BY TRICIA DESPRES
There is no way to describe Jenny Tolman in a few short words.
It is impossible.
Sweet yet sassy, vintage yet fresh, an old soul with a new vision and some incredible comedic timing, the intriguing country music songstress is the breath of fresh air that the genre needs now.
“There's always been multiple sides to me,” giggles Tolman. “I really like to make people laugh and have a good time and be entertaining. But then, I also really love to use that personality to get people engaged to listen to the deep stuff.”
Having woven the incredible storyline of her life into her music thus far, Tolman has found a way to create albums which tie up all that life has handed her – both the good and the bad and the downright tragic – and makes it sound beautiful.
“She is practically single handedly bringing humor back to country music and deserves our heartiest applause for doing so,” longtime MusicRow contributor Robert K Oermann explains.
From her chance meeting with Nashville producing-powerhouse and future fiancée Dave Brainard to his tragic attack on a Nashville street a few short months later to the love story that will finally be cemented forevermore on their wedding day in 2022, all of life’s ups and downs cleverly find themselves within the songs and sentiments of Jenny Tolman.
Tolman’s story began right here in Music City, an adorable baby girl born to a rhinestone-wearing Steve Tolman, who worked with the likes of Burt Reynolds, and eventually becoming a member of a vocal quartet by the name of the Indian River Boys. It was those boys that ended up finding their way onto a Garth Brooks album and into the hearts of listeners across Tennessee.
A visionary from a young age whose favorite colors were bright pink and lime green, Tolman immersed herself in the works of authors such as Shel Silverstein and songwriters such as Roger Miller and Bobby Bare, finding herself constantly enamored by the way they could tell a simple story exquisitely.
But soon, that idyllic childhood began to crumble, as Tolman found herself in high school and dealing with some cruel realities, leaving her nowhere to go.
There was just one place.
“I started writing songs…in an effort to heal,” she says quietly.
"In Jennyville, there is beauty, but also warts, and her songwriting exposes both with humor, candor and a heaping helping of compassion,” explains Brittney McKenna of Rolling Stone.
In 2020, Tolman released her debut album There Goes the Neighborhood, a 13-song concept album of sorts in which Tolman found herself playing a long list of roles and characters within a melodic, made-up story. The project debuted in the Top 25 of Billboard’s Country Album Sales Chart and finished off the year being named as one of the top country albums of the year by Rolling Stone.
And while the rest of the world grew weary of an ongoing pandemic, Tolman found a bevy of bright spots in 2021, including a feature withPEOPLE, an appearance on the wildly popular TLC program Say Yes to the Dress and a long list of tour dates to satisfy the country artist’s growing fandom.
“I always say that if you can make people laugh, then you make them feel comfortable with you,” Tolman explains. “And once they're comfortable with you, it opens the door to let them in a little closer and hear the more meaningful messages that are hidden in the music.”
The year also allowed her to bring her voice to the forefront in the most incredible of ways when she was given the chance to honor American hero Lance Cpl. Rylee McCollum, who was killed in Kabul while serving his country, with the touching song “Lonely in the Lone Star.”
“I write songs to help others heal,” she says. “I help them find their laughter again and their joy again. That’s what helped me when I needed to get out of those phases of my own life.”
Which brings us to Married in a Honky Tonk, a kaleidoscope of stories and emotions which just might encapsulate everything Jenny Tolman is and just what she brings to the country music table at this crucial moment. The album also plays as if one is there sitting in the front row of Tolman’s show, in which one feels the kinetic energy of every note.
“Especially after the pandemic and not being able to play as much as we would have liked to, we all realized how important live music truly is to all of us,” Tolman explains. “It was really important that we made this album with a good live show in mind. So, when you listen, you'll definitely hear that captured.”
Indeed, whether it’s the underlying rage heard within the soul-bearing lyrics of “Sweetest Revenge” to the painfully honest “Afraid” to the completely relatable “I Know Some Cowboys,” Tolman finds herself following in the footsteps of country music legends such as Barbara Mandrell and Dolly Parton, harkening back to a time when singers weren’t just singers – they were entertainers and storytellers and the ultimate confidants.
“I want to be an entertainer…I don't want to be just a singer. I know that I can communicate with my audience through the engaging storylines of the songs that I fill my shows with.”
