Canadian Musician - September/October 2020 | Page 43

cifically – who are charting and finding
success lately.”
Though she feels she benefitted by
riding that wave when re-igniting her career
a couple of years ago, at this point,
she’s one of the stars at its crest, helping
to increase its momentum and hopefully
return the favour to the next generation
of hopefuls. As far as she’s concerned,
her success started north of the border
and it remains integral to breaking further
into other markets.
“I think it helps me stand apart,”
she asserts about being a Canadian
artist. “None of my U.S. success would
be happening if I didn’t have success
in Canada. The fact that we can prove
these are viable hits up here is why radio
stations in the U.S. are already playing
the songs. Canada will always be incredibly
important and central to my career.”
After a successful run with Dean
Brody, Dallas Smith, and Chad Brownlee
on the Friends Don’t Let Friends Tour
Alone Canadian jaunt in the second half
of 2019, Porter started 2020 with a U.S.
tour alongside Big Loud labelmate Chris
Lane, then was set to open some Western
Canadian dates on Brad Paisley’s
world tour. That had her poised for a
big and busy summer in North America
and some potential shows in Europe
and Australia later in the year before
the COVID-19 pandemic derailed those
plans.
“I think the name of the game now
is adjusting every day to whatever the
news is about COVID-19,” she says.
“Some days I’m painting baseboards
and writing and doing cover videos and
am just so motivated; other days, I just
need to chill. And I think that’s okay. I
need to give myself permission to do
that. This is a mental health challenge
and something none of us have experienced
before or know how to navigate,
so I think it’s important to recognize how
you’re feeling and take good care of
yourself.”
These are unprecedented times,
after all, but Porter is keeping positive
and productive, well-poised and keen
to continue on her impressive tangent,
come what may.
Andrew King is the Editor-in-Chief of
Canadian Musician.
à CANADIAN MUSICIAN 43