The Brooklyn-based indie-folk artist opens up about the memories behind her latest single, life at sea, and making music with honesty, humor, and a little whimsy.
Some of the best songs come from the most ordinary places. For shepup, it's a traffic light between two childhood homes.
The Ridgewood, New York-based indie-folk project, led by songwriter Sheila Flaherty, has a charm that's difficult to manufacture. Blending delicate nylon-string guitar, jazz-influenced melodies, intimate vocals, and an unmistakable sense of humor, shepup makes music that feels both deeply personal and wonderfully unpredictable.
Her single “At the Light” is a particularly lovely example. Written about her lifelong friendship with Erin, the song turns a familiar neighborhood meeting spot into something much bigger: a place holding years of memories, inside jokes, and the kind of love that grows alongside you.
For Everyday Jams, shepup opens up about the friendship behind the release, her unconventional path into songwriting, and why being a little playful might be one of the most honest things an artist can do.
Meet Me at the Light
At the center of “At the Light” is a friendship that has survived practically every version of growing up.
For years, shepup and Erin met at a traffic light halfway between their childhood homes. It was where they'd begin their adventures, reconnect afterward, and collect the countless small memories that eventually become the foundation of a lifelong friendship.
Turning all that history into one song wasn't easy.
"I just wanted a means to tell Erin how much I love her and how important she is to me," shepup tells Everyday Jams.
"I've written a lot of sad songs and I think it's worth making positive ones too."
The traffic light became the perfect symbol, not only because of the memories attached to it, but because of what its location represented.
"It's about meeting in the middle, which is symbolic of our friendship."
There's something incredibly sweet about that idea. A place most people would pass without a second thought becomes a landmark in someone else's life.
And perhaps the most charming part? Erin listens to the song every day.
She even wondered why anyone else would want to listen to what she considered one big inside joke between them.
For shepup, that's hardly the point. The song was always meant for Erin first.
The accompanying music video adds another visual dimension to the release, inviting listeners further into the sentimental, slightly whimsical world surrounding “At the Light.”
An Unconventional Way to Find Your Voice
shepup's journey into music hasn't followed the most traditional route.
Growing up, Sheila studied jazz and classical music and participated in school band and chorus. But the competitive nature of performing left her struggling with intense stage fright, eventually convincing her that pursuing music professionally wasn't for her.
Instead, she attended SUNY Maritime to study marine engineering, imagining a career that would allow her to travel the world.
It was during college that she picked up a guitar and slowly found her way back to music.
After spending an entire year learning Elizabeth Cotten's “Freight Train,” she began experimenting with songwriting and discovered something unexpected: performing her own songs felt entirely different from singing someone else's.
"I'm the best person to sing and share my own stories."
That realization changed everything.
Today, shepup's music reflects an eclectic collection of influences, from Ella Fitzgerald and Adrienne Lenker to Okay Kaya and Alice Phoebe Lou. Her songs feel rooted in indie-folk but rarely take themselves too seriously, finding room for playful observations alongside deeply personal storytelling.
For shepup, honesty is at the heart of it all.
"One principle I take very seriously in songwriting is being honest."
She admits that even changing a small detail to fit a rhyme can bother her. But sincerity doesn't mean every song needs to be serious.
"Including humor is just another means to truth."
It's a philosophy that gives her music its distinctive personality: thoughtful, unfiltered, and wonderfully human.
Two Very Different Worlds
Perhaps one of the most interesting things about shepup is that her life outside music is just as unconventional as the songs themselves.
When she's not writing or performing, she's working as a marine engineer, keeping ships running and navigating the waterways around New York.
It's not unusual for her to spend downtime practicing guitar on deck while passing the Statue of Liberty or traveling through Newtown Creek.
Rather than seeing her career as something separate from her artistry, shepup has grown to appreciate the perspective it gives her.
Her work introduces her to unusual characters, unexpected places, and experiences that naturally find their way into her songwriting.
She describes the contrast between her two lives with a particularly fitting sense of humor:
"I feel like Hannah Montanna."
One day she's working in an engine room; the next she's performing intimate indie-folk songs in a tutu.
It's difficult not to love an artist who embraces both sides so wholeheartedly.
A Little More Honesty, a Little More Wonder
As shepup looks toward what's next, she's less interested in rushing toward another milestone and more focused on reconnecting with the joy of making music.
With two albums nearly finished, she's allowing herself time to explore new stories, spend more hours playing guitar, and approach creativity without pressure.
"I want to slow down on playing shows and play more guitar."
It's a refreshing perspective from an artist whose music already feels so connected to the small, meaningful details of life.
And that's what makes “At the Light” such a special release.
It's not trying to turn an ordinary friendship into something grander than it is. Instead, it reminds us that the most meaningful relationships often live in the smallest details: a familiar street corner, an old inside joke, or the person who has witnessed every version of who you've become.
shepup has a lovely way of making those moments feel worth celebrating.
With sincerity, a little humor, and plenty of heart, she's creating music that feels unmistakably her own.
Stream “At the Light” by shepup, out now on all major streaming platforms, and watch the accompanying music video to spend a little more time in her wonderfully personal world.
Photography : Andy Nappi @nappictures
