Scotia-Glenville grad Shannon Peterson now music podcaster, studying in Liverpool

By Natasha Vaughn-Holdridge

Shannon Rose Peterson had a dream to study abroad. Now her hard work in high school and college has made her a success in the arts, with her own podcast and a popular band in Liverpool. 

As a high school student, unlike many of her peers who joined a wide variety of groups and clubs, Peterson knew she wanted to study abroad from a very young age. At 15 she was shocked at the high price tag of an American college education, and decided she would do what it took to be able to further her education – to be able to study in Liverpool.

Peterson, originally from Glenville, graduated from Scotia-Glenville High School in 2018. She says that as a high school student she was not very involved in many groups or clubs, but was more focused on the academic side of things.

“I took about as many classes as I could,” Peterson said. “Because to get into schools abroad you have to have so many AP (advanced placement) credits. Because when you graduate high school there [abroad] you pretty much have an associate [degree].”

Peterson already knew by 15 that she wanted to go to England.

“I started looking at places abroad and I found Liverpool,” she recalled. “The cost of living was pretty good. Universities in England are much less expensive, and I thought it was a cool place as someone who was just getting into music at the time because of the Beatles.”

After taking a gap year so as to not move to a foreign country at just 17 years old, Peterson packed her bags and was able to move to Liverpool in the fall of 2019.

“The culture is different,” she said. “I think when you’ve never traveled anywhere you think culture shock is like learning the language. It’s different foods and, like, the things that you can expect will be different. But when you get there it’s the things that you never thought could be different. So, the way people talk to each other, the way that people interact. It’s the little things that can just become a big deal.”

Four years later, Peterson has her own podcast titled “The Red Shutter Club” and is a member of the band Draft 5. She says she still tells her band all the time that if she is doing something weird, she wants them to let her know because she might not realize it.

Peterson is in the process of applying for her next visa. She says as long as it is approved, she will be allowed to continue to stay in England for another two years.

“Then beyond that I’m going to try and stay there,” she said. “I’ve built up a lot, so to just pick up and leave would be really hard to do.”

Studying in Liverpool, Peterson earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in finance and business management. She says she wants to try and find a “normal” job and continue to make music, and work on “The Red Shutter Club” on the side.

“That’s what I thought I would end up in. I ended up in music by accident,” Peterson said. “I went to an open mic to make some friends. And then a year later, just, I’m in it. “

One night Peterson was performing at an open-mic night at a famous English venue called the Cavern Club, which is well-known as the place where the Beatles got their start. There, she was approached by Ian Prowse.

“He’s got quite a name for himself and he runs an originals-only open mic,” Peterson said. “And it’s been going for 13-some-odd years. And I went to that, you know, make some friends. And I was like, I live down the street from an open mic at the Cavern. I’ve got to go, I’ve got to write a song to go. It’s the only reason that I started writing music.”

Over time, Peterson and Prowse became friends. She said that once, when Prowse lost his voice and could not sing, Peterson stepped in.

“Earlier this month he invited me to sing up at his big Oh2 show at this venue that not a lot of musicians at my level get to see the stage of,” Peterson said. “It was really an incredible experience.”

Prowse is not the only big name in music that Peterson has rubbed shoulders with. She’s also worked with Berry Sutton, best known as lead guitarist for the Liverpool band the La’s. The band is best known for its song “There She Goes.”

“The music scene has been the most accepting,” Peterson said. I don’t think my business classmates ever warmed up to me. But in the music scene, as we like to say, it’s all a bunch of characters anyway. You know, no one’s weird, they’re a character. We accept everybody with open arms.”

Peterson encourages anyone interested in studying abroad to try it, and to not be afraid to do things that others might not understand.

“It took me two years before I ever went to my first open mic,” Peterson said. “I just wish I had gone sooner.”

Peterson first began her podcast “The Red Shutter Club” as a project for her master’s thesis.

“I just started interviewing some friends of mine. I filmed it. A really great friend of mine, Ellie Spencer, who’s an actress down in London now, she helped me so much just turning cameras on and helping me film everything. And it just really blew up into this thing where I was already kind of known from the music scene but that I suddenly became, walking down the street and people would be, ‘Ah, yo, yo, the girl from Red.’ ”

“The Red Shutter Club” was named for the red shutters in Peterson’s Liverpool apartment where the podcast is filmed. The podcast began last March and quickly grew to have 33,000 views. Peterson says Liverpool is full of musicians to interview, affording her endless possibilities for the podcast.

“Our goal for the next year is we’re going from not only the video podcast,” Peterson said, “but we’re developing an online music magazine, to maybe try and be able to monetize it. So I continue working on it more. It’s about 20 hours a week.”

Peterson says her band, Draft 5, allows her to do what she loves to do most –  sing and play music.

“I don’t care if it’s covers or if it’s originals,” Peterson said. “I want to go out and sing. I’ve met some wonderful musicians along the way and we formed a ragtag band. It’s four of us now.”

Draft 5 has already released a few singles and will now be playing some festivals this year, Peterson said. She comes from a family of musicians. Her father and uncle were in the local band Big Sexy. With permission, Peterson was able to take one of the songs from Big Sexy, “Strawberry Love,” and play it at an open mic. It has since become the song she is known for.

“I appreciate nice, soft indie, but I really love rock,” Peterson said.