Karyn Ellis has been steadily building up a following both across Canada and internationally: over fifteen thousand views on youtube, eight thousand plus listens and her songs appearing on over 100 playlists on CBC Radio 3, seventy-thousand plus visits on myspace and a healthy fan following on facebook.
And no wonder - equally at home performing solo or backed by a band that ranges from a traveling duo to a twelve-piece ensemble with “community choir”, Karyn Ellis delivers a riveting show full of folk-pop gems, and she can't help but to delight. She is as comfortable on a festival mainstage as she is in front of a handful of people in someone's living room or in a workshop setting.
Quite simply, Karyn Ellis is a stand-out artist. Audiences consistently remark on her magnetic presence and the relate-ability of her songs. Whether singing heartfelt tunes or leading raucous sing-a-longs, Karyn is engaging, funny and smart and her fine acoustic guitar playing complements her sweet, dynamic voice. Her thoughtful lyrics are about every day wonders, beauty and hope.
If you want a stellar artist at your festival/concert series/club who will wow your audiences of all ages... book Karyn Ellis by contacting bookings@karynellis.com.
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Don't just take our word for how amazing Karyn is. Check out these letters of support from presenters and fellow artists !
TREASA LEVASSEUR, m …
Karyn Ellis has been steadily building up a following both across Canada and internationally: over fifteen thousand views on youtube, eight thousand plus listens and her songs appearing on over 100 playlists on CBC Radio 3, seventy-thousand plus visits on myspace and a healthy fan following on facebook.
And no wonder - equally at home performing solo or backed by a band that ranges from a traveling duo to a twelve-piece ensemble with “community choir”, Karyn Ellis delivers a riveting show full of folk-pop gems, and she can't help but to delight. She is as comfortable on a festival mainstage as she is in front of a handful of people in someone's living room or in a workshop setting.
Quite simply, Karyn Ellis is a stand-out artist. Audiences consistently remark on her magnetic presence and the relate-ability of her songs. Whether singing heartfelt tunes or leading raucous sing-a-longs, Karyn is engaging, funny and smart and her fine acoustic guitar playing complements her sweet, dynamic voice. Her thoughtful lyrics are about every day wonders, beauty and hope.
If you want a stellar artist at your festival/concert series/club who will wow your audiences of all ages... book Karyn Ellis by contacting bookings@karynellis.com.
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Don't just take our word for how amazing Karyn is. Check out these letters of support from presenters and fellow artists !
TREASA LEVASSEUR, musical artist:
Karyn Ellis would be an asset for any festival's roster. Popular with young and old alike, she brings a wealth of experience and a surfeit of enthusiasm to workshops and feature performances, and her uncanny ability to capture an audience's imagination sets her well above the crowd of single female singer songwriters. Quick with a joke or to lend a hand, and a great mc to boot, I say hire her!
BLAIR PACKHAM, Songwriter’s Association of Canada. Bluebird North Series Promoter:
"I have enjoyed working with Karyn Ellis on a number of occasions, and I wouldn't hesitate to hire her again for any of the various performance opportunities that I program, among them the Bluebird North singer/songwriter series… Karyn is a singular performer who works hard to make a strong connection with any audience she finds herself in front of. That said, it doesn't appear that she is working at all - she makes performing look so easy. Karyn is smart, funny, and a complete professional who makes every effort to ensure that her fans are aware of her every public appearance. Her songs are intimate pictures, lovingly crafted and presented, and she deserves a wider audience."
STEPHEN PITKIN, drummer & producer, Elliot Brood:
“I have had the opportunity to mix live shows for Karyn Ellis since she emerged on the Toronto scene here just a few years ago. Every occasion has been a joy and I've seen her captivate many audiences with her songs, always delivered with a good dose of radiance and magnetism. It is no surprise that she has gained popularity around these parts rather quickly. Karyn has an outstandingly original and catchy sound as a songwriter, not so easy in a cramped market. Life experience plus personality have somehow added up to a very endearing entertainer here. As a result, Karyn has grown an enviable fan base seemingly without effort. Her highly anticipated new album "Even though The Sky Was Falling" offers glimpes into many sides of an interesting life, presumably hers. I personally couldn't take the album off until after many repeats.”
AL RANKIN, Live Wire Music Series/Rankin Gallery Concerts. Promoter, Kingston, Ontario:
"Karyn Ellis completely captivated our audience with her intelligent songs, full of beautifully original images delivered in her lively and colourful voice. There was an intensity to her performance that compelled us all to be engaged in the world that she creates in her songs- a world of everyday events that somehow evoke feelings of wistful longing and dream-like beauty."
JILL BARBER, musical artist:
“I have known Karyn Ellis both personally and professionally for over ten years. In this time I have come to admire both her strengths as a songwriter and performer. She is an incredibly motivated individual and is constantly evolving to find creative ways to spread the music and communicate with her fans.”
JOHN SHOWMAN, musical artist (New Country Rehab, Creaking Tree String Quartet):
Karyn has a beautiful voice and a keen instinct for songwriting. Not only that, she's a great collaborator, a personable entertainer who appeals to EVERYONE and a fun person to have around. We all miss her in Ontario: BC, you're lucky to have her!
BLAIR WINGER, Homeroutes host, Medicine Hat, Alberta:
"I have nothing but praise for Karyn and her music. Her performance was stellar, as is her music. In her latest album "Even Though The Sky Was Falling", Karyn's almost child-like voice fits perfectly with her lyrics, many of which provide the album with a dream-like quality; Be My Girl and Not Looking For Love being two examples. This is a fine disc that has become a favourite in our home. With so many rising artists today sounding "like" someone else, Karyn remains uniquely Karyn. If you have a venue and the ability to bring Karyn to the stage, I believe you would be remiss in not doing so. I know that you and your audience will be charmed by Karyn's performance, just as we all were."
SUZANNE GRIFFIN, Homeroutes host, Lethbridge, Alberta:
"This winter I had the privilege of having Karyn Ellis perform at my home as part of the Homeroutes concert series. Karyn captivated us all from the moment she began with her amazing vocals and by the end of the evening we were all willing participants humming background to the music and lyrics of her life. Karyn has an enchanting command of the stage as an entertainer and a quiet, grounded presence that emanates through her performance."
JUDY LEE, Homeroutes host, Pincher Creek, Alberta
"Karyn Ellis had a magical performance this past November [in a house concert at my home.] Her sensitive lyrics and soft tones melted our hearts. Karyn engages her audience with her sincerity and gracious manner."
LIVE SHOW HIGHLIGHTS
• Bluebird North Concert Series at the Royal Conservatory in Toronto with Ian Thomas, Luke McMaster, Coco Love Alcorn. Karyn also appeared at the Bluebird North Concert Series at the Haven Club in Edmonton, Alberta with David Newberry, Kim Wempe and Ann Vriend.
• The Annual Christmas Show at the Rivoli in Toronto, hosted by Mia Sheard. Line up included: Hawksley Workman, Ron Sexsmith, Luke Doucet, Melissa McLelland, Lori Cullen, Selena Martin.
• New Waves Festival at the Young Centre, in association with Luminato in Toronto.
• Homeroutes Concert Series, Manitoba.
• Homeroutes Concert Series, Alberta and Saskatchewan.
• Peterborough Folk Festival, Ontario. Waynefest, Alberta, River and Sky Music Festival (River Valley, ON), Artswells (Wells, BC.)
• Showcases at NXNE (Toronto), OCFF (Kingston and Ottawa), NextFest (Edmonton)
• VIA Rail Onboard Musician Program, performing live on the train from Toronto to Vancouver, with a standing invitation to return.
OTHER CAREER EVENTS
• Short-listed two years in a row for the Colleen Peterson Songwriting Award, 2009 and 2010.
• Received an Honourable Mention in the Island Mountain Arts Songwriting Contest, 2010.
• One of five finalists from Ontario on David Suzuki's Playlist for the Planet Compilation CD, through CBC Radio 3.
• 2007 winner of Humber College’s Most Original New Voice award, Songwriter’s Workshop.
• Several songs placed in TV and films including "Degrassi: The Tenth Season"; “Robson Arms” (Omni Productions) aired on CTV, Bravo and the Comedy Network; UK filmmaker Gareth Griffith’s “Happy Fridays”, which appeared at Cannes Film Festival Short Film Corner in 2008; and Stand Alone’s “What is Indie” by filmmaker Dave Cool distributed by the National Film Board of Canada.
• Her second album, Hearts Fall, spent six months on various campus radio charts across Canada including five weeks on CIUT Toronto top-30 topping at 3 and reaching the national monthly campus Top-50 and folk/roots/blues Top-20 charts.
• Her lastest album, Even Though The Sky Was Falling, has already had significant CBC airplay and reached #6 on CIUT (Toronto) as well as an appearance on the national Top-10 Folk/Roots/Blues chart. It is receiving excellent reviews, including in northern Europe.
KARYN ELLIS - EVEN THOUGH THE SKY WAS FALLING - Press Release
Like many musicians who have achieved critical success only to find themselves just as broke and no farther ahead than they were when they started, Karyn Ellis was getting ready to throw in the towel on the music business and get a real job. Just then, an envelope showed up from the Canada Council—a cheque for a hard-to-get composition grant she had forgotten she’d even applied for.
So began a series of events that not only kept Ellis making music, but resulted in her going all out — recording a breakthrough album that pairs her quirky songwriting and sensual, naïve vocals with a cornucopia of alluring production elements: strings, horns, choirs and glockenspiels, just to name a few. Suddenly, instead of feeling isolated in the business, Karyn Ellis found herself surrounded by exceptional musical friends: Evalyn Parry, John Millard, Amy Lang (Hidden Cameras) and Brian Kobayakawa (Creaking Tree) just to name a few. And instead of scrambling to pay for recording costs, Ellis had money from both the Council and FACTOR, allowing her to fund the 16-member musical extravaganza. She even had her coffers topped up with donations from fans. The resulting album, Even Though the Sky Was Falling, is a celebration of the beauty and redemption to be found in chaotic times like those Ellis had been going through in her own life.
One song was written while a friend was dying of cancer. Another was inspired by watching a series of creepy CSI episodes. Three tracks were penned while Ellis sat in the parking lot of a major festival, bummed not to be on stage performing … but none of this is obvious from listening. “Beauty,” which is dedicated to the memory of Ellis’ friend Joceyln Porter, is a simple, sprightly number filled with uplifting lyrics like “I am filled with joy”—complete with bouncy trombone lines, “doo doo doo” choruses and singing toddlers. “Be My Girl”—the CSI song—is a plaintive reflection on breaking free from the “beautiful victim” role that women are so often cast in. “Bitter Grasses,” one of the spurned-by-a-festival numbers, sounds to all the world like a spurned-by-a-lover song with a bit of a vintage country surf feel to it. The diverse sounds are all woven together into a cohesive package with help from co-producer Don Kerr, best-known for his work with Ron Sexsmith.
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Visit Karyn's youtube channel:
http://www.youtube.com/mathilde22cat
