Long live the night the Reklaws arrive!

It’s summer, and great country music acts are taking to the road -- and, in the case of Canadian country sensations The Reklaws, also to the tube.

If you’re ready for some football, siblings Jenna and Stuart Walker (“Reklaw”, of course, being “Walker” spelled backwards) are considered big enough news these days to appear at the start of the CFL broadcasts on TSN.

Stuart says it’s a thrill to be linked with the country’s top gridiron greats.

“Our partnership with the CFL has been amazing!” he tells Barrie Today. “It has been so cool to see Long Live the Night take on so many different lives. Watching it play as the opening song to every game is actually crazy to us; it is such a complement to our song! The CFL is like one big family that we are so blessed to be a part of for a season!”

The list of family acts could extend around the world and then back again. But the daily grind of writing, rehearsing, recording and touring would take a toll on any relationship. Fortunately, the two seem to get along so well, that they say it’s likely they’d be singing partners, even if not blood-related.

“As we have been so apart of each other’s journey, there are so many things that we have both done to allow us to be where we are now! If we weren't related, then we wouldn't have spent the time we have, which would mean we would be on very different paths! I think we would both be interested in this business and the performing aspect, so I believe out paths would cross, because what’s meant to be is meant to be.”

The two grew up singing on the family farm near Cambridge, for tourists there to see the corn mazes, pumpkin patches and pig races. From there, they toured with the likes of Dierks Bentley, Tim McGraw, Luke Bryan, Blake Shelton and Thomas Rhett. But the aforementioned Long Live the Night proved the single that really turned heads.

“It has been quite a journey watching our fans reacting on a higher scale! I think that Hometown Kids (the current release) allowed people to take notice, but Long Live the Night cemented the fact that we are here to stay! This also means that the bar is set for the next songs we put out, which is scary but also exciting!”

The great be-bop saxophonist Charlie Parker explained the appeal of country music to doubting friends very simply: “It’s the stories. Listen to the stories.”

Jenna and Stuart concur.

“I think the main thing that makes (a country) song work is that the stories you are telling are your own, and that you are not trying to be something that you are not! Once you do that, then everything falls into place, because people can fall in love with you, not someone that you have to pretend to be.”

As stated off the top, it’s a busy summer of touring for The Reklaws, including the Queen’s Plate at Woodbine this Saturday; from there to Yonge-Dundas Square in Toronto in mid-July, then throughout Ontario, including Kempenfest on Sunday, August 5. The two are anxious to conquer a town they’ve never played before. 

“We have played close to Barrie (Boots and Hearts) but never in Barrie! We have heard some amazing things about the people and places that make up that beautiful city! We are excited to meet the fans that reside there and cannot wait to put on a show!”

To learn more about The Reklaws’ Kempenfest appearance, click here.