Katie Rox, who grew up on a farm just outside Airdrie, said that when Nice Horse, the all-female country music band, of whom she is a part of, heard the news that they won multiple accolades at the Canadian Country Music Association Awards, all of the band members were floored.

"It was quite the experience. We were pretty excited to have those nominations, but we also we had a gig in Moose Jaw the night that the awards were being handed out and so we knew we couldn't be there to actually attend the awards," Rox said. "We were driving back from playing at a gig in Moose Jaw and we just we got a text message that said, 'Oh, my God you guy won,'. So we were somewhere in the middle of Saskatchewan, in our tour van celebrating that we had won our first Canadian Country Music Awards."

Nice Horse was nominated for several awards including Video of the Year for their music video “High School", which they won, as well as individual nominations including Guitar Player of the Year, which Tara McLeod, the group's electric guitarist was nominated for, Krista Wodelet who does vocals and drums, who made history for being the first-ever female nominee for Drummer of the Year, as well as Rox who also does vocals and plays the banjo and acoustic guitar. She was nominated for Specialty Instrument Player of the Year. Brandi Sidoryk from Nice Horse also took home the award for Bass Player of the Year.

The music video that nabbed Nice Horse their award was shot with an astoundingly small budget of $600, though Rox said the fact that such a small budget video made such an impact is a testament to the group's grit and creativity. 

"We were pretty stuck for ideas and Brandi and Krista do a lot of photo and video editing. Christa had learned how to do video editing during the pandemic when we couldn't be together," she said. "The idea for this music video came up and our thought was the worst case scenario is we don't use it at all and it only cost us 600 bucks. In the best-case scenario, we have a music video to put out there and that was the mentality that went into it."

Rox said that the bandmates couldn't be prouder of Sidoryk as she has worked fiercely hard to get where she is. She said that because the band is made of four female friends, there is a stigma they've had to overcome of being just another girl band. 

"We're a very hard-working band of musicians and to get that recognition as not only being a band but as being individual players, felt really good. For me personally, it meant a lot to me because I just felt like wow, I'm actually to get that level of recognition for being a musician. It's hard to put it into words, but it really meant a lot."

When asked how her hometown and home province have influenced the music she now makes, Rox said that having grown up in a small town, country music is such a natural fit. Though the band has been gone quiet since their awards, it's because they are hard at work making more music.

"We do have a lot of things happening behind the scenes, But we have recorded new material although I don't know when it will come out," Rox said.

Nice Horse has also toured as direct support for legendary artists including Tom Cochrane and the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, and performed at big-time country music festivals like Boots & Hearts, Cavendish Beach Music Festival, Big Valley Jamboree and the Calgary Stampede.  

When asked if Rox misses Alberta, she couldn't deny she does.

"I mean, it's home; it's that big Alberta sky and there's nothing like it anywhere else."

Nice Horse was formed years ago by the four close friends during one unforgettable girls’ trip to Hawaii. Together, they have garnered significant accolades, including 6 CCMA nominations as a group, eight Country Music Alberta Awards, and won the 2021 Western Canadian Music Award for Country Artist of the Year.

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