About Karyn:

Karyn Ellis’ music, "twangy...cool and...difficult to classify", maps out the bittersweet trajectories of relationships with a distinctively sweet voice, unique guitar style and gentle sense of humour. Her folk-based pop songs are beautiful and sad, uplifting and quirky, and Karyn "can envelop you in the warmth of that voice and break your heart at the same time." Indie-Music.com

Her CD, Hearts Fall is a CBC favourite – frequently playlisted both nationally and regionally on programs such as The Vinyl Café, Freestyle, Bandwidth, Here and Now and Radio International. Hearts Fall also spent six months on various campus radio charts across Canada including five weeks on CIUT top-30 (topping at #3), and the CD reached the national monthly campus Top-50 and folk/roots/blues Top-20 charts earlier this year. About Hearts Fall, Amanda Putz from CBC radio 1 comments: "[Karyn's] voice is lovely, the arrangements are simple & clever, and there's an almost rustic quality to the record-likely from being recorded live off the floor-that makes it extra sweet."

In addition to her hometown successes, Karyn Ellis has been embraced internationally, too, receiving rave reviews in several of Europe's online music magazines. Benny Metten of CtrlAltCountry, the Belgium based music zine writes of her record: "4 out of 5 ...such bittersweet pleasures… Who will bring [Karyn Ellis] here to our country as quickly as possible?"

MUSICAL BEGINNINGS…

Karyn's first public appearance was in a singing contest while on vacation with her family in Guadeloupe. Nine years old and with microphone in hand, she chirped out an acappella version of "Hey Little Bird" (Sandy Oppeheim): 'hey little bird sitting in a tree. Let's have lunch together you and me--how about pizza?' The only person under eighteen in the show, she took first place. But she opted out of the prize--a 12-year old bottle of single malt scotch--and instead ordered a round of chocolate ice cream bars for all her new vacation friends.

Later, Karyn studied opera for two years at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario. The department frowned on the singing of popular music, however, and in this more formal environment Karyn found it difficult to ignore her musical tastes. When an elective in guitar gave her a way to accompany herself while singing, she took this newfound freedom and flew away from school to travel. She flitted about the streets of Europe busking for train fare and hostel fees, and it wasn't long before she started adding original songs to her repertoire.

AND NOW? …

This Toronto based artist is charming audiences across Canada, appearing at such festivals as Skeleton Park Music Festival (Kingston ON), Waynefest (Wayne AB), NextFest Emerging Artists Festival (Edmonton AB) and the Peterborough Folk Festival (Peterborough ON), showcasing at industry events like the Ontario Council of Folk Festivals annual conference and North by Northeast Music Festival and playing at Hugh's Room (Toronto ON), Isabel Bader Theatre (Toronto ON), The Grand Theatre (Kingston ON), The Livingroom Theatre (Nelson BC), The Empress Theatre (Fort McLeod AB), Ironwood (Calgary AB) and Casa Del Popolo (Montreal QC). She's shared stages with Jill Barber, Justin Rutledge, Lynn Miles, Roxanne Potkvin, Geoff Berner and Ember Swift.

In addition to her regular touring schedule, both Karyn and several of her songs have appeared in local film and TV productions, including an appearance in the recently released film "What is Indie?" (2006 - Dave Cool), which features interviews with artists and music industry such as Peggy Lang, Ember Swift and Annabelle Chvostek (Wailin’ Jennies). Other film credits include a brief musical appearance in Robert Swales’ “Rigoletto in Blue Grass” (2006) – a contemporary remake of Verdi’s tragic opera, and her rendition of Tumbling Tumbleweeds (Bob Nolan) appears as the title and sound track for the festival film, Queer Grit (2004) by Winnipeg writer, Roewan Crowe. Her song “Karianna” appears in the season two finale of CTV’s Robson’s Arms, which airs late spring 2007.