It's nearly 20 years since Wamboin's Hayley Jensen burst on to the music scene as a contestant on the 2004 season of Australian Idol also later competing on The Voice in 2014.
She's grown and changed, found love and got married, worked with some of the industry's finest and now finally felt she's found her home, with country music.
And country music is loving her back. This week, the 38-year-old was nominated for a prestigious Golden Guitar award in the Female Artist of the Year category.
She will be front and centre for the announcement of the 50th Golden Guitar Awards in Tamworth on Saturday, January 22.
The other contenders for 2022 Female Artist of the Year are Amber Lawrence, Ashleigh Dallas, Catherine Britt and Jayne Denham.
"It has been a long and winding road to get to here," Hayley said, with her trademark big laugh.
"I'm so excited. It feels like I'm just getting started, anyway."
And Canberrans will be able to see Hayley perform on Saturday night at the two-day Country Rocks Festival at Rose Cottage. Extra general admission tickets have been released, with Hayley performing just before headliner Travis Collins.
Hayley grew up in Wamboin and before entering Idol, studied jazz vocals at the Australian National University and later economics and management at the University of Canberra.
"Country music was never a big thing growing up in Canberra and studying jazz at the ANU, it sort of wasn't really on my radar but people have always told me, 'You should sing country music'," she said.
"It wasn't that weird, because I did grow up on a property outside Canberra, and it was all country living. But the genre has evolved so much over the last few years that it just became a natural fit for my music."
She was a finalist in the iconic Star Maker competition at the Tamworth Country Music Festival in 2016 and within five years saw her third country music album, Breakin' Hearts land at No.1 on the iTunes Country Albums chart. The album includes the single Karma, which also reached No.1 on the charts.
"After many years of writing and producing music in that adult contemporary space, country music has accepted and embraced me and I just love it," she said.
- The Canberra Rocks Festival Canberra is at Rose Cottage Saturday and Sunday. Gates open 2pm Saturday and midday Sunday. Tickets at countryrocks.com.au/countryrockscanberra.
