Bar Maid's Top 40 Bid
Sandy Kilpatrick • Published 31 Mar 2011 11:00
"I WON'T stop until I hear my songs played in the café on Eastenders", that's how high Jo-Dee McMahon has set the bar.
And on Friday her goal will be a step closer when she releases her first EP worldwide on iTunes.
The 20-year-old barmaid from Fir Park, Sorn admits she may be a small town girl but won't give up until her dream is a reality.
As a youngster at Sorn Primary she rapped her part as the Angel Gabriel in the school nativity. In her teens at Auchinleck Academy she refused to take music as a subject because she didn't sing 'the proper way'.
Jo-Dee began singing at charity events across Cumnock and Doon Valley at the age of 14. Every week she travels up and down the country performing at weddings and birthday parties, and when she has a chance spends time with her brickie boyfriend, Callum Gault, 30, from New Cumnock.
And with a style on a par to P!nk; The Ting Tings; and 80s artists Debbie Harry and Kim Wilde, blonde-haired Jo-Dee hopes to stand out from the crowd with a different sound and attitude to the "dark-haired, acoustic singers" of the past decade.
Jo-Dee also isn't easily embarrassed by her racy lyrics penned by Clark Sorley from Legacy Scotland. She said: "My mum and dad have saw me on top of the bar straddling a man. So what if it's a little bit dirty? It isn't a big deal."
And her subject matter is a far cry from what you'd normally expect in the charts with songs about back stabbing friends and losing your independence in relationships. Jo-Dee explained: "My first single, 'Fallen' is about thinking you're in control with a guy, then you're in a relationship and need to rush home for five o'clock to make his dinner. Girls don't think their lives will ever be like that but it happens."
But Jo-Dee may still be in the running for the X-Factor after performing at the Glasgow auditions earlier this month. She said: "I'm awaiting a call back from the judges but I'm more excited about releasing a single. It just shows folk you don't have to go down the telly route to get a single out. Ultimately Radio 1 is my goal but I'll know I've made it when I hear my songs played on the radio in the café in Eastenders."
Jo-Dee's EP Fallen will be available to download from iTunes stores on April 1. A limited number of singles will also be available for purchase at Tesco stores in Auchinleck, Kilmarnock and Ayr.
Search for Jo-Dee on Facebook or follow her on Twitter @JoDee01.
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