Fiona Kernaghan’s debut album, “Cypress Grove”, had music critics swooning.  Bernard Zuel of the Sydney Morning Herald declared, “Fiona is one of Australia’s best new singer songwriters, with more potential than ten Lisa Loebs or Sheryl Crows”.  The record earned her a faithful following and a finalist nomination for Best New Artist at the 1996 ARIA Awards.  Since then, she’s had over 100 songs cut world wide, written eleven #1 singles and won numerous awards including APRA Song of The Year.

Rather than cut a second record in Sydney in the late 90’s, Fiona moved to “the songwriter’s Mecca” of Nashville in the USA to work as a staff songwriter for the world’s biggest music publisher, Warner Chappell Music and had her first cut in the US debut in the Billboard Hot 100.  Fiona shared a house with Keith Urban’s band mates and learned a lot from the then burgeoning star’s ascent to world wide fame.  “Keith and the guys in his band had just signed to Capital Records when I was living with them, so I got to see first hand what it takes to get that far in the States. It was eye opening and inspiring!”  She immersed herself in collaborative work with hit producers and songwriters including Andrew Farriss (INXS), Marv Green (Faith Hill/Carrie Underwood) and Marilyn Manson’s John 5.

Determined to keep working in varied genres and to keep growing creatively, she made many writing trips home to Australia and to Europe where she studied up on creative influences and heroes including Irish poet, William Butler Yeats and even Beethoven and Strauss in Vienna!  She also lived in New York for a time, fuelling up on all The Big Apple has to offer. “David Bowie’s guitarist, Gerry Leonard and his fiance, Pamela Sue Mann, were my New York family and turned me onto some awesome stuff the helped deepen my creative well.”

Fiona worked between New York and Nashville for some time until after the events of 9/11, when she hit a physical and professional burnout that caused her to re-evaluate her career direction yet again.

“ … I held a funeral for my doubts and all my fears”

Fiona then moved to the entertainment leviathan of Los Angles in 2002 to focus less on being a songwriter and more on her own artistry as a singer and performer.  The move inspired new songs like “City of Angels”, where in true Fiona style she pulls no punches and cuts to the bone of California culture and sings, “where would we be without the best of Mexico? Let Maria raise the kids, you go get your lipo …”

She signed to film and tv placement company, Blue Buddha Entertainment, and learned the lay out of the land in Hollywood from collaborators including writer producer, Kevin Savigar (Rod Stewart/Jimmy Barnes).

A career highlight followed in 2004 when multi platinum selling artist, Tina Arena, included Fiona’s song, “Take Me Apart”, on her much anticipated, “Greatest Hits” cd.  Then in 2005, pioneering indie label, Red Rebel Music, released the compilation, “Feeling Fiona”, featuring 12 artists including music legends, Ross Wilson and Vika & Linda performing previously unreleased songs of Fiona’s.

In October 2007, Fiona released her long awaited follow up to “Cypress Grove”.  The gutsy and brutally autobiographical, “Shadow Wine and Truth Lilies”, illustrates Fiona’s evolution and amazing journey as an artist and writer.  “I’m giving myself permission to sing about my own life in a completely candid way on this record and really making the most of total creative freedom I have now”.  The album was recorded in Los Angeles with producer, Daniel Kresco, whose credits include the late Michael Jackson, Limp Bizkit and Barenaked Ladies.

Currently based in the USA, Fiona is currently writing with a number of artists of many different genres - while working on new material for her 3rd album scheduled for 2010.

Fiona Kernaghan’s talent is matched only by her reputation as one of the finest singer songwriters ever to emerge from Australia.

“… pour the Shadow Wine and let the Truth Lilies bloom”