Q1, Would you like to introduce yourself?
Oh hi! My name is Elyse Saunders, I’m a country artist, I have so much fun jumping around on stage and I really love writing songs and then hearing them come to life in the studio! I also have two cats named after country music stars. Their names are Pearl and Dolly.
I have a new single out called “Free” that is also at Canadian radio, which I am super pumped about!

Q2, Did you ever run away from home?
I definitely thought about it as a kid if I was mad about something. Why do kids ever think that they’d actually run away? I would threaten my parents and they’d calmly be like “okay that’s fine, you go do that…” They obviously knew I wouldn’t.

Q3, How successful do you think you are?
If you don’t believe you’re successful, then you aren’t. I believe in my successes!

Q4, Reveal a secret about yourself.
Hmm… I’m a world’s mysteries seeker. Haha! I could talk for hours about things like “Where did the Mayans go?”, “How did Egyptians build the pyramids?”, “What’s in space?” You know, that kind of stuff.

Q5, What has been your most glorious failure?
Oh my goodness. That’s tough, because I basically fail at something at least once a day. A fail that might be a funny one to tell is when I saw Jason Aldean playing in concert. I was in the front row, leaning towards the stage when he reached out for my hand, and put the mic up to my mouth. The idea was for me to sing, but nothing came out. I was stunned. I definitely kicked myself in the butt for not experiencing a brief duet with Jason.

Q6, When were you first asked for your autograph?
When I played my very first big show in front of 10,000 people at my hometown’s outdoor festival. I was just starting out in my career and had come home from a recording trip in Nashville. I had an opportunity to open for Deric Ruttan and had been practicing for a whole month or so to get ready for the show. After I was done, I was amazed to see a lineup of people coming over for my demo and an autograph.
So this was when I was first asked for my autograph, but it was that day – on that stage – that I knew I could really do this.

Q7, Where do you draw the line with publicity shots?
I’ve never been the kind of person that would take an outrageous publicity shot. I’m willing to push the envelope a bit, but I’m a shy gal. I don’t like to reveal too much.

Q8, And, most importantly, what is your favourite type of cookie?
“Mmm… cookies.” (said in Homer Simpson’s voice). I love a good ole fashioned oatmeal cookie, but I will also never say no to white macadamia nut… it’s just too darn delicious. Truthfully, I’d probably never say no to any type of cookie.