TIMAs Folk & Adult Contemporary Showcase #4 – “Best Live” on June 24.2009 @ The Central!
August 16.2009
By BD Marie Hughes
I had a chance to catch up with some of the talent on Wednesday night!
Elyse Simpson
She is not your average singer/songwriter. At 16, Elyse Simpson delivers her interpretation of modern folk music through expressive lyrics that contradict her years.
BD: Did you face any negativity or indifference early on in your music career?
Elyse: I am lucky enough to be surrounded by people that not only encourage my work but go out of their way to support my music. I will always have negativity follow my work because I am my own biggest critic. This struggle with myself is the only way I will really show improvement in my performance and writing.
BD: What types of feedback, and from where such as fans, family, friends, let you know you’re on the right track?
Elyse: The love and support from my family and friends is irreplaceable. But my favorite feedback is from the more unsuspected sources. There is a level genuineness and sincerity that always comes when receiving praise or compliments from a stranger. Overall, it’s when people tell me my music is really part of their lives. Having someone say they have my myspace set as their homepage, one of my tracks set on repeat, or that they listened to my music while experiencing a huge change is their life means I'm making an impact. That’s all I can ask for really at the end of the day.
BD: A few months ago I interviewed a hip hop/reggae artist from Montreal named Empire Isis. Her advice to other artists was, “Associate with people who make sense in your life.” Do you identify with that?
Elyse: Positive energy breeds positive energy. Associating with people who make sense in your life is what spawns positive energy and inevitably puts you in a positive place in your life. Artists are known from creating their work based on struggle and hardship. But to be able to draw inspiration from cold hard places and events and turn it into something beautiful takes a level of positivity to be able to see the solution, resolution or lighter side of things that comes with these problems. So, yes, I identify with filling your life with people who make sense because bottom line is people want to be happy. To succeed in what they are doing, having good energy fields, and environments has a lot to do with both.
BD: How do you write? Is your process organic or very structured?
Elyse: I would say my writing process is sporadic more than anything. If needed to, I can sit down and churn out lyrics or music to finish a song. But the base of what will spark me writing is unpredictable and cannot necessarily be done on command. Having this style of writing means I can find myself sometimes in dry spells. On the other hand, it also makes the writing process incredibly exciting because, to some extent, it will always be uncontrollable and wild.
BD: You have recently received a grant. What can you tell us about that?
Elyse: It is a $3,000 dollar grant from Halton Region given to young entrepreneurs. I received it for my record label Jangle Records. I cannot express how much it has helped me in getting my company off the ground. Beyond simply the financial aid, the opportunities I have had to meet with mentors have opened so many doors for me. It’s allowed me to become more aware as a consumer as well as a label owner.
BD: How do you create opportunities? Is starting your own record label part of that forward momentum? What can you share with us?
Elyse: I try to make opportunities for myself as well as for my label by putting myself out there in the right places at the right time. It can be challenging. So it’s essential for me to just keep pushing constantly until the place and time line up in my favor. The label makes it possible for me to be around the right people. This makes the time and place line up so much quicker and enjoyably. Running the record label allows me to interact with people who make sense to me creatively and starts the chain reaction that breeds opportunities for me and for them.
BD: What’s next for you?
Elyse: I'll be working a lot with my own label. I recently signed my first artist, Russell Horton, and will be signing my second by the end of the month. So there’s a lot of work associated with that as well as with merchandise, promotion, photos, media and getting ready for the launch coming up in October. Other than that, a big part of me is stepping back from the business side of things. This allows the right side of my brain to be active in the forefront at least for a while. So that means more writing and hopefully getting to experiment a bit in the studio sometime soon.
www.myspace.com/elysesimpsonLizzy and the Pretty Boys
Elizabeth (“Lizzy”) Clarke, Ian Moore, Ben Phelen, Lowell Whitty, Alistair Whitehead, Evan Diamond, Angie Hilts (also of “The Rucksack Willies”) and Danielle Bourgois are the collective that is “Lizzy and the Pretty Boys”. They have been together for just the better part of a year. Lizzy and the guys are grads from Humber College’s Music School. Their formal studies and training clearly shine through their skillfully crafted music. If you’re looking for a contemporary vibe as your soundtrack for lovin’, losin’, or making the most of your place in the universe, you need to check out their myspace. Sweet, sweet and, yes, pretty.
