Hailing from the mountains of Vancouver, Canada, Karly Kryski is a bold new voice in modern country music. Blending heartfelt storytelling with electrifying rhythms, she crafts songs that are as raw and passionate as they are catchy. A multi-instrumentalist on guitar, drums, and saxophone, Karly brings a rare versatility to both her sound and her live performances.
“Happy Hour After You” is a fun, cheeky breakup anthem about finally getting to the other side of heartbreak and realizing life actually got better after the relationship ended. Built around carefree girls-night-out energy, the track is confident and made for loud sing-alongs and live show moments. Written by Karly Kryski and Chris Biano, and produced by Jared Manierka (Carly Rae Jepsen, Molly Annelle), the single continues Karly’s streak of high-energy country releases rooted in honest storytelling and catchy hooks.
“Happy Hour After You” is described as a fun, cheeky breakup anthem about realizing life gets better after heartbreak. What inspired you to channel that specific “girls-night-out” energy into this song, and how did it feel to write a breakup track that focuses on joy rather than sadness?
I think a lot of it came from wanting to write a breakup song that felt empowering instead of emotional in a heavy way. So many breakup songs focus on being heartbroken, but sometimes the real turning point is when you finally get your confidence and spark back, and that’s the energy I wanted this song to have.
“Happy Hour After You” really leans into that carefree girls-night-out feeling where you’re out with your friends, the music’s loud, everybody’s laughing, and you suddenly realize you’re actually having more fun now than you were in the relationship. It’s cheeky, a little sassy, and not taking things too seriously.
Writing it honestly felt really fun because we weren’t trying to sit in the sadness at all. We wanted it to feel like the soundtrack to rolling the windows down in the summer, getting dressed up with your girlfriends, and realizing life goes on just fine after the wrong person leaves it.
You co-wrote this single with Chris Biano, and it was produced by Jared Manierka, who has worked with major pop-adjacent artists like Carly Rae Jepsen. What did that collaborative dynamic look like in the studio, and how did Jared’s pop-production background help shape the track’s country hook?
The collaboration worked really naturally because everybody understood the energy the song was supposed to have right from the start.
The writing process with Chris really started from wanting to capture that feeling of finally coming out the other side of a breakup and realizing you’re actually having fun again. We leaned more into the confidence, attitude, and humour of the situation instead of making it overly emotional. It naturally turned into this really fun, high-energy song that feels made for summer nights, loud sing-alongs, and going out with your friends. Then Jared really helped bring that energy to life in the production. His pop background gave the track this really big, catchy feel, especially in the chorus, but he still kept the country personality and storytelling at the center of it. I think that balance is what makes the song feel so fun and energetic while still sounding authentic to who I am as an artist.
Your previous release, “Rhinestones & Rust,” is closing in on an impressive 400,000 streams on Spotify, and “Rolling Dice” landed on SiriusXM’s Top of the Country Radio. How has seeing that kind of tangible momentum and fan support impacted your confidence going into this new release?
It’s definitely really encouraging, and I’m super grateful for the support those songs have received. As an independent artist, you put so much time and energy into releasing music, so seeing people genuinely connect with the songs means a lot to me.
I think more than anything, it’s given me confidence to keep trusting my instincts creatively and continue growing into my sound. Every release has felt like a learning experience, and seeing listeners come back and support each new song has been really motivating heading into “Happy Hour After You.”
More than anything, it’s just been really exciting to see the audience continue to grow with each release. Seeing people stream the songs, come out to shows, message me online, or sing the lyrics back has made me even more excited to keep releasing new music.
Earlier this spring, you crossed a major milestone by making your Nashville debut at the legendary Whiskey Jam. What was that experience like for you as a Canadian country artist, and did playing in Music City teach you anything new about yourself as a performer?
Playing Whiskey Jam was honestly such a surreal experience for me. As a Canadian country artist, getting the chance to perform in Nashville, such an iconic place for country music, felt really special, especially on a stage that so many incredible artists have come through over the years. It was definitely one of those moments that felt a little hard to believe while I was actually up there doing it.
I think the biggest thing I took away from it was just realizing how much I genuinely love performing and connecting with people through live music, no matter where I am. The audiences really listen to the songs and the storytelling, and that pushed me to lean in even more as a performer and trust myself on stage.
It also gave me a lot of motivation and confidence creatively. Being surrounded by so many talented artists and songwriters reminded me of why I love doing this in the first place, and it definitely left me feeling inspired coming home.
You have a busy festival season ahead, including performances at the Cloverdale Rodeo and the Nashville Takeover in Burlington. “Happy Hour After You” was practically made for loud, live sing-alongs—how are you planning to bring that specific crowd-first energy to these massive festival stages?
A) I think that’s what I’m most excited about with this song, because it really was written with live shows in mind. It has that big chorus and fun, carefree energy that just naturally gets people involved, whether they already know the song or they’re hearing it for the first time.
Going into festival season, I really want the live show to feel high-energy and interactive. Festivals are such a fun environment because people are there to let loose, have fun, and make memories with their friends, and “Happy Hour After You” fits that atmosphere perfectly.
I always want people to leave my set smiling, feeling good, and hopefully singing the chorus on their way out, so I think this song is going to be a really fun one to bring to those bigger festival crowds.
You are a true multi-instrumentalist, playing guitar, drums, and even the saxophone! Do you ever find your background in instruments like drums or sax influencing the rhythm, groove, or vocal phrasing when you sit down to write a country song?
Yeah, I actually think it influences my songwriting more than I probably even realize sometimes. Learning how to play drums, especially, really changed the way I think about groove, rhythm, and energy in a song. Even if I’m just writing with an acoustic guitar, I’m usually thinking about how the track is going to feel live and where the momentum should build.
The saxophone is definitely very different from what I do with country songs, but I think learning different instruments just gives you different ways of hearing and feeling music, and that’s something I’m really grateful for as a writer and performer.
Honest storytelling is at the heart of everything you release. As your platform grows and more people listen to your music, how do you balance staying vulnerable and true to your own life experiences while creating anthems that thousands of fans can relate to?
I think the most relatable songs usually come from a real place, so I’ve always tried to stay honest in my songwriting, even when the songs are fun or upbeat. Even something like “Happy Hour After You” has a real feeling behind it that people can connect to.
For me, it’s less about trying to write for thousands of people and more about writing something that feels authentic to my own experiences and emotions first. I think when you do that, honestly, other people naturally find pieces of themselves in the song too.
As my audience grows, I think I’ve actually become even more appreciative of vulnerability in songwriting because those are usually the songs people message me about the most. Whether it’s heartbreak, confidence, nostalgia, or just wanting to have fun with your friends, it’s really cool seeing how people connect their own memories and experiences to the music.
With the new single officially dropping on June 5, what do you hope is the number one thing listeners take away from “Happy Hour After You” when they blast it in their cars or on their own nights out this summer?
A) I hope people listen to it and feel lighter. At its core, the song is really about realizing life is too short to stay hung up on the wrong person for too long. Sometimes the best loves in your life are your friendships and the people who show up for you through everything.
I hope that when people blast it this summer, it reminds them to appreciate their close friends, enjoy the moment they’re in, and just have fun. It’s meant to feel carefree, empowering, and like the soundtrack to a really fun night out with your friends.
