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AKUA is my first guinea pig for “Local Legends”, a column dedicated to local humans who do interesting/great things. Not only is AKUA local, like…really local…as in we grew up in the same town of London, Ontario, but we also attended the same dance studio for a number of years. Although she probably doesn’t know me, I spent a large portion of my time at that dance studio looking up to her admiringly. Even before I heard AKUA sing for the first time, she was a huge role model for me; she just carried this phenomenal aura of power and energy around her. The first time I heard her sing was during a dance recital dress rehearsal. She was doing a musical theatre piece to Rent’s Seasons of Love, with a large group of girls; they all sounded great together, but the moment AKUA took centre stage to sing a solo, it was apparent that this girl was going to do something great.
That was about 11 years ago.
After years of monitoring her on facebook, the social platform that basically condones stalking, I have “seen” her go from not singing, to singing backup, to becoming a full-fledged solo musician. So what’s the deal with AKUA?
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AKUA currently lives in Montreal, the creativity capital of Canada, where her musical career started. She began singing in college, which led to her involvement in independent projects, creating close ties to other musicians, such as She’s Got a Habit, and singing backup for various artists, before landing some solo gigs at various locations.
About two years ago, I stumbled upon her myspace and instantly fell in love with Push Harder (which is now featured on her EP — check it out ASAP). It wasn’t just her hauntingly beautiful voice that captured my attention, but her carefully coined lyrics, which ooze of authenticity, her rhythmic stylings that don’t follow the typical pop blend, and her ability to make a vision come to life through her music videos. In fact, AKUA is not the only talented member in her family; her brother directs and shoots her music videos, which are a perfect compliment to her songs. The first couple of songs that she released on myspace became the backdrop to many of my school-work-filled nights and to a couple of dinner parties, where I passionately told everyone within ear-shot of just how talented AKUA is.
However, it wasn’t until her recent EP, One’s Company, that AKUA began to blow up within the Montreal music scene, and beyond.
With AKUA’s EP came a ton of positive feedback, as well as a couple of awesome opportunities, which include opening for Solange Knowles in Montreal, as well as singing backup for Knowles at the Pitchfork music festival.
Here are a number of places that you can check out the self-produced, original blend of soulful and whimsical sounds that embody AKUA, not to mention on itunes, where her EP is available for purchase.
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GLOWER POWER 