BD: Lizzy, what negativity, if any, did you face early on?
Lizzy: I have been lucky in that I have been surrounded by very supportive people most of my life. There has been the odd nay-sayer here and there. The worst they might say is something about how many female singer/songwriters there are out there and how I might end up being just one of many unsuccessful artists. But, I feel confident that the music we play stands out and that people will want to listen to it.
BD: How do you know you’re on the right path?
Lizzy: I know we're on the right path when people want to buy our music. People will, more often than not, be polite and tell you you're great even if you're not. The fact that people are willing to spend money on the music we make let's me know we're doing something right.
BD: How do you get creative?
Lizzy: Lizzy being creative. Step one: Make a pot of tea. Step two: Sit at piano for 30 minutes. Step 3: Get frustrated and go for a walk. Step 4: Wait for the most inconvenient moment for a creative spark and scramble for a writing pad and rush to the nearest piano! (we both laugh) I couldn't say how it is I get creative. It's very much hit and miss when it comes to projects I start and what I write.
BD: How do you keep inspired?
Lizzy: I keep inspired by surrounding myself with inspirational people. I find I am most inclined to write after a good night with good friends.
BD: What are your upcoming plans?
Lizzy: I plan to hit the city as hard as I can. I want everyone to hear our music. I want for us to play as much as humanly possible. I'm very excited about the future!
www.myspace.com/lizzyandtheprettyboysThe Strip is a unique mix of folk, rock, roots, experimental, alt-country and jazz all infused with brilliant songwriting and beautiful harmonies.
Darrin Davis – Lead vocals, saxophone, banjo, harmonica, acoustic guitar
Kevin Robinson – Lead guitar, back up vocals
Matt Blackie – Percussion, back up vocals
Greg Plant – Bass
Together for over 5 years, the band has played at or in just about every possible venue. Those venues include a year’s stint busking by way of an awarded “busking permit” from the TTC (for Darrin and Kevin) with many places in between all the way to The Opera House and The Horseshoe Tavern. The Strip already has a west coast Canada tour under its belt.
BD: When was it that you became serious about your music? When do you feel you were viewed as serious?
The Strip Darrin: Myself and all the other guys in the band have known from an early age that music was what made us tick. I’ve known that I’d be a musician since I was a kid, playing saxophone at church. I’ve been blessed to come from a very musical family. I was encouraged right from the beginning to pursue music as my career. The guitarist, Kevin, and I first wrote music together for a visual art project that I was working on back when we were drinking buddies at York U. There was a great synergy there. Soon his best friend, Matt, joined us on drums. We moved to Kevin’s parent’s place in Bracebridge for the summer after we graduated and started the band up there. Our bass player, Greg, joined us last year just before we recorded our first album. I think having a professionally recorded album that charted nationally showed any questioning family and friends that we’re serious.
BD: What types of feedback are you getting?
The Strip Darrin: There’s nothing like playing a new song for a small group of friends for the first time. We love debuting new material at shows and seeing how they work in front of an audience. But, in the end, the ultimate judge of a song’s success just has to be us. We’re always re-working parts of songs, adding outros, switching bridges and so on in an effort to distill more essence out of the tune.
BD: What strategies do you have to get your name out there?
The Strip Darrin: The Strip has been banging away for several years now. The big thing we’ve been learning is to do as much work as you can do well (he emphasizes the word “well”) on your own. Then hire professionals to do the things you’re having a hard time with. We just recently hired a publicist Lisa Weitz (he notes her website at www.LWCommunications.ca) who has been doing great work for us. She’s thorough, connected, and a total sweetheart. And she gets results.
BD: How do you create opportunities?
The Strip Darrin: Playing loads of shows is our tried and true method. We’ve played at art openings, big venues like The Horseshoe and The Supermarket, tiny rooms like Not My Dog in Parkdale, at book stores, house concerts and the like. We’re working on developing connections with people in a variety of different venues and formats.
