EP. 355 - Alive with Jenna McDougall (Hevenshe / Tonight Alive)

14 snips

Sep 11, 2025

Jenna McDougall, frontwoman of Tonight Alive and solo artist known as Heavenshe, opens up about her artistic rebirth after a hiatus. She dives into the creative process behind her new music, exploring her journey from overwhelmed teen star to independent artist, and how therapy and journaling helped reclaim her identity. She also touches on exciting collaborations, including a potential tour with Tay Jardine, and shares captivating UFO stories. Amidst her musical evolution, Jenna emphasizes the power of authenticity and connection in the industry.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Transcript

Episode notes

ANECDOTE

Lockdown Sparked Solo Songwriting

Jenna started writing solo during lockdown after Tonight Alive paused and discovered songwriting outside the band.
She learned to write alone and reimagined a future not entirely defined by the band.

INSIGHT

Genre Freedom Replaced Expectation

Jenna intended Heaven She's first EP to fit cinematic indie rock influences like The National.
She allowed the sound to evolve freely afterwards, embracing multiple genres.

INSIGHT

Rebuilding Confidence Through Performance

Jenna had to rebuild confidence and identity after Tonight Alive's hiatus and felt humbled.
Re-entering performance became exposure therapy that forced personal growth.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

The Other Side. Life affirming femme rock goddess, spiritual lyricist and Tonight Alive wonder, Jenna McDougle, is our guest on Episode 355 of Sappenin' Podcast! The Australian emo starlight joins us in front of a live audience at 2000 Trees Festival 2025, for a humbly candid conversation on returning to music with Hevenshe, taking time to find herself and exclusive updates on the bands longterm future. In this live audience podcast setting, McDougle reflects on learning to appreciate a whirlwind life journey, stepping away from the industry machine vs being thrown into the spotlight from a young age, why a short hiatus took a dramatic turn, reuniting for Melbourne anniversary shows, current commitments, exploring nature, solo project freedom, becoming a fully independent artist, safe space forgiveness, ridiculous scene rivalries, reconnecting a sisterhood with Tay Jardine (We Are The In Crowd), important advice, sining at Sydney opera house, a spooky green orb and more! Turn it up and join Sean and Morgan to find out Sappenin' this week!

Twitter: @sappeninpod

Instagram: @sappeninpod

Special thank you to our Sappenin' Podcast Patreons:

Join the Sappenin' Podcast Community: Patreon.com/Sappenin.

Kylie Wheeler, Janelle Caston, Paul Hirschfield, Tony Michael, Scarlet Charlton, Dilly Grimwood, Mitch Perry, Nathan Crawshaw, Molly Molloy, James Bowerbank, Amee Louise, Kat Bessant, Kieran Lewis, Alexandra Pemblington, Jonathan Gutierrez, Jenni Robinson, Stuart McNaught, Jenni Munster, Louis Cook, Carl Pendlebury, James Mcnaught, Martina McManus, Jason Heredia, John&Emma, Danny Eaton, RahRah James, Sian Foynes, Evan, Ollie Amesbury, Dan Peregreen, Emily Perry, Kalila Keane, Adam Parslow, Josh Crisp, Vicki Henshaw, Laura Russell, Fraser Cummings, Sophie Ansell, Kyle Smith, Connor Lewins, Billy Hunter, Harry Radford, George Evans, Em Evans Roberts, Thomas O’Neill, Sinead O'Halloran, Kael Braham, Jade Austin, Charlie Wood, Aurora Winchester, Jordan Harris, James Page, Georgie Hopkinson, Helen Anyetta, John Wilson, Lisa Sullivan, Ayla Emo, Kelly Young, Jennifer Dean, Tj Ambler-Shattock, Chaz Howkins, Michael Snowden, Justine Baddeley, David Winchurch, Jim Farrell, Scott Evans, Andrew Simpson, Shaun Croucher, Lewis Sluman, Ellie Gowers, Luke Wardle, Grazyna McGroarty, Nathan Matheson, Matt Roberts, Joshua Lewis, Erin Howard,, Chris Harris, Lucy Neill, Amy Thomas, Jessie Hellier, Stevie Burke, Robert Pike, Anthony Matthews, Samantha Neville, Sarah Maher, Owen Davies, Bethan Downing, Jessica Tiernan, Danielle Oldershaw, Samantha Bowen, Ruby Price, Jule Ferl, Alice Wood, Billy Parmiter, Emma Musgrave, Rhian Friggens, Hannah Kenyon, Patrick Floyd, Hayley Taylor, Loz Sanchez, Cerys Andrews, Dan Johnson, Eva B, Emma Barber, Helen Macbeth, Melissa Mercury, Joshua Ryan, Cate Stevenson, Emily Moorhouse, Jacob Turner, Madeleine Inez, Robert Byrne, Christopher Goldring, Chris Lincoln, Beth Gayler, Lesley Dargie-Walker, Sabina Grosch, Tom Hylands, Andrew Keech, Kerry Beckett, Leanne Gerrard, Ieuan Wheeler, Hannah Rachael, Gemma Graham, Andy Wastell, Jay Smith, Nuala Clark, Liam Connolly, Lavender Martin, Lloyd Pinder, Ghostly Grimoire, Amy Hogg.

Diolch and Thank You x

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.