Inside Sheppard’s move to Nashville: The struggles, sacrifices, and hopes for a brighter musical future

Brisbane band Sheppard have revealed the heartfelt reasons and deep personal sacrifices behind their move to Nashville, after their latest album didn’t perform “in the way it deserved”.

Brisbane band Sheppard say they have decided to embark on a new chapter and to the US after their latest album didn’t perform “in the way that it deserved”.

Siblings George Sheppard, Amy Sheppard and Emma Sheppard are relocating to Nashville in October in a bid to embrace their biggest fanbase.

“America is our biggest fan base, so the goal would be to strengthen that,” George said.

Emma said the move also meant easier travel to Europe for the band.

“I think our US fans and our European fans deserve a few shows from us,” Emma said.

Having released Kaleidoscope Eyes in February 2021 while Australia was still dealing with the fallout from the height of the covid pandemic, George said it was “essentially like dropping the album into the ocean”.

“It just didn’t get the chance that it needed to be heard in the way that it deserved,” he said.

“So after Covid, we were like, ‘this next album, we’ve really got to give it the best chance of being heard and to succeed’, and unfortunately for us, that has to happen in the US and we can’t do that in Australia.”

The siblings said they were thankful their partners had embraced the big move, particularly since George’s wife Kathleen and Emma’s partner Liam had never been to Nashville before.

“Lachie (Amy’s husband) has been to Nashville but Liam and Kathleen haven’t. They’re just moving to a place they’ve never been,” Emma said.

Amy, George and Emma from the band Sheppard at New Farm Park. Picture: Nigel Hallett

George said Kathleen was leaving her job as a physiotherapist in Queensland to be a “stay-at-home wife in Nashville”.

“That to me is the most selfless thing anyone’s ever done for me, so I’m taking that very seriously and, hopefully, we can get what we need to get done over there so that we can all live happily ever after,” he said.

In the weeks leading up to their significant transition, Sheppard won’t be leaving their Aussie fans empty-handed.

They are slated to perform daily at Gold Coast’s Warner Bros Movie World from September 15th to October 2nd, and also at the Redlands Coast Festival ‘RedFest’ on September 2.

The band will then make a swift exit, setting off on their 14,300-kilometre journey from Brisbane to Nashville immediately after their stint at Movie World.

“We finish the last show on October 2, and the night of the third we fly to Sydney, ready to fly to Nashville on the fourth,” Amy shared.

Amy’s 2019 visit to Nashville played a pivotal role in choosing it over other US cities.

“First time I was there in 2019, I was amazed by the culture, the daily interactions with songwriters. My eyes just lit up. It’s a great city,” she said.

George said they were “equal parts terrified and excited”.

“It’s a huge deal for us, packing up our lives,” he said.

“We’ve made so many great connections here with hairdressers, makeup artists, clothing companies, things that we’re just leaving behind.”

But the siblings remain optimistic that the risk will pay off for them.

“We love living here. But, currently, the most exciting things happen outside of the comfort zone,” Amy said.

“It’s a big risk, but I think it’ll be the adventure of a lifetime, whether we stay there or not. I think it’s going to be a huge learning and growth experience for us.”

The band has also been working diligently on their upcoming album for nearly two years.

George said the project is “about 90-95% done”, with a tentative release set for March,

“It’s going to be our longest album to date, so it’s going to have probably about 17 tracks on it, which is a sizeable offering for our fans,” George said.

“We’re definitely wanting to leave Australia with a really sizeable chunk of music that they can listen to until we till we get back.”