Today we’d like to introduce you to Adrienne Osborn.
Hi Adrienne, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers.
The Petty Nicks Experience started when several musicians in the Denver music scene decided they wanted to play classic American music to keep live, rock-based, well-written songs alive and give audiences the live concerts experiences they remember from shows in previous decades.
They decided to pick the songs of Tom Petty and Stevie Nicks – two of the most iconic performers/songwriters from the ’70s and 80’s – and play with the idea: What if Stevie Nicks had joined Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers? Stevie and Tom did collaborate (“Stop Dragging My Heart Around” and “Insider,” for example), and Stevie did frequently appear at Tom’s concerts, and she is on record as having said she would have joined the Heartbreakers if Tom had asked. So, in the Petty Nicks Experience, the band explores what a combined Petty/Nicks show would feel like.
The band started in early 2017, playing shows around Denver. They quickly expanded to play up and down the Front Range of Colorado and now regularly sell out venues of several hundred. Their favorite place to play out of state is Southern California, with shows in San Clemente and Poway being great successes the last couple of years.
The band also has a hometown tie to San Diego: lead singer Adrienne Osborn, who plays Stevie Nicks, spent summers working and playing in San Diego most of her life. She worked as a waterski instructor at the Mission Bay Aquatic Center and still returns to San Diego every September for a family reunion.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Nothing worthwhile is ever a totally smooth road, but ours has been smoother than most! Many of the band members have played together in other bands for years, so they know each other well, enjoying being around each other, and know how to play together seamlessly. The biggest struggle was finding the right musicians to fill the iconic Stevie and Tom roles. Adrienne (Stevie) was in the band from nearly the beginning, but it took a few years to find a performer who could pull off the right feel and sound for the Tom Petty role.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
The Petty Nicks Experience is a band that honors Tom Petty and Stevie Nicks. There are a lot of “tribute” bands these days, but we have risen above the crowd by paying close attention to every element of the show that builds up a full “experience” for the audience.
Unlike most bands which simply play a list of songs one after the other, we have curated a theatrical show with costume changes, synchronized LED projections, a spectacular light show, and an emotional journey from start to finish. No two shows are exactly the same, so in spite of our attention to detail, it never feels canned or over-planned. We value spontaneity, just like Tom did and Stevie does – from ripping guitar solos to magical, exploratory vocal ad-libs.
Our audience members attend show after show, and it’s not uncommon for them to favorably compare our show with Tom Petty, Stevie Nicks, or Fleetwood Mac concerts.
Are there any books, apps, podcasts, or blogs that help you do your best?
AmericanSongwriter.com, SongFacts.com, and even Wikipedia are sources for us to learn more about the context of the songs we perform. In addition, simple Google searches reveal lots of music blogs with stories about the songs.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://pettynicksexperience.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tpnexperience/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thepettynicksexperience
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2Rw2SU7o_9vurREW6DfzNw
Image Credits
Evan Stephens
Tad Michael Wheeler
