Paris, Tenn.–No, you’re not seeing things. That really is Iris Shepherd of Henry in the new music video by Dolly Parton and Melissa Manchester.
As her acclaim as a violinist has grown, Iris Shepherd has been making quite a name for herself but she wasn’t totally prepared for ‘the call’ asking her to be in the video.
Her father, C. Scott Shepherd said, “Back in September of 2022, Iris got a call ‘out of the blue’ from Melissa Manchester’s manager on a Wednesday, and by Friday she was recording on Nashville’s “Music Row”!”
In the video for Manchester’s song, “Midnight Blue”, Iris plays the the role of a “busker” who is performing for the legendary Dolly Parton and Manchester.
Iris’ mother, Traci Shepherd, said Manchester’s manager reached out to Iris’s violin teacher (Connie Heard, Chair of the Strings Department at Vanderbilt University) to see if Professor Heard knew of a violinist who could join them for the video shoot. “Iris was recommended and Iris even got to choose a fellow student to come with her and appear in the video. Dolly and Melissa were kind and warm and made sure Iris felt welcome and appreciated.”
The experience was ‘incredible’, Scott Shepherd said, and “to top it all off, having her J. S. Bach violin book signed by both Melissa and Dolly is a moment Iris will treasure forever”, he said.
Hi Shannon! Melissa Manchester’s manager reached out to Iris’s violin teacher (Connie Heard, Chair of the Strings Department at Vanderbilt University) to see if Professor Heard knew of a violinist who could join them for the video shoot. Iris was recommended and Iris even got to choose a fellow student to come with her and appear in the video. Dolly and Melissa were kind and warm and made sure Iris felt welcome and appreciated. This duet is off of Melissa Manchester’s new album.