Airbnb Superhost Brandi booked a home in Hawaii with some fellow songwriters to go relax on the beach and hopefully come up with a tune or two. The result? Seventeen country songs in five days—and Nice Horse was born. An all-female Alberta-based country band that writes, composes and plays their own music, Nice Horse has gone on to win several country music awards and tour around North America. All the while, Airbnb has helped make the road more like home (don’t believe us? Watch this special collaboration video). We chatted with the ladies of Nice Horse about how of the platform’s sharing economy helped them to succeed, and are teaming with Airbnb to give away $20 credits to Airbnb Experiences (activities designed and led by inspiring locals) to three lucky winners! —Vita Daily
Hi Nice Horse! To start, please tell us a bit about yourselves, your band, your music.
We started our band on a girls trip to Hawaii about three years ago. What was intended to be a getaway for mai tais, beach time and a little bit of songwriting turned into us writing about 17 country songs and forming our band! We thought we would become a fun bar band that would get together every now and then and play bar gigs, but once we started showing people in the music industry our band, they got very excited about it and suggested we take it more seriously. We are the only female country band that is entirely self-contained. We write songs from a pretty strong, opinionated perspective, but we also don’t take ourselves too seriously and love to have a good time.
How would you say you’re a) "turning the tables on country music" and b) giving a "voice" to female musicians (and all-female groups)?
As the only self-contained female country band in Canada. There are no other four piece bands like ours currently. This is what sets us apart, but also what we want to change. There are other all-female bands out there in rock and indie music, but for some reason there is a serious lack in country music. We hope that won’t be the case for long.
How did this collaboration with Airbnb come about, and what is it all about?
Brandi: I have been an Airbnb host for over five years now. I started as a host so that I could sustain my career as a musician. It isn’t easy to be paying a mortgage at home when you are out on the road. Throughout my time as a host, Airbnb has given me the ability to make music and pursue my dreams. I have so much love for Airbnb, that I have really become part of the community in many ways—I attend host conferences, speak at the Airbnb host meetings in my city and speak up on behalf of Airbnb’s mission as they work to make Airbnb fair and available to hosts and guests around the world. It was through my involvement in the host community that Nice Horse and Airbnb started a long-lasting friendship!
Do you still make use of Airbnb’s services or has fame and fortune changed that?!
Katie: We love staying at Airbnbs, and we still use them all the time. When you travel as much as we do, it’s nice to have a “home away from home,” which is what Airbnb provides.
Brandi: Plus, Airbnb provides so many options! From staying in a guest room to renting a high end home, there is an Airbnb for every type of situation we are in on the road—and we find ourselves in a lot of different situations!
Best Airbnb stay ever? (And why?)
Brandi: I LOVE the Airbnb we stay at in Nashville! We are down there songwriting monthly, and so when we are there, it is so important to have a place that feels like home. It is an adorable little house in one of our favourites neighborhoods—plus, Alex always leaves us a bottle of wine, which we love! It truly is a home away from home.
Katie: In January, we rented a house on a farm on the north shore of Oahu, Hawaii. It was AMAZING. They had so many different farm animals roaming around, it was a gorgeous setting and the hosts were so kind, friendly and inviting. We shot a music video while we were there.
Win! 1 of 3 $20 Airbnb Experiences Credits!
We have three winners! Congratulations Melissa S. of Kelowna, B.C., Julie O. of Welland, Ontario, and Caryn S. of Calgary, Alberta, who each won a $20 Airbnb Experiences credit!
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