Canadian artists you've never heard of (or didn't know were Canadian).
Following the advice girlnextdoor, I present the magnificent seven talented Canadians whom I met through local radio and Spotify Music Canada. All genres are represented, for every taste and color: hip-hop, alternative rock, pop, electronica and country. The number seven is my favorite on the blog, because seven is the optimal number for the list, not too little and not too much.
There are a lot of videos and photos in the post.
I'll start with the number one star on the list - Drake. Now he is on a wave of popularity, but once he was a simple black guy from the suburbs of Toronto. Although there is a lot of gossip about his family, origins and parents. I once heard in a conversation that Aubrey (as his acquaintances call Drake) did not start from the bottom, being from a wealthy Jewish family, he attended an elite closed school for young talents. And that his song Started from the Bottom and the ghetto surroundings are nothing more than a lie and a desire to squeeze into the cohort of African-American rappers. After reading his Wikipedia page, I came to the conclusion that Aubrey Drake is from a middle-class family, although he was raised by a single (white) mother. I don't think to be talented singer, one must be born in the lower social layers. Drake is a very talented performer and deserves to be called the number one singer in North America. Even though I don't listen to hip-hop, I sometimes make an exception for Drake. Favorite songs: One Dance and Hold On, We're Coming Home.
Rapper Drake is a symbol of Canadian multiculturalism
My university youth (the first five years of university) – Metric. I accidentally heard one song in a selection of tracks on my cousin’s flash drive and Googled their albums. For me, hearing Metric on local Canadian radio was like a miracle. At first I thought I had turned on my playlist. I'm so used to the realization that Metric is an unknown alt-rock band that is never played on the radio, and which I discovered completely by accident on the Internet. I still rejoice when I hear the voice of Emily Haynes when I walk down the street or sit in a cafe. As someone correctly noted in the musical review of their album Fantasies, Emily’s voice is a mixture of the hoarseness of Nina Persson from The Cardigans and a certain hysteria of Karen O from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. If Madonna's voice is the canon of American pop music, the voice of Metric's Emily Haynes is the canon of alternative North American music (IMHO). Metric is originally from Toronto and came to Calgary three years ago for a concert, which I didn’t have time to attend. Canadians don't really know them (or I'm talking to the wrong people), but they are often played on alternative radio.
Their most popular songs (Help I’m Alive and Gimme Sympathy) are probably familiar to you if you often watch shows like The Vampire Diaries (which I don’t watch, but I heard that Metric is included in the soundtrack of the series). I love their video Gimme Sympathy – unusual and very alternative. One of the most underrated rock bands, in my opinion. Perhaps they should change the composer and songwriters, because Emily's voice is worthy of conquering the charts. By the way, “the face of Canada” Kristen Stewart admitted that the song Metric Satellite Mind is one of her favorites.
I also love Emily's clothing style (glamrock!)
Metric will remind you of the slightly forgotten, but nevertheless beautiful in their time, The Cardigans
Tegan and Sara
In Canada they are considered a mainstream pop group, despite their unconventional surroundings. In the States, they are also considered a group for gays, but in Canada, some do not even know that the twins Tegan and Sarah have been fighting on the other side of the front for a long time. They can probably be compared to our Russian Tattoos, everyone knows about their reputation, but they are still at the top of the charts. I remember when I was in middle school, many girls dressed like Tatu soloists. And no one attached much importance to this. Simply fashionable. The same goes for Canadian twins Teagan and Sarah Queen. An American friend heard Tegan and Sarah’s song and immediately said: “Ugh, they’re Canadian lesbians!” (not that lesbians – ugh, but that Canadians, some Americans don’t like Canadians). A Canadian colleague admitted that she didn’t even suspect that Tegan and Sara belonged to gay people.
If someone hears the sweet voices of the Queen twins in your headphones, no one will look at you askance - local radio stations love to play Tegan and Sara's cute pop songs on the daytime airwaves. Fortunately, their latest album is very cool and catchy.
Also, Tegan and Sarah are from Calgary, raised by the same mother and lived near me (Silver Springs). That's why people in Calgary love them in a special way.
Forget the Night Snipers, the glamorous and feminine Tegan and Sara will win your heart with just their cute looks.
Coleman Hell
Bearded Ontario electronica artist Coleman Hell offers a stylish mix of country music and electronic beats, just right for a disco dance in a town like Deep River or Fort McMurray. You can feel nostalgic for beautiful views Canadian nature and country bars, sitting at the bar in big city like Toronto.
