Q and A with Niki Andre

Q. Can you give me a musical bio?

A. My Dad played trumpet in big bands when I was growing up. I auditioned for my first school musical when I was about 12. I started writing songs as cheap therapy but at some point life got so painful that singing the songs in private wasn't enough of a balm. I needed to cry out! And all the while I was getting all these messages, in dreams and serendipitous meetings, that this was what I was meant to do. It was all downhill from there (ha ha.)

Q. Has the place where you grew up had any influence your music?

A. I was born in Toronto and grew up in the ex burbs (Ajax-Pickering). I think growing up in such a multicultural place has made me very eclectic musically. I was exposed to everything growing up. Little bits of everything are finding their way into my sound. From the crunchy electric guitars, to the hip hoppy, almost spoken hooks. That's why I call it Dirty Jazz. It's jazz... It's been dirtied up, with hip hop, rock, pop.

Q. Do you sing about your own experiences?

A. It's pretty much all me. There's a little bit of synthesis in a couple of songs where I sing about things I've witnessed that resonated with me. But the main through line is always my story. I pull my songs straight from my diary pages.

Q. Who are the people you collaborate with... can I get names and positions?

A. In high school me and Christine (Laity), my back up singer, used to sit in the back of the school bus messing with the songs from Fame or whatever show we were rehearsing at the time... I'm trying to get that back, with she and Jeanelle (McKenzie) now that we're reunited. Some of the producers I've worked closely with are also excellent musicians. Denzil Remedios at Gold Mine, engineered four singles on the new release (Dawn's Rise). Same for Stan Stapor at Summit Music, who produced First Light, my first release. Dan Reiff of the Micronite Filters and Roger Sader, the lead guitarist for Purrr, have also done their fair share of hand holding.

Q. What are your plans for the future?

A. Kyle Merkley is my new partner in crime, holding down the biz side of things so I can focus more on writing and performing. My first release was completely trial by fire. This time our approach is a lot more grass roots and internet savvy. Spreading the word thru YouTube, MySpace and my site... releasing viral video and free downloads. We've just started to create a presence for me online and already I can see how things will begin to snowball as we pick up speed. My site is averaging over 12,000 hits a month and we've yet to officially release.

Niki Andre will play Isabella's Chocolate Cafe tonight as part of the Jazz 'n Blues Festival. See www.nikiandre.com for details.

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William McGuirk is a freelance writer and longtime Oshawa resident. He can be contacted at wmacg@yahoo.com.