Nova Scotia-based singer-songwriter and producer, Jenn Grant, soars with Flying On Your Own, a rendition of the track by Rita MacNeil. As Jenn’s third release in a collection of self-produced covers of Canadian classics, it marks a full circle moment as a heartfelt ode to Jenn’s childhood experience witnessing her mother’s move to Nova Scotia, and a journey many can relate to: the drive to a new place and a brave step forward into a new, undetermined life.
“There was no one she knew waiting for her there. But a determined energy to ‘fly on her own’. I have found, as we all do I think, that it takes a while before you see your parents as real ‘people’. I am about the same age as she was then, when she summoned the courage to just keep going,” Jenn says of her mother’s departure for Nova Scotia in 1990 to return to a nursing degree. “There were also some musical tapes that were played so often around that time that the song titles would wear themselves right off the cassette. She loved Rita MacNeil. Who wouldn’t? What a spirit. What a fighter. Besides making a name for herself as the top selling country artist in Canada that year – from Big Pond, Cape Breton to Toronto, then to Ottawa, on her own- with her kids after leaving her husband and following her dream.
From feeling like she had no voice, to becoming the voice for women, in a time of roaring independence. Rita was sweet, seemingly soft spoken, until you heard her sing. Until her voice would shake the ground. I would not be where I am today without women like Rita, and my mother, who taught me that the power of strength to rise up and be strong is within us all. This recording and video are a tribute to them, and to any human who has felt the fight and is still fighting.”
The video is a stunning portrait of Jenn traversing Nova Scotia terrain, depicting the meaning of home. It was produced and engineered by Jenn at Azalea House in Lake Echo, Nova Scotia, mixed by Daniel Ledwell and mastered by Isaac Barter. The video was directed by Tessa Fleming, edited by Jenn, with assistance and filming by Favourite Hummingbird Collective – a collaborative group of like-minded artists and friends, comprised of Kim Harris, Olivia Fader, Don Brownrigg, Jenn Grant & Daniel Ledwell.
In March, Jenn released a cover of Bird On The Wire (by Leonard Cohen), which was featured in the marketing campaign for the new Gabrielle Byrne film, Death Of A Ladies Man, and followedChancellor, an inspired take on Gord Downie’s original, marking Jenn’s debut as a producer, having completed the track from her new home studio in Lake Echo, Nova Scotia. Flying On Your Own is a sample of projects Jenn has in the works – stay tuned for more audio and visual storytelling she has on the way.
