Canadians are well-acquainted with Chantal Kreviazuk's name. The Winnipegger is a decorated classical pianist, outspoken humanitarian, part-time actress and beloved singer-songwriter with three Juno awards under her belt. According to Nielsen Music and Billboard's Canada 150 charts, she was the 51st best-selling Canadian artist in Canada from the beginning of her career to 2016.
Yet when asked to reflect on her many exploits, Kreviazuk directed the spotlight towards others.
"I just recorded an album of songs that I wrote or was featured on with other artists. I’m not usually one to take stock, but having these 13 songs that I wrote with absolutely massive, extraordinary superstar artists really does cause me to pause a moment," she remarks. "At the end of the day, I think it’s all luck. You get minutes on the court, as they say in sports, you learn on the job, then you’re able to build a skill set and a confidence that you can ultimately go in a room with anyone.
"To know that I was a part of Kendrick Lamar‘s career and identity; to know that I was a part of Drake’s career, or Christina Aguilera having some really major success in her journey, is something I can claim as my identity on my path after all these years. I guess I’m finally able to take stock. It’s wild. I am humbled, because I know I got lucky to be there."
Kreviazuk views her decades in the music industry as a tricky balance. Sometimes one realizes that one is there to support people—not unlike a loving mother or therapist—instead of passing judgment. Were she to give her younger self advice, these words come to mind: "Stay in your lane and just understand that we’re all on a journey. People learn what they want to learn, when they want to learn it, and no one‘s teaching anyone else. The idea of a teacher, well … someone has to sign up for it in order to be taught. Myself included."
'I think about what I want to say'
Not to be overlooked in any discussion of Kreviazuk's life is her passion for social justice. She and husband Raine Maida, lead singer of Canadian rock royalty Our Lady Peace, were inducted into the Order of Canada and given the Alan Waters Humanitarian Award for backing non-profits like War Child and Artists Against Racism. Kreviazuk insists she would never pursue money-making to the exclusion of all other causes, no matter how she made a living.
The woman is also unafraid to ruffle feathers, as seen when she performed Canada's national anthem at February's 4 Nations Face-Off hockey final—and sang "that only us command" rather than "in all of us command" to protest U.S. president Donald Trump's rhetoric of annexation. Despite a wave of boos from American fans, Kreviazuk figures it was "the most patriotic moment of her life" while affirming the strength, kindness and resilience of Canadians.
She's deliberate about how to deploy her musical platform, that's for sure.
"I don’t think too much about genre. I think about what I want to say, why I want to say it and the genre always reveals itself," Kreviazuk elaborates. "For example, I thought I had finished my first solo project of original songs in quite a while, [but] realized I have another song in me that I’ve been writing my whole life. It's quite different … almost has more of a folk kind of country rock thing to it. There’s elements of the Rolling Stones, but it’s ultimately a straight folklore song and I don’t really care."
Some locals may remember Kreviazuk's previous appearances in Olympic Plaza. She's thrilled to be returning and believes "at her core" that "Whistler is one of the most beautiful places on Earth."
Kreviazuk has multiple new undertakings in the works. Beyond the aforementioned two albums, she and Maida are writing a double memoir: a behind-the-scenes look at their shared lives.
"It’s going to be a lot of content," she promises. "I’m really excited and looking forward to being dialled-in to what brought me to this place and that is the music … the core, creative soul of me, if you will."
DJ LAZY FNGZ is up to open the show on July 18 at 6:30 p.m. and Kreviazuk takes the baton one hour later. For more details visit whistler.com/events/concerts.
