Singer's 'Wildfire' song sparks strong emotions

PATEROS-Some audience members do not even know her and yet, her music reaches them in a personal manner.

Brittany Jean Walker, or Brittany Jean to fans, sings, writes songs and plays guitar.

"I've been singing my whole life," the 23-year-old said. "I was in a children's choir when I was really little, then high school choirs. I did some plays and wanted to be considered for solos, so I started taking voice lessons. Guitar came later, probably just a few years ago. I'm still learning, the guitar especially, but music has always been a big part of me."

Her father, Jim Walker, said the voice lessons played a large role in changing her vocal approach.

"She started taking voice lessons in the seventh grade," he said. "It was kind of surprising coming home early on. I'm thinking 'Wow, who is that singing?' It was Brittany."

Originally from West Chicago, Illinois, Brittany Jean moved out with her parents when her father obtained a job in Brewster.

"In Illinois, my dad was a custom home builder trying to make it through the economic housing situation," Brittany Jean said. "Desperation kind of brought us here. He needed work and called Gebbers Farms where my brother works and got a job. So, I moved with him and my mom."

The July 2014 Carlton Complex Fire inspired Brittany Jean to write the song 'Wildfire.' The song resonates with the feelings of many area residents.

"Last summer was my first experience with a wildfire," she said. "We don't get wildfires in the Midwest, at least not that I know of. You get tornadoes, but not wildfires. Waking up on July 17, if you walked outside and you were out there just for a few minutes you would be covered in ash."

The family evacuated from its home on two occasions.

"When we came back the second time, the power was out and I went to my room and started writing," she said. "You can wait for inspiration to come or you can come out against something like that and it's kind of a no-brainer, you've got to write about it, especially when the community is so close to you."

With the inspiration in clear sight, the words flowed out, although other songs took considerably longer to write. Brittany Jean says every song is different. Her first fully fleshed out song came out of a class on songwriting. "It was based on a Christmas story, The Gift of the Magi," she said. "I took a book and turned it into a song.

She added, "I think I'm proud of it. I haven't ever recorded it. It is kind of hard to go back to songs you haven't looked at for a while because you want to fix it or change it. It's not really in need of fixing, but that is how you think."

Her dad encouraged her to pick up the guitar after hearing about singer Gordon Lightfoot's beginnings as a keyboardist.

"He played the piano and he went down to L.A. and he was trying to make it in L.A.," Jim Walker said. "Pete Seeger found him and told him 'If you want to make it in this business, you have got to learn to play guitar.'

So, he went back to Canada and learned to play the guitar. When I read that, I said 'Brittany, we've got to get you a guitar.'"

Brittany Jean holds high hopes for where she may go in her musical career.

'Wildfire' featured award-winning fiddler Aubrey Haynie and she recorded in the same studio where Allison Krauss played.

For now, she is perfectly happy performing at smaller venues in an area with a strong sense of community.

"I really enjoy playing small venues because there could be 10 people there and maybe all 10 will stay and talk to me afterwards," she said.

She later added, "I feel like in West Chicago that probably wouldn't happen."

Over there, people are busy or not interested, but not here. "I really like that about Pateros and Brewster."