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“Get your shoes on Sonya. You’re going to mandolin lessons!” These words are on the forefront of Sonya Kelly’s mind when asked to recall her Bluegrass beginnings. Sonya Kelly grew up in a family where the words, “I can’t” were never heard. She grew up in a family where dreaming was encouraged, and where playing music was as common as putting on your shoes. “The mandolin was chosen for me because I was so small,” Sonya recollects with a smile. Her family, in typical Partridge style, formed a band and Sonya, at age 9, realized her gift. “I started singing when I was 4; I played baritone ukulele (which to a 4 year old is like a guitar); I played the banjo, upright bass and guitar. But the strangest part is that I don’t remember learning the bass and guitar. I simply picked them up and knew how to play them.” Simply. Nice try Sonya. Sonya Kelly isn’t simple. She is modest and she is soulful. She is talented. She is energetic and profound. She is fearless and kind; passionate and fun. She is, however, not simple. “I moved to Nashville at 18 to pursue music. I was in an all girl Bluegrass band (co-founded with a childhood friend),” Sonya states. “After that I played upright bass for the Sweethearts of the Rodeo.” By the age of 25 Sonya was an accomplished musician who had certainly earned the respect of her peers. She had the support of her family, the never say never mind-set, and the talent to make all of her dreams come true. So when her vocal coach said to her that she should write songs, Sonya had no drive, no reason to write. At most she wrote 4 to 5 songs a year. “I never had an interest in writing,” Sonya says. “It wasn’t until I was 30 that my songwriting became a desire, a need.” It wasn’t simply turning 30 that made songwriting happen. It was the meeting that occurred. It was Sonya meeting her soul’s other creative half. “I met Mica at CRS. We started talking and Mica asked if I was that ‘guitar playin’ chic’. We laughed, and set up a writing appointment.” And write they have. Sonya Kelly and Mica Roberts have written everything from songs for an Appalachian movie soundtrack to Pop tracks. Their secret is in their honesty. Their songs are real. “Songwriting is all about communication,” Sonya states, “Music is the universal language and (songwriters) can say through music what people may not otherwise know how to say.” If there is anything “simple” about Sonya it is this. She (and Mica) understand people. They have an effortless way of explaining relationships. Take Sonya’s metaphorical explanation of her friendship with Mica as example, “Occasionally we have been on the ledge with nothing but a rope tied between us, thank God we have never leaned at the same time.” The proverbial ledge is a place Sonya has been to before. “I have been through many changes in my life; I have had many blessings (like the birth of my daughter Madeline) and I have had much sadness. But I have never felt like any of it was without purpose. I have always felt like I have been on a journey toward my purpose and my biggest fear is that I won’t live God’s purpose.” We all seek to live our purpose. And most of us, like Sonya, feel we are on a path of no coincidences, a path, for Sonya Kelly that began with one step, with the putting on of a pair of shoes, and going to a mandolin lesson. Written by: Erica Ebert Connell