Every time I hear the first notes of 2 Heads, I remember my two years in the small town of Fairbanks, Alaska. And the clip is appropriate - a country wedding in a small place with a beautiful blonde bride and a smug groom.
Dear Rouge
I once shared a room with a student journalist, Annie, from Juneau, Alaska. Annie graduated and set out to conquer New York. Arriving in Calgary, I saw a video clip of the band Dear Rouge with a girl who strikingly reminded me of my Alaskan neighbor. However, the vocalist's voice and style of music were strikingly different from musical material, which I sometimes heard performed by Annie in the local pub. Having experienced powerful cognitive dissonance, I went to research information about the group on Google and YouTube. Dear Rouge's Danielle does look like Annie's big sister, but she's from Red Deer in northern Alberta.
Dear Rouge is a very interesting alternative team, which is quite unusual for the Prairies. Perhaps the fact that the guys started climbing from Alberta, and not from Ontario or British Columbia, somehow influenced their popularity and recognition, but at the moment, Dear Rouge is not particularly known outside of Canada. But it's worth listening to them. Canadian alternative music itself is quite popular (Alanis Morissette, Lights, Feist, Half Moon Run), but I think I won’t hear Dear Rouge in Russia for a long time.
Annie, take your refrigerator from my room
Alessia Cara
Despite her young age (20), Alessia Cara wrote an unexpectedly very mature song, Here. When I heard her song on the radio, I thought, wow, finally someone thought of writing a song about stupid house parties from which you want to go home as quickly as possible.
Looking at such young singers (Kara was born in 1996), you think how much I have matured and how quickly time flies. However, Alessia Cara compares favorably with girls of her same age, mainly due to her lyrics and beautiful vocals.
For some reason, I always thought that Alessia Cara was a singer of Afro-Caribbean origin, but Wikipedia corrects me, saying that Cara is Italian. However, it doesn’t matter, the important thing is that despite her youth, Kara manages to write excellent lyrics and be sincere in her songs.
I would love to go to her concert.
Oh, these Italians: if Alessia Cara is African-Canadian for me, then Ariana Grande is Asian
The Weeknd
We started with a world hip-hop star, and we’ll finish our list with a Canadian rap artist as well.
Everyone knows Weekend, but not everyone knows that he is Canadian from Ontario. Unlike Drake-Aubrey, whose father is African-American, Weekend's parents are Ethiopian. What's interesting about Canada is the fact that African-Canadians, unlike African-Americans, are usually descendants of immigrants from former British colonies in Africa, or from the Caribbean islands (Jamaica, Haiti, Dominican Islands).
As I said, I don't particularly prefer hip-hop, but I like Weekend's duets with Lana Del Rey (Stargirl and Lust for Life). I think many people know The Weeknd, if not by name, then by his songs.
Which Canadians do you listen to?
FavoritesHowever, Shania did not immediately succeed in going her own way. Shania wrote the songs herself and wanted to sing her own songs, but the producers imposed material on her from other authors, as a result, on her first album there was only one song of hers (God Ain’t Gonna Getcha For That), and even then with an arrangement alien to her. As a result, the album, simply called "Shania Twain", was released on April 20, 1993 and was a complete failure on the market. Even on the specialized US country music albums chart, it only reached number 67.
However, thanks to the first album, no matter how disastrous it was, Shania was noticed by the famous producer who worked with Def Leppard, AC/DC and Brian Adoms, Robert John "Mutt" Lang. Their acquaintance took place over the phone. For a long time they write songs and communicate only by phone. However, after a personal meeting at the Fan Fair festival, a strong feeling flares up between them, and on December 28, 1993 they become husband and wife. Her producer husband allows Shania to follow her own path in music and she immediately achieves success, releasing her second album, “The Woman In Me,” in 1995. In 1996, Shania received a Grammy for this disc in the category “ Best Album in country style." In 1997, the album became the most successful female country album in the history of music, selling 12 million copies.
Shania's third album, "Come On Over" (1997), was even more successful than her second album. For "Come On Over" Shania received 4 Grammys, the album acquired the status of the best-selling female album in history - in total, over 40 million copies of this disc have been sold worldwide, 20 million of them in the USA.
As an introduction to the work of Shania Twain, here are two songs from the album "Come On Over":
Shania Twain - Don't Be Stupid. Performance in Chicago in 2003.
Shania Twain - When
In 2002, Shania released her 4th album, “Up!”, which sold 20 million copies worldwide. Twain became the first woman in music history to have three consecutive albums achieve diamond status (i.e., selling more than 10 million copies).
