Basic Folk 56 – Elisapie

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Montreal’s Elisapie was born in Salluit, Quebec into the Inuit community. She grew up in the a little arctic village in The North surrounded by the sad truth of what happened to the generations before her when while settlers forced the semi-nomadic Inuit people to settle into one area. Elisapie was born to a single mother, who adopted her out other family members who could not have children. She grew up with her birth mother living right around the corner, but was not close to her until she was older. In our wonderful conversation, she talks about being inspired by her musician uncle and also the opportunity to perform with his very popular band at a young age. She also talks about leaving Salluit for Montreal and how she’s always had a difficult time with the fact that she left.
Her new album Runaway Girl address those issues and more. She has a song dedicated to her birth mother, that she was able to perform live in concert with her mother in the audience. She shares that special moment as well as talking about the song she wrote about connecting with and understanding men. I hope you enjoy this conversation and learn something from this special person!

Elisapie covering Willie Thrasher’s “Wolves Don’t Live by the Rules”

Elisapie’s latest album: