This year, Canadian country artist Owen Riegling is on the road with a packed schedule of festival dates as well as his own headlining shows, supporting his new album In The Feeling , which released April 17 via Big Loud Records in partnership with Universal Music Canada. But back before the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020, Mildmay, Canada native Riegling had career aspirations that would keep him working in music behind the scenes rather than commanding the stage. He had enrolled at the Ontario Institute for Audio Recording Technology (OIART), with his sights set on working in local music studios in Canada. “I loved writing songs, but it seemed more practical to be a producer,” Riegling tells Billboard . “I learned how to record music, mix music, proper mic technique, setting up drums. I was about to send my resume to a bunch of studios in Toronto, then COVID hit and all the studios closed. So that changed the trajectory of my life. I started making more music and playing some shows....