In the summer of 2010, Shania and her producer husband Robert John "Mutt" Lang divorced. According to rumors, the reason for the divorce was her husband’s infidelity.
On January 1, 2011, Shania Twain married Swiss businessman Frederic Thibault. Unlike her first husband, who became famous for his reclusiveness, Frederick is an active companion who shares Shania’s love of adventure and travel.
Shania Twain's height is 162 cm, body measurements 90-60-89.
Russian-language fan site of Shania Twain - shania.net.ru
August 21st, 2013 , 11:10 am
Almost all of us have the main associations with Canada: maple leaf and maple syrup, Niagara Falls, hockey and beavers. And of course famous Canadians, which will be discussed in today’s selection.
1. Jason Priestley
Place of birth: Vancouver
Fame: Brandon in Aaron Spelling's hit series Beverly Hills 90210.
Early work: First role as unruly orphan Todd Mahaffey on NBC's Nurse Kate.
Incredible but true: he directed a documentary about the Canadian group “The Barenaked Ladies” and a video for their single “The Old Apartment”, for which he received the award for “best director” at the 1996 Canadian Music Video Awards. (Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for AFI)
2. Dan Aykroyd
Place of birth: Ottawa
Fame: Original cast member and writer for Saturday Night Live, where he imitated Jimmy Carter, Richard Nixon and Julia Child. He also became famous for the films “Eggheads” and “The Blues Brothers.”
Early work: first role - in the film “Love at First Sight” (1977).
Incredible but true: his wife Donna Dixon - former model, who won Miss Virginia in 1976 and Miss District of Columbia in 1977. (Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
3. Evangeline Lilly
Place of Birth: Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta
Fame: Kate Austen in the TV series Lost.
Early work: starred in commercials hotline for single men, also starred in the film “Freddy vs. Jason.”
Incredible but true: lived in a grass hut as a missionary in the Philippines. (Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
4. Alanis Morissette
Place of birth: Ottawa
Fame: Her 1995 album “Jagged Little Pill” sold 30 million copies.
Early work: Series regular on Nickelodeon's “You Can't Do That on Television” in 1986.
Incredible but true: she played God in the film “Dogma”. (Jean-Christophe Bott/EPA)
5. Ellen Page
Place of birth: Halifax, Nova Scotia
Fame: She was nominated for an Oscar and a Golden Globe for her role in the film Juno.
Early work: TV movie “Pete Pony” at age 10.
Unbelievable but true: she had to wear a wig in X-Men: The Last Stand because she shaved her head for another film. (Lucas Jackson/Reuters)
6. Kim Cattrall
Birthplace: Widnes, England (her family moved to Canada when she was 3 months old).
Fame: Horny Samantha Jones in the TV series and film Sex and the City.
Early works: Porky's (1982) and Police Academy (1984).
Incredible, but true: in 2002, she wrote the book “Satisfaction: The Art of the Female Orgasm,” co-authored with her ex-husband. (Toby Melville/Reuters)
7. Hayden Christensen
Place of birth: Vancouver
Fame: Anakin Skywalker in George Lucas' saga Star wars: episode two - attack of the clones."
Early works: the series “Family Passion” (1993), “Higher Ground” (2000), “Life is like a home.”
Incredible but true: he owns the production company Forest Park Pictures with his older brother Tov. (Franck Robichon/EPA)
8. Jim Carrey
Place of birth: Newmarket, Ontario
Fame: famous comedian, star of such comedies as “Ace Ventura”, “Dumb and Dumber” and “Bruce Almighty”, as well as the melodrama “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”.
Early work: played several idiotic characters in the TV series “Living Tassels.”
Incredible, but true: he was supposed to participate in the famous American comedy TV show “Saturday Night Live”, but he was not taken (not funny enough?). (Evan Agostini/Getty Images)
9. Avril Lavigne
Place of Birth: Belleville, Ontario
Fame: Released her first album “Let Go” at age 17 and introduced the fashion for skate trousers.
Early work: Sang at local fairs and festivals.
Incredible but true: at 14, she won a local radio competition and performed on stage with Shania Twain. (Peter Kramer/AP)
10. Nelly Furtado
Place of Birth: Victoria, British Columbia
Fame: Grammy-winning song “I’m Like a Bird” in 2000, as well as the 2006 hit “Promiscuous.”
Early works: albums “Whoa, Nelly” (2000) and “Folklore” (2003).