BD: How do you keep inspired?
The Strip Darrin: We love playing with other bands. All of us are active members of several other groups and that keeps us inspired. Reading music magazines like “Uncut and Paste” and buying tons of albums help, too. There are tons of awesome music blogs to point you in the right direction. And getting out of the city, up to a cabin in the woods to write always gets the juices going. I’ve just started taking guitar and harp lessons to keep things flowing.
BD: Who do you look up to?
The Strip Darrin: Kevin and Matt are big fans of Phish. Greg loves The Queens of The Stone Age and The Foo Fighters. For me, Bob Dylan, Hank Williams and Ornette Coleman.
BD: Do you have a motto that you live by?
The Strip Darrin: The way to tell a person’s true character is by the way they treat waiters and cab drivers.
BD: Toronto – all of Canada, really – is full of aspiring artists. What practical tips would you give to them drawing on what you have learned and experienced?
The Strip Darrin: Stick to your guns! (with full emphasis) (we both laugh – “Stick to Your Guns!” is also the band’s 11-track debut album name) It’s easy to get discouraged, especially trying to make a living playing music in a huge city like Toronto, with countless bands all going for the same little piece of pie. But, if you know, deep down, you’ve got it in you, if you practice relentlessly and cover all the bases from a business side, things will start happening.
BD: What’s next for you?
The Strip Darrin: We’re just starting to book a house concert tour of Western Canada. And there will be a new album in the works in the coming year! Thanks so much!
www.myspace.com/thestripmusicBeth Moore
Beth is a singer/songwriter from Niagara Falls, ON. Along with acoustic sets, she’s joined by Carl-David Onoforio, electric guitar, Peter Haverkamp, keys, Joseph Stracuzzi, bass, and Bob Goodall on drums. Reaching beyond her hometown recognition, she brings her take on modern folk music to Toronto.
BD: How do you write? Is your process organic or very structured?
Beth: My songwriting is definitely something that comes naturally. It really feels like such a gift and I’m blessed to have it. I first picked up a guitar 3 years ago and began songwriting right away, before learning covers or anything. I played my first show for a group of about 30 people 3 weeks after first picking up a guitar. I played two songs I had written. So I can’t explain how I am able to write songs. They just come out. It’s truly a natural gift from God. Anytime I have tried to write a song based on any sort of template, it just sounds mechanical. It doesn’t compliment the emotion I’m trying to get across in the song.
BD: When did you become serious about your music? When did others start to view you as serious?
Beth: I feel from the moment I first realized I had this talent, I was serious about it. I was always determined to not waste such a blessing. In such a short time, my music became such an important part of my life that I don’t know how I could not take it seriously. However, about a year ago, I made the choice to leave my college program and pursue music 100% with everything I have. That’s when my close friends and family knew I was really going for this. As for everyone else, I think some of them started taking me seriously when I was nominated for “Songwriter of the Year” by the Niagara Music Awards. The rest, I think, started to take me seriously once they actually heard the music and enjoyed it.
BD: What strategies do you have to get your name out there?
Beth: I do all of the viral promotion – facebook, myspace, my own website and so on. However, I also play a lot of shows every week throughout southern Ontario, and soon to expand to more of Canada and the States. I host a songwriters night every Wednesday in Niagara Falls at Midé Bistro. People can hear my music live every week and also to promote all the other amazing talent the Niagara Region has to offer. I hand out lots of business cards and cd demos. No matter what, though, the best promotion is just writing great tunes and having a great time while you play them. That’s what makes the music infectious. If they love to listen to it even half as much as we love to play it, they’ll want to hear more.
BD: How do you keep positive and keep forward momentum?
Beth: I’ve always been a positive person. I strongly believe that everything happens for a reason. I’ve found that when you look for the positive, you find it. Also, I mentally take myself about 20 years from now. I think about how I would feel if I gave up now. I know I would not feel very great about myself. Just like it says in my song “The Road” – “I’ve already worked it out in so many ways, I can’t give up now.” That song tells you exactly how I keep moving and, really, it’s just because I can’t give up now. Someone has to make it. Might as well be me.
BD: Who do you look up to?
