:12That album, I mean, it's really changed a lot.
08:15It's got about over 200,000 streams now total, which is great for an independent artist, I think.
08:22And this new one coming out, it's called People Who Say Hi.
08:25It's coming out September 15th.
08:27I kind of tell the story during my shows, like as an 18-year-old who's addicted to her phone.
08:32And we actually talk about it a lot with COVID and stuff.
08:35I feel like the world has lost just the interaction part with each other.
08:42Everybody's on social media, on their phones, even walking in public.
08:45People don't say hi anymore.
08:46So that's really what People Who Say Hi is about.
08:49The first person saying hi when you're on public and not head down or even as strangers.
08:54That's the kind of thing I talk about at shows and stuff.
08:56It's really important to say hi and make other people feel like they're not alone.
09:00That's sweet. I love that.
09:02That's why I started this show because I want to inspire people to go after their dreams.
09:06You know, it's hard enough to want a dream.
09:10But you, like you, McKenna, are, you know, inspiring other people to go after their dreams or goals,
09:16regardless of their age, you know, whether they're 18, whether they're 7, or whether they're 53.
09:22Right. No, exactly. There's no age limit to following your dreams. Not at all.
09:28No, no. I mean, look at all these older actors that didn't make it until their 50s and their 60s,
09:34you know,
09:34and they're some of the best actors out there.
09:36So, I mean, I wouldn't have had it any other way, you know.
09:40So, I want to thank you so much.
09:42What would be an inspiring word that you would give to, you know, the people coming up after you,
09:49or even older people like me that want to do something but are too scared to do it?
09:55Yeah, I did have a lot of trouble with that growing up.
09:58There was this time right before I went to the Full Circle music thing when I was 14,
10:03where I was telling my parents, I just don't know if this is for me.
10:05I was still the kind of kid that was really scared of chasing her dreams and scared of what other
10:11people would think.
10:12So, I would just honestly say don't care what people think so much and follow your dreams no matter what.
10:17I really had people around me to show me that I wouldn't have this talent and this dream if God
10:22didn't put it in my mind
10:23and believe that I could achieve it.
10:25So, I just think that it's very important to, if you have a dream in your mind,
10:30that there's no reason you shouldn't be able to achieve it with hard work.
10:33That's right, that's right.
10:35Thank you so much, McKenna, for being on the show.
10:38Do you have like social media where people can find you and follow you?
10:41Yeah, all my social media is McKenna Faith Winters Music.
10:44So, everything you can find Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram are my main three that I use.
10:50And it's also, I see the icons on your website.
10:52So, if people go to McKennaFaithWinters.com, you can go ahead and click on those icons over there.
10:58And those should take you to her social media, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, and also Spotify.
11:06Oh my gosh, McKenna, thank you so much for being on the show.
11:09I appreciate it.
11:11Thank you so much for having me.
11:12It was so much fun.
11:13Oh, good, good, cool.
11:15And then you can just like, you know, when you go back on the stage and you win it again,
11:19you'll be happy and you have to go like this, you have to go, oh, I want to thank the
11:21Academy.
11:25Thank you for sure.
11:28And thank you guys so much for tuning in.
11:30We're going to have all those links in the description box below.
11:32So, it'll be easy for you to find her.
11:33And don't forget to like, support, listen to the music, purchase the music, okay?
11:38Because we all know here, I have said it over and over and over again.
11:42Spotify pays us per spin or per play 0.006 cents.
11:49Not even a penny.
11:51Not even a penny.
11:52We get paid one time, one time.
11:55So, buy the music.
11:57It's 99 cents, $1.99.
11:59Go get a t-shirt, do something to support.
12:01I mean, seriously, support your local musicians and support the youth coming up in the music industry.
12:08Thank you, McKenna, so much.
12:09And thank you guys again.
12:11And until next time, guys, don't forget to do it to be different.
12:14Bye.
12:15McKenna, don't go nowhere.
12:17Okay.
12:17Bye.
12:22Bye.
12:26Bye.
12:29Bye.
12:34Bye.
12:34Bye.
12:35Bye.
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