Incredible but true: he can play the ukulele and trombone. (Chris Pizzello/AP)
11. Pamela Anderson
Place of Birth: Ladysmith, British Columbia
Fame: Sex symbol and actress, known for her romances with rockers such as Tommy Lee and Kid Rock.
Early work: starred in the 90s sitcom “Big Repair”.
Incredible, but true: she became the “child of the century”, since, presumably, she was the first to be born on the day of Canada’s centenary. (Aude Guerrucci/AFP - Getty Images)
12. Rachel McAdams
Fame: Played Regina George in the film “Mean Girls”, Irene Adler in the film “Sherlock Holmes”.
Early works: “Perfect Pie” (2002), “Chick” (2002).
Incredible, but true: at 4 she started figure skating, but left and at 18 took up acting. (Evan Agostini/Getty Images)
13. Celine Dion
Place of birth: Charlemagne, Quebec
Fame: Five-time Grammy winner who has sold 50 million albums worldwide.
Early work: wrote her first song “It Was Only a Dream” at the age of 12 with her mother and brother.
Incredible but true: she is known for her unique voice, capable of spanning five octaves. (Peter Kramer/AP)
14. Ryan Reynolds
Place of birth: Vancouver
Fame: rising star Hollywood. He starred in films such as The Amityville Horror (2005), Smokin' Aces (2006) and Yeah, No, I guess (2008) and many others.
Early work: the series “Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizzeria” (1998-2001).
Incredible, but true: he was engaged to compatriot Alanis Morissette, but then married Scarlett Johansson. He recently became the face of one of the stores sports nutrition. (Scott Wintrow/Getty Images)
15. Shania Twain
Place of birth: Windsor, Ontario
Fame: Country singer whose album “Come On Over” became the most popular country album of all time.
Early work: At the age of 8, she sang in bars to help her family.
Incredible, but true: it maintains complexion with the help of ointment, which is usually used to lubricate the cow's udder to warm it in winter. (Frank Micelotta/Getty Images)
16. Keanu Reeves
Birthplace: Beirut, Lebanon (but grew up in Toronto)
Fame: Hollywood star, starred in blockbusters such as The Matrix, Speed and Street Kings.
Early work: teen comedies " Incredible adventures Bill and Ted (1989) and The New Adventures of Bill and Ted (1991).
Incredible, but true: he is left-handed, but plays bass in the rock band “Becky” right hand. Keanu mastered his first guitar chords back in early childhood. (Gabriel Bouys/AFP - Getty Images)
17. Sarah Chalke
Place of birth: Ottawa, Ontario
Fame: Dr. Eliot Reed in the sitcom “Scrubs”
Early work: Replaced Alicia Goranson as Beca Conner on the sitcom Roseanne when Goranson left the show to attend college.
Incredible but true: she was a reporter in Canada children's show“KidZone” at 12 years old. (Alberto Rodriguez/Getty Images)
Place of birth: Scarborough, Ontario
Fame: Comedian, famous for his role as the wacky secret agent Austin Powers and the voice of Shrek.
Early work: Was a member of the Second City comedy troupe in Toronto and Chicago, and later performed on Saturday Night Live and the film Wayne's World (1992).
Unbelievably, Universal Pictures sued him because he refused to star in a movie based on his Saturday Night Live skit “Sprockets” because he felt the script was his own. and wrote, not good enough. (Jason Decrow/AP)
Place of birth: London, Ontario
Fame: singer, musician and youth idol. In 2012, he was named the third most important celebrity in the world by Forbes magazine.
Early work: In 2007, at the age of 12, Bieber sang "So Sick" at a local singing competition in Stratford and won second place. His mother posted a video of her son's performance on YouTube, where it and other videos of Justin were later found by American talent agent Scooter Braun
Incredible but true: Bieber suffers from claustrophobia and is terrified of escalators.
But life is such that sometimes, on occasion, I tell my wife, Mrs. Ksenia, which of the singing celebrities shown on TV is famous Canadian(or famous Canadian). About famous Canadian actors I already mentioned. But I haven’t had a chance to talk about musical Canada yet and I thought that I should write a post about famous Canadian singers, singers and musicians.
I'll start with perhaps the most famous Canadian singer of my generation - Celine Dion. A generation grew up listening to the soundtrack of the Titanic and sang in their kitchens to good snack one of the most famous songs of its time “... niiiiir faaaar vereva yu aaaaar ay beliv zat may hart howledoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo” 😀
Yes, Celine Dion is a French-speaking Canadian from Quebec.
