Helen Shanahan is a singer-songwriter from Perth, Western Australia, whose contemporary folk/pop songs blend heartfelt storytelling with rich melodies and an acoustic sensibility. A graduate of the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA), Helen has built a career defined by honest songwriting and captivating live performances.

Helen released her debut EP Driftwood in 2012, before winning the national Telstra Road to Discovery songwriting competition in 2013. The award led to performances across Australia, Canada and the USA, including BIGSOUND, Canadian Music Week, the Tamworth Country Music Festival, Nashville’s Americana Festival and New York’s iconic The Bitter End.

In 2015, Helen signed with Mushroom Music Publishing following the release of her EP Finding Gold. Her debut album Every Little Sting followed in 2017, produced by Nashville’s Brad Jones (Missy Higgins, Bob Evans). She won the WAM Song of the Year Award in 2018 for I Only Hide and has since supported artists including Passenger, Matt Corby, Missy Higgins, Jackson Browne, The Waifs and Peter Garrett.

Following a stint living in the UK, Helen returned to Perth in 2020. While embracing motherhood, she continued performing and recording, including singing backing vocals for Tim Minchin. Her second album, Canvas (2022), was described by Jeff Jenkins (STACK Magazine) as “poetic and damn near perfect.”

Recent years have seen Helen collaborate with acclaimed composer and producer Elise Reitze-Swensen (Feels) on the Matrescence project, feature on Carus Thompson’s album Everything is New, and continue growing The Songwriters Café, the monthly songwriter showcase she founded and curates in Fremantle.

In 2026, Helen celebrated a career milestone when Vika & Linda recorded her song What a Beautiful Thing for their ARIA No. 1 album Where Do You Come From. She is currently preparing to release her fourth studio album in early 2027.