Carolyn Harley is a songwriter and singer from Calgary and is getting ready to release her latest album Heartbeat of the World on February 15.

Harley has been writing songs and performing most of her life, "I've been doing it for a long time since I was a young mom was when I wrote my first songs and I am a grandmother now so that gives you an idea of how long I have been doing it."

Harley had been writing poetry starting in her teens, fondly she remembers a day she was down scrubbing the floor and started to sing a song, before she had picked up the guitar Harley was writing songs she could sing and decided that she needed to learn the guitar to bring these songs to life.

Growing up in a home filled with music Harley developed her love for it very early on, playing the piano watching her parents sing in different choirs, and participating in musical theatre on air force base in Northern Ontario, all of these experiences helped to keep her connection with music throughout her life.

There are always places that stick out in a performers mind as favourites and just before Covid hit in 2020 two things happened for Harley that had her feeling fantastic musically, "One I got to open at the Rocky Mountain Folk Club for Emily Triggs," and most recently Harley attended Folk Alliance in New Orleans to sing in the Alberta room, "It was amazing to be there and to be immersed in all of that music and to be representing Alberta."

Harley found inspiration to continue with her writing after attending these events, "I truly believe music can offer so much to people and having the ability to write songs, and I have written hundreds over the years because I have been writing so long, that now I have an obligation almost to give back and share music into the world."

As a performer, Harley enjoys getting the opportunity to share her music, along with that she feels the connection to the audience during her performances when she gets to share the meaning behind her songs. Talking to people who have been to her shows she feels that connection and positive energy returned, getting to share a piece of herself through her music and her storytelling with an audience is something that she will always do.

Harley has found her journey to be very organic and therapeutic, and found that even more while creating her new album, "I started writing some songs before the pandemic hit when we thought the world couldn't get any crazier and then it did, and then I started writing more in the spring and summer months just about how I was feeling about what was going on in the world."

How this album came to be is one more of those organic moments in her life. After posting a picture on social media of herself as a young woman holding a guitar and asking if anyone knew what kind of guitar this was, Aaron Young from Ghostboy said it was a Stella guitar and he had one for sale if she was interested. The guitar in the photo had been stolen from Harley years ago so finding a replacement gave her that feeling of coming full circle in her songwriting.

That chance encounter with Young was the catalyst to working together on this project. When Young came to deliver the guitar they started talking about her songs, and the fact that he had a studio with 2 separate rooms, this made Harley feel safe to go in and record, and out of one Facebook post, her project was put into motion.

Collaborating with Young on this project is something that she is very proud of, "This project is called Heartbeat Of The World, the song itself I just wanted it to have that sense of connection around the whole world."

The new album Heartbeat of the World releases on February 15th and the songs on this album are all very unique, this album will be available to stream but Harley also feels that support of independent artists is very important, "The best way to support artists right now is to go to artists websites and buy directly from the musicians then they will get the bulk of that income."

A self-proclaimed late bloomer, Harley has a show on Facebook Live on Tuesday mornings that is called the Late Bloomer Show, Harley will do a theme-based one hour show of her songs, where she can continue that interaction with the audience and build those connections. Her goal with this show is to bring some laughter and music and encouragement to those who watch it, and mainly to come together and connect again with one another.

To find more on Carolyn Harley, her music, and when she will be getting back on the stage visit carolynharley.com or follow her on social media @carolynharleymusic.

Hear the title track to her project here:  {mp3}heartbeat{/mp3}