Beth: I’m pretty tall! Most people are shorter than me! (laughing) Really, though, I look up to a lot of people. Dustin Kensrue is a songwriter that really inspires me. He writes amazing songs and keeps his faith in God strong and apparent throughout them without any shame. He doesn’t force it in people’s faces the same way I don’t. He just tells them about this beautiful love he has found and that is all I want to do. Just tell people about my experiences, share with them the times I found hope, love, and something to believe in. I really look up to anyone who stands strong in what they believe as long as they do it with love and understanding.
BD: Do you have a motto that you live by?
Beth: Which of us can add one hour to our lives by worrying?
BD: What practical tips would you give to young, aspiring artists based on what you have learned and experienced?
Beth: The most practical tip I can give is to write good songs, write honestly, and write what you know. And, whatever you do, don’t give up. Because even if what you’re doing at this point in time isn’t working out, there is always another angle to work at it from. Even the most impractical goals are practical. Your most unrealistic dreams are only possible if you make them possible. I want to win a Grammy one day. Right now saying that sounds far fetched. But I wouldn’t ever let anyone tell me I don’t have a chance.
BD: What’s next for you?
Beth: Right now is what’s next! I’m doing it! I don’t really make plans because it seems that God just laughs at those and they change anyways! In the meantime, I will just keep loving my music, nurturing it, and being the person I need to be to effect people with my music. To show them some positivity and that you really can get what you want out of this life. You just have to be a little fearless, very confident, and honest as you can.
www.msypace.com/bethmooremusicwww.bethmoore.caJaphy
Nominated for “Best Live” by the TIMAs in 2006, Japhy continues to consistently blaze musical trails with his high energy rock ‘n’ roll. His showcase at this year’s TIMAs was heavily anticipated. Most noteworthy under “songwriting skills”, Japhy won the John Lennon Songwriting Contest in 2006 with “Alright” which earned a live performance at the Namm Show (National Association of Music Merchants a.k.a. “The World’s Loudest Trade Show” in Anaheim, Cali as part of the John Lennon tour bus stage.
BD: When was it that you became serious about your music? When did you feel you were going somewhere?
Japhy Michael Stanfield: I was lucky enough to have music find me at a very young age. It has always represented a huge part of who I am. So I've been serious about it since I felt that first thump of the drum and first strike of the guitar. I believe the path we travel is a winding road with many corners to turn. Being recognized by the industry receiving certain awards along the way has been a good indicator that we are on the right road. Ultimately, it's the fans and our continuing pursuit that lets us know we are going somewhere.
BD: What strategies do you have to get your name out there?
Japhy Michael: The best strategy is to write and perform the best music you can aspire to. With that in place and the power of the internet, it allows us to reach a worldwide fan base.
BD: How do you create opportunities?
Japhy Michael: Opportunities are always present. It's being aware of them and keeping an open mind to them that brings them to fruition. Being a part of great networking events like the TIMAS creates many open doors.
BD: A few months ago I interviewed a hip hop/reggae artist from Montreal named Empire Isis. Her advice to other artists was, “Associate with people who make sense in your life.” Do you identify with that?
Japhy Michael: I do identify with that statement. But I would say that there is sense to be made of any situation and growth to be found in everyone because our lives are always evolving. Things that once confused me make perfect sense in my life now.
BD: Who do you look up to?
Japhy Michael: Anyone over 6 feet tall? (smiles) Seriously, I have always had a great deal of respect for people who are strong in their beliefs and vision and are able to act on those attributes.
BD: Do you have a motto that you live by?
Japhy Michael: Something once was nothing and now it's everything you know.
BD: Toronto – all of Canada, really – is full of aspiring artists. What practical tips would you give to them drawing on what you have learned and experienced?
Japhy Michael: Have faith and believe in who you are and what you are doing. Surround yourself with strong people dedicated to making your music the best it can be. And choose who you trust wisely.
BD: What’s on the horizon for you?
Japhy Michael: We are extremely excited about our soon to be released new album, a tour, a new website, and being a part of The TIMAS. (smiles) Anything and everything that each new day brings us!
www.myspace.com/japhywww.japhyryder.com
