INTERVIEWS
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WITH FEATURED ARTIST INTERVIEWS
FEATURED ARTIST OF THE MONTH
"Steven Albright here on behalf of SKnightMusic. January marks the launch of SKnightMusic Production & Graphic Design. A company started by its namesake, Shawn Knight, to offer music production services to brand new artists, just like him and his friends. Whether you are simply struggling to get your music heard or you are an established artist in your area and you're just not happy with your current production services, SKnightMusic is here for you.
Shawn Knight, April Bannis, and my own daughter, Amy Albirght have worked together with their family and friends to self-produce and distribute their third full-length album, entitled 'When The Story Changes.' Coming October 2026! April and Amy will also lend their services to SKnightMusic, as two thirds of their Graphic Design team. SKnightMusic, begging February 2026, will also offer Graphic Design services. You don't have to be taking advantage of their production services to be eligible for graphic design services either. If you're just a local artist who needs flyers or posters designed to advertise a show; if you're an up-and-coming artist just like Shawn Knight and you need album artwork, booklets, inserts, or sleeves. Reach out to the Shawn, April, or Amy and discuss your needs!
Without further delay, I would like to introduce you to our very first FEATURED ARTIST, or artists, I should say. Sisters, and the vocal powerhouse behind SHAWN KNIGHT."
Featured Artist:
Amber Drummand
11.20.2025 - Steven Albright with Amber Drummand on "When The Story Changes" and "Don't Expect Me"
Get to know the vocal powerhouse behind Shawn Knight!
In this exclusive interview, we delve into the creative process, inspirations, and aspirations of the band. Discover the stories behind the music and gain insight into the passion that drives their musical endeavors.
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​SKnightMusic - "Amber, thank you for sitting down with us today. We've talked a little bit with April about the upcoming album, 'When The Story Changes,' and she told us that you have a special connection with the singles, "Don't Expect Me" & "Remember You".
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Amber Drummand -​ "Yes... So... April, God bless her... Started out just doing harmony, backing vocals... and the like. And "Remember You" really struck a chord with all of us. I think anyone can listen to the words of that song and it brings someone to their mind. "Remember You" was written with a single person in mind. Shawn really painted such a picture with these lyrics, that everyone truly can relate. It's simple, yet it's complicated at the same time. April loved hearing me work on "Remember You" and she would just sit in the corner and hum along. It's actually one of the first songs I sang for Shawn, from before we started working on "Your Scar" and now we are going to release the original recording on "When The Story Changes." "Don't Expect Me" is very much like "Remember You," in the aspect that it's stripped back to just me on vocals, and April joins in at the very end. It's a very powerful nod to the change in feelings, to the growth of each of our emotions and connections since "Remember You." It started out as just Shawn, then I came along and heard one of his original songs, back from his earlier days. I was like, 'I think I could sing it better!' And the next thing I knew, we were jumping in with both feet and a blindfold!​​​​​​​​​​​​​ Soon after, April became a staple in the song building process. Shawn started writing songs specifically for her to lead, and me to harmonize, and some where we trade off. Then Case (Casey) became involved, and even our mother has become a part of this journey. Now we have Amy on guitars. And it seems like we are still wearing that blindfold."
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SKnightMusic - "Blindfold?... I'm afraid that I don't understand what you're trying to say."
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Amber Drummand - "We don't look at.. Well, I say we... but this all started with Shawn.... So let me take a step back and explain. Shawn writes for himself. He doesn't write something because he thinks it'll make a good song. He doesn't write something because he thinks people will like it. He writes a set of lyrics because he feels it. And he's taught us how to feel them along with him. And when we work on a song, like "Don't Expect Me", or "When The Story Changes" you can tell that we are building off of each other. We make a song for us. We have a unique approach to our method, and that approach is to keep the energy between us, and share it with everyone else. It sounds a little self centered when I put it that way.... What I'm trying to say, is that not everyone will feel what we feel."
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SKnightMusic - "I think I understand now... You're not looking for stardom or fame, you're just sharing a set of feelings with the world?"
Amber Drummand - "Shawn lives what he writes. April, Casey, Mom, and Me, and even Amy... we... we all connect with his words and feelings. We all can associate his words with memories of our own, emotions of our own. Honestly, I think Shawn would have been perfectly happy keeping his words, his lyrics, his melodies, to himself. A friend of his convinced him that his words, his lyrics, his songs could potentially help others make it through some of their own experiences in their lives. And I think that's very true. Not everything that he writes makes it to the rest of us, but I have had the pleasure of reading some of his poetry, some of his inner most thoughts.... and it really makes me connect to the lyrics of songs like "These Words" and "Don't Expect Me" and "Melody Of Light".... all of which are on "When The Story Changes."
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SKnightMusic - "It's a very personal process.. you mean?"
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Amber Drummand - "Very... I can't tell you how many times April or I have powered through recording a song just to excuse ourselves to cry in the bathroom for a few moments. April more so with "When The Story Changes" than with the other two albums. We can't help but feel what he felt when he wrote the lyrics.
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SKnightMusic - "So, as of today, Shawn has denied my request to interview him. Do you know why that is?"
