Latest news with #Aysanabee
CBC
5 days ago
- Business
- CBC
You don't have to almost die to be happy at work, but it helps
Singer-songwriter Aysanabee was snowshoeing across a frozen lake in remote northern Ontario over a decade ago, when the ice gave way beneath him, plunging him into frigid waters. "I could like feel the icy water filling up my snow pants and I knew I couldn't swim with the snowshoes — and all these different things are running through my mind," said Aysanabee, who is Oji-Cree, Sucker Clan of the Sandy Lake First Nation. "I just thought, 'Wow, this is it, this is it for me and I haven't done anything with my life," he told The Current's Matt Galloway. Aysanabee is now an award-winning musician, but at the time he was 19 and working for a mining company, playing music in bars in his spare time. It was around -40C on that early January day, and the young man was alone, more than six hours outside Ear Falls, Ont. But Aysanabee had managed to fall slightly forward as the ice broke, allowing him to sink an axe into the ice shelf. As he struggled to drag himself out, one swing of the axe at a time, he frantically bargained with "whoever was listening … a higher power or something." "If I get out of this, I promise … I will do this thing, I'll go play music," he remembers pledging. He eventually managed to pull himself back onto solid ground, where he started a small fire to warm up and dry off. On the long walk back to camp, he had time to reflect on how close he came to death — and what he wanted to do with this second chance. "Then, three months later, I bought a one-way ticket to Toronto to go do music," he said. At the University of Guelph, Jamie Gruman and his research team recently interviewed 14 people who suffered near-death experiences, examining the impact on their work and careers. Published in the Journal of Management, Spirituality and Religion in April, their research showed that survivors gained new insights, from a greater interest in spirituality to a belief that everyone is born equal, and here for a reason. "Specifically as a result of those things, the insights and the personal transformations, work often became much less important to people," said Gruman, a professor of organizational behaviour at Guelph University. "They thought, 'Well, why am I doing this? Like, what's the point? Is this meaningful? Does it matter?'" he said. WATCH | Aysanabee performs Near to Death, a song inspired by his experience: In the years since he fell through the ice, Aysanabee has released two critically acclaimed albums. He's been nominated for the Polaris Music Prize and took home two awards at the 2024 Junos, including Songwriter of the Year. Looking back at his younger self, he says he always knew he wanted to be a musician, but didn't know "how to do it." He credits what happened with giving him the courage to pursue that dream. "I think that whole experience definitely made me realize how precious time is," he said. "I don't want to waste any of it, you know, wondering, 'What if?'" Workers 'lost interest' in money Gruman said that what people want from their work boils down to three things: economic security, meaningful work that allows them to grow and develop, and high-quality relationships. But for the study participants who had come close to death, that changed. "They all completely lost interest in making money and any external measures of success," he said. "They didn't want big houses and cars and boats. They didn't want to be the executive vice president. They didn't want to get rich." By contrast, the desire for meaningful work and strong workplace relationships skyrocketed, he said. That led some participants to change jobs, or even completely change careers. Others were able to find what they needed by rethinking how they approached their work, Gruman said, giving the example of a teacher who "didn't really like teaching." After her near-death experience, "she considered herself now to be a teacher in the school of life," he said. "Teaching math and science was just incidental to teaching students about the importance of treating people well and living well." Like Aysanabee, a brush with death taught the participants a lesson about time. "They decided, 'Look, you know, my time here is limited, so let me make a move. And do something that speaks to my soul,'" Gruman said. Listen to your gut, says career coach Career counsellor Stephanie Koonar says there are lots of reasons people can be dissatisfied with their work, but you don't necessarily need a life-or-death experience to make a change. "A lot of it is about being in touch with your own gut instincts," said Koonar, Vancouver-based co-founder of PeerSpectives Consulting, which offers career coaching and leadership development. "My husband calls it the toothbrush challenge: in the morning when you're brushing your teeth, are you excited to go to work?" Koonar helps people dig into those feelings with the Japanese concept of ikigai, which involves asking yourself four questions: What do I love? What am I good at? What does the world need? What can I be paid for? She said the responses can offer clues to what matters most to someone, but it doesn't always mean completely changing your career to get involved with something important to you. "Maybe you're an accountant or maybe you do website development or social media but you could … seek out those organizations that are working on issues and challenges that you think are important and bring your skills and talents to them," she said. She added that bosses and managers also have a role to play. "Nowadays people don't want a boss; they want a coach," she said. "That includes helping them course correct if they've made some mistakes … [but also] spotting their strengths and talents and then maybe giving them opportunities." Ultimately, Koonar says that being happy every day at work might not be the goal. "Happiness is fleeting and at the end of our lives we are looking for more meaning," she said. "[That] might be bringing your talents and your strengths to a challenge. It may not even make you feel happy all the time … but it's rewarding because you're making a difference." For researcher Gruman, the lesson is to focus on what matters in your work life, both in terms of your own well-being and the people you build work relationships with.
