Being nominated for a Canadian Folk Music Award is a big deal for anyone, but for Amelia Shadgett it was the proof that she had done it. Years of busking, working on her website, and managing herself had finally paid off.

At just 19 years old the Peterborough born fiddler, known onstage as Irish Millie, is already a two-time Canadian Folk Music Award nominee. This year, she’s up for Young Performer of the Year for her EP Between Then and Now and Single of the Year for her track You Were There. She’s been building her career since she was a preteen. While her friends were searching for their first part time job, she had already planted her roots in the music industry.

It started at a square dance, where Natalie McMaster was playing live. Though she was only three years old at the time, Shadgett was fascinated. By six, she was quickly learning to play the fiddle, and by nine she was performing at local markets. “A friend of my parents suggested I get a busker’s license. I just did it for fun,” she says. “Eventually people started telling me I should perform at pubs.”

She took that advice and ran with it. She had her website up and running by the time she was 12, and at 13 she released her first record. Building a career at such a young age is tough, but Shadgett’s tenacity kept her going.

“I didn’t always have a team,” she says. “When I was releasing my first couple records, I just did it all myself.”

While most teenagers enjoyed their high school parties, Shadgett sat alone in a corner updating her website. The late nights and endless emails were hard, but it never slowed her down. “It’s a lot of work, just a constant go, go, go,” she says.

So when she saw her name on the Canadian Folk Music Award nominations livestream, it meant everything. The first time Shadgett was nominated, it was a complete shock. She almost forgot she applied. “I came down the stairs, and it was on the TV,” she says “I was like what’s that? And my mom put it on. She was like you’re up for...” It was truly the moment that everything came together.

This year, things were different. Shadgett eagerly watched the livestream, and when her name appeared on the screen, she was ready. “I was overjoyed,” she says. “It’s a big dream of mine to be in the same category as some of the musicians I’ve looked up to my whole life.”

She called her dad with the news right away. “He was like, oh my gosh congratulations,” she says. “And I was like, but not just one!”

It’s the music that got her this far, after all. Shadgett’s sound is difficult to pin, and she’s the first to admit it. “I’ve been told that I use ornaments from five different styles, and it sounds like something they’ve never heard before,” she says. “I call it contemporary trad or modern folk. It’s just a random blend of things.” Her new record is pushing her sound even further, adding pop and rock elements on her East Coast fiddle tradition.

With that new record coming in July, Shadgett is gearing up for tour at the perfect time. She’ll be doing a maritime run in Newfoundland, PEI, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick before running through Quebec and Ontario for the summer. She’ll also be stopping by Calgary in August to perform with Kelsi Mayne.

“It’s really nice when you can release a record when you’re travelling,” she says. For Shadgett, the timing couldn’t be more perfect. And if her ambition is anything to go off of, she’s not slowing down anytime soon. “When you hear something, and you love it so much and you connect with it, and it gives you those chills,” she says. “I want other people to hear that too.”

Natalia Suk