Helen Townsend

As a songwriter, you’d think I’d be all over the idea of writing a little something about who I am and what I am all about. Truth is, although I love to write from the heart, when it comes to talking about myself…… oh, how I stumble! 

What I do know is that I started performing & writing songs quite late in life (in my early 40’s). I had always loved music, dancing and had been journalling my heart out, since the early 90’s, when I packed my backpack & joined the thousands of other travelling free spirits on a (3 year) journey to figure out who I was, and what I wanted from life. Turns out fate had it all sorted for me, and soon enough I was a Mum to my crazy wonderful little human, who taught me to stop running away from challenges & stand tall in the knowing of what I wanted & needed from life. The little bit of guitar playing & singing that I had learnt in my travels rendered useful for renditions of Wiggles songs to entertain my son and his friends & every now & then I’d get the courage to play a few of these in front strangers! 

However, it wasn’t until I was in my late 30’s when I realised the overwhelming fear of failure had crippled me from doing ANYTHING in the way of public performance. So, I made a pact to myself to never let FEAR stop me from doing something that I really wanted to do, and some years after I had my gorgeous daughter, I began working toward overcoming the crippling anxiety I felt from merely even speaking in front of a group of people…. let alone on a stage to thousands. 

Roll the clock forward over a decade, and now working on a 4th release, I look back on the doubt, the tears, the fears of sharing my first songs to friends & being asked “Why not?” when I said, “I can’t make a record!”. It turns out, all I needed was to be surrounded by uplifting, supportive, generous & talented people who live for music, self-expression & creation the way that I do, to help me overcome some of the self-beliefs that were getting in my way. 

So, now…. am I afraid of failure? 

No way, because I know it doesn’t exist. There is no failure – only lessons. 

I write, create & perform because it fuels my soul. It’s taught me to be honest, open, and real, and in doing so has brought connections all over the world like no other, with other performers, musicians, crew, people that come to my shows & those that share their vulnerability by letting me know how my story has just helped them! It’s given me an understanding that life is a constant challenge & we are forever morphing with the times, and to never say NO to ANYTHING that you want to do because of fear. Aside from my kids, music has been my biggest achievement & thrill in my life so far…. 

Are you keen to join me for the fun times ahead?