Music has always been at the forefront of Kinley Dowling’s life. As a child, with musical parents, she was immersed in it. Her father, Alan, is an accomplished and extremely versatile drummer, and her mother, Estelle, was a teacher and pianist who spent years accompanying the singers in the UPEI classical music program.
In Grade 5, Kinley attended a Natalie MacMaster concert and was enthralled by the violin. In Grade 7, she joined Singing Strings. However, her turning point was at a Lennie Gallant concert. At the time, Lennie was playing with violinist Chris Church. Kinley noticed that Chris was changing the sound of his violin and manipulating its presence by using effects pedals. After the show, she had the chance to speak with Chris Church and she asked him point blank, “How do I do what you do?” His answer was simple: go to Dalhousie University, study with Philippe Djokic, and while you’re there, learn how to sing back up vocals. She took his advice, applied, and was accepted.
Throughout university, Kinley played gigs as an accompanist for friends Rose Cousins and Jenn Grant. In 2008, the day after she graduated, she became a member of Hey Rosetta! In total, she spent a decade with them, and although she would stay a member for another two years, by 2016 she had shifted her focus to her own solo career.
Her cousin, Liam Corcoran of Two Hours Traffic had always encouraged her to write her own songs, and it was his confidence in her writing that pushed her over the line. In 2011, they collaborated on a project called The Express. They released one self-titled album.
Her first solo release, Letters Never Sent (2016), won the “Female Solo Recording of the Year,” “New Artist of the Year,” and “SOCAN Songwriter of the Year” awards at the 2017 Music PEI Week and garnered four 2018 East Coast Music Award nominations, of which she won two (Fan’s Choice Video & Rising Star). In 2017, she released a duo album with yours truly, called Everyone Needs to Chill Out. It was nominated for six Music PEI Awards, and won New Artist of the Year.
She followed up this early success with her second album in 2020, called Kinley. It reinforced her choice to step out on her own and established her as a force and prominent voice in the industry. She has used this voice to draw international awareness to causes close to her heart, particularly those focused on women’s rights and prosperity.
Through her career, she has accompanied many artists on stage and has contributed her talents to a long list of notable artists’ recordings. She toured with Kathleen Edwards, and she played on recordings by Rita MacNeil, Two Hours Traffic, Matt Mays, Classified, Buck 65, Jenn Grant, and Rose Cousins.
At the moment, she has formed a string group called Bayfield Quartet and she is a recurring cast member with Craig Fair Productions, but it has always been her own songs that call to her and she always listens.
She is releasing her third solo EP, Reflecting Light, on August 21. It was recorded in PEI with three different collaborators/producers. For the release, she worked with Jake Charron (The East Pointers) on three songs, and one song each with Adam Gallant and Colin Buchanan. The first single, “New Light,” was released in 2025 and “The Director” is coming on August 7.
She describes the theme of the album as “looking for the good in the world.” Having shared a lot of time with her over the years, I know she has always taken this view and she has always used her voice to make this world a better place. Listen to Kinley!