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Amber Drummand - "He really doesn't like to talk about his own writing. He very rarely reads his own poetry. Some of his closest friends don't even know that he writes and records. He is actually a very quiet and reserved person. Unless he's comfortable with you. If he's comfortable around you, getting him to shut up can be a hell of a trick."
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SKnightMusic - "Let's get back on track here... How does "When The Story Changes" differ from "Your Scar" and "This Last Breath?"
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Amber Drummand - The album has a deeper connection... for all of us, I believe. We worked on all of these songs together, in the same room. We all had a part in the creative process. Whereas "Your Scar" and about half of "This Last Breath" was worked on remotely. Shawn wrote everything. The words, the melodies, all the parts and pieces. So "When The Story Changes" really captures the growth and the change and the energy between us all.
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SKnightMusic - "Thank you Amber."
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Amber Drummand - "Thanks Steven."
Featured Artist:
April Bannis
11.20.2025 - Steven Albright with April Bannis on "When The Story Changes"
Get to know the vocal powerhouse behind Shawn Knight!
In this exclusive interview, we delve into the creative process, inspirations, and aspirations of the band. Discover the stories behind the music and gain insight into the passion that drives their musical endeavors.
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SKnightMusic - "April, thanks for joining me for this phone interview today. Let's jump right in!.... What does 'When The Story Changes' mean to you?"
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April Bannis - "When The Story Changes" was a lot of fun to work on. The album marks a large turning point for us all. For the most part, "Your Scar" had a very disconnected recording process, and I had very little part in it, and that was by choice. I had a lot going on in my personal life. Shawn would write all the lyrics and melodies in Missouri, sent them out to us piece by piece... some 900 miles away.... I'd record some of the harmonies in my bathroom with my sister Amber, send them back. It would be like, "what do you think of this" or "what if we did this part differently" and there was this back and forth and back and forth. It was honestly frustrating me to a point that my sisters and I almost didn't complete "This Last Breath." But as fate would have it... we had the opportunity to meet in the middle, at a relative's house in Chicago. During our stay in Chicago, we had the opportunity to work together... in person for the first time... and build off of each other's energies and bounce ideas back and forth in the moment! We ended up with enough material to finish the second album and begin working on "When The Story Changes" So the album as a whole has this much more natural, flow. For me, and I think I can speak for Amber and Case (Casey) as well when I say that, for us, "When The Story Changes" is a true testament to each of our emotions, as well as each of our strengths.​​​​​​​​​​​​​
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SKnightMusic - "April... What would you say to a new, brand new, listener? Who is just hearing you guys for the first time.."
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April Bannis - "If you've not heard "Your Scar" or "This Last Breath" and "When The Story Changes" is the very first time your hearing us.... I'd say hold on tight! If you're an emotional person, opening track alone will make you cry. It made me cry trying to sing it the first time."
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SKnightMusic - "What does the future look like for the band?"
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April Bannis - "We are already looking forward. Shawn has written new material, is constantly writing new material. I've written my first set of lyrics for us as well.... We've also pulled some old songs out of the vault, so to speak... We're going to put a new spin on them and we are definitely working toward number four. "When The Story Changes" is a large step forward for all of us. It may also be a large step sideways. Shawn has a lot going on in that head of his. He wrote a set of lyrics for The Lighted Way, a church group that I have been asked to sing with back home. We all have our own lives. Amber just found out that she is having her first baby girl​. so I'm going to an AUNT!! I'm getting side tracked, I know,,, My point is, just like Shawn has been able to say in his lyrics, everyone has a story. Everyone. Will you be there when their story changes?"
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SKnightMusic - "I thought I was supposed to be the one asking the questions here!"
April Bannis - "Sorry, Steven... I guess I got a little bit ahead of myself. The opening line of the song says that life has this way of changing when we least expect it. We can also be expecting one kind of change... and be totally blindsided by another... and that's exactly what "When The Story Changes" is all about. We all have friends. We all have family. Will they be there for us if the story changes in an unexpected way? If they are there.... Will they still be the same people they were before? Will you be the same... if your story changes..."
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April Bannis - "Shawn writes what he feels... what we all feel. What we all live. Everyone can relate. The single, "Don't Expect Me" shattered me emotionally the first time Shawn shared the lyrics with me. It sets the tone for the entire album just in the opening line. 'There's so much in this world that I just can't wrap my mind around." This song is another simple, yet powerful statement that I think so many people will really be struck by.
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SKnightMusic - "April... What else can you say about the album? Without revealing all of its secrets... as we won't see the full release until October of 2026."
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April Bannis - "I can say... "When The Story Changes" turned out to be so much more personal to each of us than any of us expected.... Yes, Shawn wrote the words. Shawn lived through the feelings personally... but they all {the songs} resonate with each of us... so much more than we knew they could. Amber and I have cried so many times, in private of course!... Shawn has no idea how beautifully personal and incredibly passionate we feel his words. Amber and Casey and I have really taken a long hard look at some of the things that Shawn's lyrics talk about... and it's deep... and its personal... and it's complex... and it's simple.... and.... "When The Story Changes" is everything. It's love, it's passion, it's heartache, it's nostalgia, it's healing. It's the complete soundtrack of a life."
SKnightMusic - "Thank you for your time."
