Airdrie has an exciting and growing community of talented musicians. From beginners performing at their first open mic, to seasoned professionals whose songs convey their lived experiences, every single one credits family, partners and fellow musicians for making the journey possible.
Some, like Kyle McKearney and Steve Jevne, have name recognition, but both see their success as the outcome of partnerships with their spouses, who are also musicians.
McKearney’s Americana roots-inspired music is soulful, gritty and personal. He and his band perform in festivals, arenas and small venues across Canada, and recently opened for Blue Rodeo.
As much as he loves what he does, he says it wouldn’t be possible without the collaboration of his fellow bandmate and wife, Sarah McKearney.
“I’m lucky,” he says. “Sarah’s great and talented and really good at all the things I’m not.”
The two met at Vern’s Tavern in Calgary in 2007 and quickly became friends.
“He was such a cool guy,” Sarah says. “We started hanging out with each other’s friends. It was a creative environment where Kyle and I got to know each other, just on a friendship level.”
They started dating, and Kyle discovered she played the guitar and sang.
“I was playing rock, and Sarah has a voice better suited to country, so we started a cover band called Tequila Nights,” he says, adding it led to an album and a tour where Sarah sang backup vocals and played guitar.
They married in 2015, and, while Kyle continued his career in rock, Sarah, who grew up in a musical family and works full-time in Calgary, occasionally played in a band with some friends.
“I did that more for fun and just to keep connected to music and my friends,” she says.
They had their first child in 2020, which was also the year Kyle transitioned to his defining country rock/Americana sound, and Sarah joined his latest band.
“I thought it would be really cool to have her come in and be a part of the project.”
Sarah adds: “For me, I realized I really miss this. I miss being able to play and sing and collaborate with him, and how much I enjoyed that.”
This led to 2021’s Canadian Country Music Award nomination for Kyle’s album, Down-Home, and then an Alternative Country Album of the Year award at the 2023 CCMAs for the album Traveller’s Lament.
By this time, they had two children and a growing touring and recording schedule, but they also had the support of family.
“Our parents have been so helpful with the kids,” Sarah explains. “With a schedule like ours, we couldn’t do this without them.”
They believe solid family connections and an understanding of what each other brings to the relationship is the reason for their success.
“Music is such a huge part of who Kyle is as a person, and to be able to do whatever I can to support those dreams and goals, it’s really cool to get to be a part of it,” says Sarah.
Adds Kyle: “Sarah brings a lot to what we do, she holds it all together, and I love touring with her. It feels like family, like home, when she’s there. We love each other, and we love the music.”
Their latest album, To the River, is available on streaming, CD and as a double-vinyl set. Learn more online at imkylemckearney.com.
Jevne has made his mark in Airdrie as an open-mic host, musician and songwriter known for his promotion of and partnerships with established and up-and-coming artists.
While his musical journey is on a different path than Kyle McKearney’s, he, too, has a collaborator of the heart. He and longtime partner Christine Wigley got married during the summer of 2025. Their romance story is uniquely their own.
“I’ve never been married and never had kids,” Steve explains. “Christine’s never been married and never had kids. It was like, as I got to know her, ‘Here’s someone who thinks like me.’”
Christine agrees: “We both never settled in relationships. We were both about moving forward and looking out for No. 1, and then our paths crossed, and we were like, ‘Oh, someone else like me.’”
Christine was a funeral home director who grew up playing piano, but wanted to learn guitar. Steve was offering guitar lessons, and she became his student. As they got to know each other, Christine explains, it was as if there was always one degree of separation between them. They hung out with all the same people but never became a couple until the time was right.
“After some lessons, I got up enough courage to go to an open mic, and then we started hanging out together,” she says, laughing. “Then, love grew.”
She became Steve’s regular bass player, performing and writing with him. When her father passed away, she quit her job and took over the family farm. The property has a spacious workshop, and this gave the couple the opportunity to create something they felt the community needed: a free space for musicians to jam and collaborate on projects.
“This is something we both believe in,” Christine explains. “There aren’t many musicians in Airdrie who didn’t have their start at an open mic.”
Adds Steve: “It’s also become a place where people come and say, ‘We’ve done the open mic thing, show me what’s next,’ I think that’s something people see in both of us. Somehow, we’ve become the de facto, ‘if you want to grow as a musician, hang out with us’ couple.”
They see their relationship as a merging of talents and skills. Christine has daily farm duties and manages her new RV storage lot on the property, and Steve goes to the recording studio they’ve built in the back of the shop to write and work with other musicians.
“I have skills that Steve doesn’t, and he has skills that I don’t,” says Christine. “I’m a musician, but he’s the musical guru. We complement each other: in music, outside of music, in life. We have figured out our paths together, but also separately.”
Steve’s music can be found at stevejevnemusic.com.
Watch for a new album from Steve this fall. “You’ll hear Christine in there,” he says.