Vancouver Sun
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Vancouver Sun
Edmonton Folk Music Festival lineup: Allison Russell, Rainbow Kitten Surprise, Taj Mahal join The Roots and Mt. Joy
With swirling hip-hop legends The Roots and fuzzy-feelings L.A. rockers Mt. Joy already out of the bag as Saturday and Sunday's headliners — bam! — the rest of the Edmonton Folk Music Festival's lineup has been revealed! The 46 th annual love-in running Aug. 7-10 on Gallagher Park hill is bursting with international deep-cut delights to shining local talent, aglow with soul, folk, rock, country, Afrobeats, blues and more. Nearly 60 more acts just dropped, including North Carolina alt-rock Rainbow Kitten Surprise topping Thursday night after Juno-winning Oji-Cree singer-songwriter Aysanabee and the lovable be-hatted powerhouse Serena Ryder open the fest up — tunes starting Thursday at 6:35 p.m. Get top headlines and gossip from the world of celebrity and entertainment. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sun Spots will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Friday night's main stage 9:05 p.m. on is Gen X singer-songwriter Stephen Wilson Jr. — self-identified as 'Death Cab for Country' — and the return of the multi-style, roots Grammy-winning Allison Russell, last here in 2022. Amid the whirl of Saturday sessions, east L.A.'s Las Cafeterias will pepper up the main stage at 2 p.m. with Chicano rhythm and zapateado dancing. Then, Saturday night, the cultural call-and-response slides in with 83-year-old bluesman Taj Mahal at 6:45; indie pop DJ and model Goldie Boutilier also out of L.A. up next; back from last year, public defender and powerhouse soul/R&B belter Danielle Ponder; bringing us of course to 2025's big-name booking: Philadelphia's The Roots. World-travelling Democratic Republic of Congo ensemble Jupiter & Okwess start things off centre stage at 2 Sunday afternoon, then shifting gears, it's the Seattle folk-rock of Richy Mitch & the Coal Miners at 6:50. This is followed by an American-Australian roots jam with John Butler, then Mt. Joy and the Sunday-night lantern parade, then cue Four Strong Winds. The Roots were something else at Calgary Folk Fest last year, and I'd say you don't want to miss the electrified blues guitar and drumming of Cedric Burnside — but longtime festival producer Terry Wickham is happy to offer his deep cuts and must-sees. 'Watch out for Jesse Welles,' says Wickham. 'He's got a big online presence, very political. He talks about what America's like right now, all of that. 'Riley Walker and Bill McKay, two great guitarists — so I think that's going to be a sleeper hit.' Wickham adds the psychedelic soul of Monophonics to the list, noting Willi Carlisle's also a lot of fun. 'Ian Ngo is a great songwriter in the country vein, so he's going to be really strong. Māmā Mihirangi & the Māreikura are going to be exciting — a lot of looping and that kind of stuff,' Wickham notes. 'And Calvin Vollrath, we're not going cheap, so we're bringing him in with a five-piece.' As far as general operations go, no big announcements this year — more food trucks, some extra shade, that sort of thing — though we did get a bit doomy talking about worst-case scenarios if fire season forced a cancellation due to air-quality safety. 'A couple of rainfalls this week were good,' says Wickham. 'The farmers need rain, the gardens need rain — it just makes the place look better. But I don't think that's going to have any impact on August. 'We're in for a dry spell coming up, so we'll see if things start to spark up. 'I mean, wildfire smoke is an existential threat to all the festivals outdoors.' That consideration aside, costs have also been reliably rising, especially headliner fees. 'It's doubled or quadrupled, post pandemic,' notes the producer of the non-profit festival. 'Dynamic pricing, excess demand, etc. And it won't stop until people stop buying tickets at crazy prices.' This makes it especially noteworthy that ticket and pass prices this year are holding steady, no increases. 'We could go up and people would grumble,' says Wickham, but I'm so tired of inflation everywhere, that at least one place, for one year, we can hold the line.' He notes the folk fest will always continue to do what it can, and that 'money is not everything to all the artists. 'They do look for special places to play,' says Wickham, noting Ben Harper once said it was his favourite. 'And I did hear two band members from The National talking and saying, 'Which is your favourite, here or Red Rocks?' So that kind of thing is nice to hear.' Bringing it home, the local acts include AV & the Inner City, St. Albert's Current Swell, Nîpisîy, Secondhand Dreamcar and let's note Shaela Miller's country music by way of Lethbridge. School of Song will also highlight local talent Asiah Holm, Halfway Home, Sam Steffen and Tayler Grace, and the Nikamowin indigenous programming will spotlight even more locals by the fest's central tipi. 'There's a lot of great talent out there,' says Wickham. 'I said yes to a lot of people who have been knocking on the door for a few years. 