What is Witty Thinking!

Chantal Kreviazuk

There is something very special about Chantal Kreviazuk and I can’t put my finger on it.

It could be her amazing voice. She is after all an extremely talented singer. For over 20 years she has blessed us with her gift and a soundtrack of great songs that include hits like ‘Wayne’ , ‘Feels Like Home’ and my personal favourite ‘Time’.

It could be her talent as a musician and songwriter. She is an excellent pianist as she plays it with such ease and precision.  She has written music not only for herself but for some of the top contemporary  artists  including; Kelly Clarkson, Josh Groban, Drake and Gwen Stefani just to name a few.

It could be her talent as an entertainer. If you haven’t seen Ms. Kreviazuk perform live you need to put that on your list immediately. Her performances not only give you the opportunity of listening to her fantastic music but she also creates a personal connection with her audience. She talks about whats on her mind whether it be family, what she did that day. It doesn’t come off as scripted and I love it. I have heard some comment that she speaks too much during her shows but respectfully I couldn’t disagree more. If I just want to hear the music I can pop in a CD. I truly appreciate that her shows are so personal. While most entertainers are happy to limit their audience interaction to “Hello (Insert name of city here)” I appreciate that she wants to share part of herself with her audience.

No, the thing that is most special about Ms. Kreviazuk is that she doesn’t seem to care how big of a star that actually she is. She just finished a cross-Canada sold out tour. She has been awarded many accolades including the Order of Canada and several Juno Awards. She is a Canadian treasure but she is as chill as your next door neighbour (assuming you have an awesome next door neighbour).

No bravado. No ego. It’s as if she actually needs someone to remind her that she’s a celebrity. But in all honesty their efforts would be wasted as it’s clear that isn’t her goal.

Ms. Krevizuk isn’t followed around by an entourage, she isn’t looking for the attention of photographers or headlines. No, she does her job.  She focuses on the music. She is on a finite list of artists of whom when I know they are touring I have to see them. Whether she comes to Ottawa or Toronto or somewhere else nearby I will go.

I have been to concert after concert and what makes her performances stand out is she doesn’t try to be something she isn’t. She is genuine.

This year she released her sixth studio album ‘Hard Sail’ and proved once again that she’s still as talented, if not more so. With great songs like ‘Meant for This’, ‘Into Me’ and the title song she continues to provide powerful ballads that showcase her vocal range and musical talent.

As passionate as she is with every song she sings I am about doing what I can to support her career.

I reached out to Ms. Kreviazuk this past fall and requested a face to face interview. I thought it would be an honour to meet this wonderful person that I have so much respect for and she agreed. I was truly fortunate to meet and get to interview her as it confirmed that she is probably one of the most down to earth people you could ever meet. Celebrities granting interviews is nothing new but I submit, at the risk of downplaying my obvious awesomeness (kidding) that Ms. Kreviazuk had nothing to gain from me interviewing her. Let’s be honest; her name on the marquee is the only promotion needed.

I believe showing kindness to someone can go a long way to make their life better whether it be holding the door for someone, or paying for someone’s order in the drive thru. I was deeply touched by the kindness she showed me. She could have said no, she could have cancelled…but she didn’t.

Prior to interviewing her I thought Chantal Kreviazuk was an exceptional singer, songwriter, musician and performer.

After having the chance of meeting her personally and interviewing her I realized she was also one of the kindest people I have met in a long time. She is a fantastic musician/singer/entertainer but she’s an even better person.

Those are the reasons why I find Chantal Kreviazuk fascinating.