Celine Dion - Canadian singer
Canadian rockers: Nickelback and Bryan Adams
And, if we’re talking about generations, then we must mention two Canadian rockers who are known to everyone “who cares…” 😉
This is the front vocals of a Canadian rock band. Nickelback – Chad Kroger and good old Bryan Adams. Here are a couple of photos that I dug up on the Internet.
And here I am at the concert Nickelback in Halifax? On Canada Day, July 1st exactly 4 years ago. 😀
I’ll mention the website Rielter.ua – all real estate in Ukraine on one website. I mention the purchase of an apartment in Donetsk, for example. Free database for posting ads, fast and convenient search.
Famous Canadian musician – Neil Young
Well, before we move on to completely youth music - perhaps those who are “very much for ...” remember Neil Young– this is also a very famous Canadian musician.
Famous Canadian guitarist – Neil Young
And even if the name is unfamiliar to you, then the song Neil Young Everyone has heard “Heart of Gold” somewhere at some point.
Canadian singers: Alanis Morisette and Shania Twain.
Moving on to pop music, let us briefly mention the very famous ones of their time Canadian singers and they will have it Alanis Morisette And Shania Twain.
I was never really a fan of Alanis Morisette, but Shania Twain with her videos from the 90s came at a time when my generation was growing up and, may my wife Ksenia not be angry, Shania Twain left a mark in the history of the generation.
Shania Twain - Canadian country and pop singer
By the way, Canadian country and pop singer Shania Twain– one of the most successful performers in the history of our planet. She has countless diamond albums, top charts and billboards. Biography of the singer – dashingly twisted women's novel and a reason for film adaptation in the form of a box office melodrama. Her biography, a recent bestseller, is on the bookshelf of my wife, Mrs. Ksenia.
Canadian pop singer Nelly Furtado
Many people remember the Canadian from Vancouver – Nelly Furtado? A very successful singer in her time, she still appears on music channels from time to time.
By the way, she got her name Nellie in honor of the Soviet gymnast Nellie Kim.
Rising Canadian stars: Avril Lavine and Justin Bieber
Well, we definitely need to mention young Canadian talents - pop music for teenagers. Who already guessed - this is about Avril Lavine and the new teen pop icon – Justin Bieber.
Avril Lavine - Canadian pop singer
Canadian Justin Bieber is the new teen pop icon.
Well, it seems like I mentioned more or less everyone, I didn’t forget anyone. Or forgot someone?
Write in the comments.
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Did you know that quite a few celebrities and Hollywood stars were born in Canada? You might be surprised by some of the people on the list. Most of them were born in Canada, but some became Canadian over time.
Jim Carrey
Perhaps this comedian needs no introduction. The only thing we would like to note is his place of birth - Newmarket, Ontario, Canada.
Pamela Anderson ( Pamela Anderson)
Fun fact about Pamela Anderson: she was officially the first child to be born on Canada's 100th birthday. Place of birth: Ladysmith, British Columbia.
Ryan Gosling
Keanu Reeves
Keanu Reeves was born in Lebanon but is a Canadian citizen.
Celine Dion
Photo By Denise Truscello
Near, far...wherever you are, lines that are familiar to everyone. Famous singer born in the province of Quebec.
Matthew Perry
Matthew Perry was one of the main actors in the cult series Friends, which many watch to this day. Despite the fact that Matthew was born in the USA in Massachusetts, his mother is a Canadian citizen, which automatically gave Matthew dual citizenship.
Mike Myers
Austin Powers or Mike Myers is also a native of Canada. He was born in Scarborough, Ontario. In general, he has 3 citizenships - British, American and Canadian.
Deadmau5
Famous producer and performer electronic music born in Toronto.
Shay Mitchell (Shay Mitchell)
Pretty Little Liars fans may not realize that Shay is a Toronto native.
Patrick J. Adams
The main character of the series Suits, like Shay Mitchell, was also born in Toronto.
Seth Rogen
Famous producer and actor Seth Rogen is a native of Vancouver. By the way, most of his films were shot in British Columbia, including his latest acclaimed film, the North Korea comedy The Interview.
Avril Lavigne
The famous pop-punk rock singer was born in Ontario, in a city called Belleville.
Justin Bieber
One of the most popular and, probably, hated singers of our time. He was born in London, which is in Ontario. By the way, many Canadians are not proud that Justin is a native of Canada. Read more in our article The list can be continued with such people as Evangeline Lilly, Ellen Page, Michael Fox, Nelly Furtado, Rachel McAdams, Ryan Reynolds Reynolds), Leslie Nielsen and others.
Who did we forget to mention on the list? Write in the comments!