MBU: What has been your most embarrassing moment on the tour?
SS: A crazy thing that happened was when I walked out on stage and they turned the lights off and I couldn’t find the microphone so I missed the first half of the first verse of the first song. I don’t know if anyone noticed but I noticed.

MBU: What’s in your CD player right now?
SS: I think it’s Pete Yorn. He’s awesome - very laid back cruising music. Or John Mayer. One of those two.

MBU: If you could be one character from the Wizard of Oz, which would you be?
SS: I think…Toto. He has fun. He doesn’t have to care about anything because he’s a dog. He’s just along for the ride.

MBU: Any conspiracy theories?
SS: We never landed on the moon. I saw this special about conspiracy theories and actually wrote a song about it called “Make Believing” that was sparked by that. The first line is “did we ever land on the moon or were we make believing?”

MBU: This is your first national tour, right?
SS: Yeah it is…tonight will be our fifth show it’s all new to me but with every show I get a little more used to getting up there and going for it.

MBU: How did you end up doing what you’re doing?
SS: My dad’s a writer, and when I was younger I always saw him writing. When I was nine I wrote my first song - it was actually published when I was eleven on an Integrity Kids project. It’s really horrible actually. That was my first real taste of, “Hey I can write a musical expression that’s just from me and other people can relate to it.” So that’s kind of what hooked me. We moved to Nashville when I was twelve from Wyoming and I started writing more and studio singing and working on different projects with Worship Together and Sparrow doing demos and backgrounds and one thing led to another until I was doing my own demos and singing/writing my own stuff. It took my whole life. I think anything you do takes your whole life because the events that lead up to it have made you who you are at that moment.

MBU: Did you always want to do this or was there one moment when it became more of a serious pursuit?
SS: I wanted to be a vet so bad when I was little but I think a lot of little girls want to be a vet…they have that save the world, save the animals mentality. I always was musical, always was singing and it kind of struck me that unless I do music, I won’t be happy. I feel like that’s my calling.

MBU: Who are some of your influences?
SS: I have a really huge genre that’s very eclectic from country to hip hop. I love the Judds and Amy Grant, Mariah Carey, Cheryl Crow; Jonatha Brooks really inspired me to write from my heart and not write so much for other people but write so other people could understand what I was feeling in my own unique way. Jennifer Kimball, Sting, U2 and I’m always finding new people who inspire me to keep the ball rolling.

MBU: What is your songwriting process like?
SS: I think every song has a different process that it wants. Once you start a song, it really takes on a personality of its own and can mold itself. I’ve never written two songs the same way. Basically, sometimes I will just sit down and play around on the guitar until I get an idea, sometimes a lyrical idea will pop into my head or a melody will pop into my head and I’ll fight with the lyric on it. Every time is different, and I don’t have to be in a certain environment to write, of course I want to be comfortable and let my creative juices flow. Sometimes I get ideas when I’m in the shower, which is the most inopportune time.

MBU: So you’re on a national tour, and the new album is your first also, right?
SS: It is! This is what I’ve always wanted to do basically and your first project kind of defines who you are as an artist and it’s exciting to get to share that with people.

MBU: Have you learned a lot from Bebo & David Crowder?
SS: Yeah…they really have a great way of connecting with their audience and sharing their hearts. And they’re great to watch…they’re just really great guys.

MBU: Being out on the road…is it hard, fun, a little of both?
SS: Since it’s my first time out, it’s probably harder for me than David Crowder or Bebo, but at the same time, it’s a lot of fun. Definitely something you have to get used to.

MBU: Is there anything God has been teaching you lately that you’d like to share?
SS: Definitely trust. Knowing that He will help you make right decisions and learning that it really is in His hands.

MBU: What would be your mission statement; what your music is all about?
SS: I think love is the most important thing in the world. Love is what saves us every day. My mission statement would be to find what you want and go for that.

MBU: What would your advice be to people who are feeling a calling towards music?
SS: It’s definitely not for everybody. You really have to make sure it’s the right thing. Make sure it’s not [just coming from] you, because it can be a lot of fun, but it’s also a lot of work at the same time. Everything is worth a shot, but you have to know when to give up at some point also. Some people just don’t get the hint, you know? God will open doors for what you’re supposed to be doing.