'About 60 per cent of the artists have never played here before. We haven't been too nostalgic. So I feel good.' Pre-GST and fees, adult personal weekend passes (25-64) are $234, single tickets Thursday or Friday are $109, and Saturday or Sunday $115. Seniors 65-79 are $179 for a Personal Pass, $56 for single days, and 80+ get in for free. U-25 (18-24) is $189 for a Personal Pass. And for youth 12-17, $117 for a Personal Pass, $42 for a single day, with children 11 and under free. All passes and single days go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 7, online only at . Now, please enjoy the full list of 2025 EFMF acts! AHI Allison Russell AV & the Inner City Aysanabee BALTHVS Blackburn Brothers Blue Moon Marquee Burnstick Calvin Vollrath Cedric Burnside Charlie Cunningham Current Swell Danielle Ponder De Temps Antan Dervish Dry Bones Elizabeth Moen Goldie Boutilier Haley Heynderickx Ian Noe Jeffrey Martin Jennifer Castle Jesse Roper Jesse Welles John Butler Julianna Riolino Jupiter & Okwess Ken Pomeroy Kíla Kim Churchill Las Cafeteras Madi Diaz Māmā Mihirangi & the Māreikura Mama's Broke Marcus Trummer Martyn Joseph Mary Gauthier Melissa Carper Monophonics Mt. Joy Nîpisîy Rainbow Kitten Surprise Richy Mitch & The Coal Miners Ryley Walker & Bill MacKay School of Song: Asiah Holm , Halfway Home , Sam Steffen , Tayler Grace Secondhand Dreamcar Serena Ryder Shaela Miller Steph Strings Stephen Wilson Jr. Taj Mahal Talisk The Roots The Sensational Barnes Brothers The Slocan Ramblers Wesli Willi Carlisle Yasmin Williams fgriwkowsky@ @ Bookmark our website and support our journalism: Don't miss the news you need to know — add and to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters here. You can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribers gain unlimited access to The Edmonton Journal, Edmonton Sun, National Post and 13 other Canadian news sites. Support us by subscribing today: The Edmonton Journal | The Edmonton Sun.
CBC
23-02-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
How words from Aysanabee's late grandfather are opening doors for some N.S. musicians
As musician Aysanabee stood on stage at last year's Junos in Halifax accepting the award for alternative album of the year, a memory of the final conversation he had with his late grandfather was on his mind. It was May 2023. The Oji-Cree singer-songwriter's grandfather told him, "Do the things you say you're gonna do." The comment stuck with Aysanabee and as he gave thanks at the awards show to the people who opened doors for him, he made a pledge. "I'm going to try and take those hinges off and bring you all with me," he said. Fast forward to today and he's on his first headlining tour, which will see him play shows in Eastern Canada over the next month, including seven in Nova Scotia. To open doors for other musicians, he's having different Indigenous artists open the shows, as well as promoting them on his social media channels. Aysanabee said he also wants to be a resource to the openers and answer any questions they have. "I just want to foster a music community where it's just kind of healthy and people are trying to uplift each other," said Aysanabee, who lives in Toronto, but is originally from Sandy Lake First Nation in Ontario. How to apply To apply, he's asking people to email a performance video, which could even just be someone recording themselves on their phone, as well as say what shows they'd like to open and write a paragraph about why they make music. Even if the opening slots are booked up, Aysanabee said he wants people to contact him as there may be opportunities in the future. Mi'kmaw musician DeeDee Austin, who lives in Fall River, N.S., but is a member of the Abegweit First Nation, is opening four shows in Nova Scotia and P.E.I. "I feel personally that there's so many Indigenous artists that get kind of just swept under the rug, so for Aysanabee to kind of help us break out from under the rug and kind of showcase us and turn us on to his audience, it's really honourable," said the pop musician. Austin said she noticed many of the openers would be considered up and comers, so they need as much publicity as they can get. She's looking forward to the shows. "Whenever you get an opportunity to open up for any artist, you kind of bring both communities together," she said. "And in fact, you get to kind of turn each other on to your audiences and you get to showcase each other to your music and your art." Emma Stevens, a Mi'kmaw musician from Eskasoni First Nation, is the opener for the Glace Bay, N.S., show. She hopes the opportunity allows her to reach a broader audience beyond the East Coast base she's established. "Hopefully, I can bring him some of my audience and he can bring me some of his audience and it'll be a blast," said the folk-country-pop musician. How Dan Mangan helped inspire Aysanabee's idea Aysanabee is encouraging people to show up early and not miss the opening acts. Otherwise, he cautioned there are some things people will miss out on. "That's as far as I can go into that," he said. For Aysanabee, the idea to showcase the openers is also rooted in experiences he had opening for other musicians, such as Dan Mangan and Allison Russell. In the case of a fall 2023 tour with Mangan, Aysanabee remembers worrying about how he would have to drive overnight and through the day to get to gigs. But the worries were moot because Mangan invited Aysanabee to travel on the tour bus. "He's like, 'No, man. You're part of the team … just pay it forward down the road,'" said Aysanabee.
CBC
30-01-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
Aysanabee prepares for headlining tour across northwestern Ontario
Sandy Lake First Nation singer-songwriter Aysanabee made history as the first Indigenous artist to win the JUNO Award for Alternative Album of the Year in 2024. He's spent the last couple years earning more credentials in the music scene, and is now heading out on his first headlining tour. He joined the CBC's Mary-Jean Cormier to talk about it all.
