Jasmine Netsena
Fort Nelson, British Columbia, Canada | Established. Jan 01, 2005 | SELF
Music
Press
Take You With Me is the debut solo album from First Nations singer/songwriter Jasmine Netsena, but it is a very mature and fully-realized work, reflecting experience gained performing all across North America. Her personal and poetic songwriting and expressive voice are neatly captured by Whitehorse-based producer Bob Hamilton (Kim Beggs, Indio Saravanja). A couple of covers fit snugly aside such strong originals as "Lie To Myself" and "Winter Fuel" (co-written with acclaimed folk artist Kim Barlow). Netsena plays Vancouver's Railway Club on May 14 (with Ann Vriend), then shows in Alberta. In the fall, she'll tour as far east as Nova Scotia, with stops in every province en route. - New Canadian Music
Northern country singer/songwriter Jasmine Netsena clear cool voice brings Northern Canadian and Southern USA music together on this sometime rockin' country album. Songs of longing and leaving with that old peddle string guitar twanging and fiddle fiddling make this a keeper. - CJLY Radio
"She's easily one of the best female vocalists ever to touch down in Chilliwack" - Valley Voice
Joy and pain, love and loss, family and friendship are among songwriter Jasmine Netsena's muses.
The Yellowknife-based acoustic roots artist composes intimate lyrical narratives chronicling experiences and emotions from her childhood, coming of age, and young adulthood touring on the road as a professional musician.
Netsena will perform a collection of these autobiographical ballads at the Northern Arts and Cultural Centre (NACC) at 8 p.m. on Jan. 29 as part of NACC's annual Northern Performers Series, a trio of evening concerts showcasing emerging and established Northern artists. Other Yellowknife artists in the series include songwriters Brendan Callas on Jan. 27 and Kelly Clark on Jan. 28.
On Jan. 29 Netsena will be backed by Pat Braden on bass, Andrea Bettger on fiddle, and Leela Gilday on backup vocals.
"I get to share the stage with some of the best people I know who are really great musicians in town," Netsena said. "I'm definitely treating this as the biggest show I've ever done."
Yellowknife's live music fans will recognize some of Netsena's set-list from the popular performer's regular appearances at Javaroma, Twist Resto-Lounge, and Fuego.
Among Netsena's best known tunes are Dreamed of You, in which she reflects on a bond of Northern friendship, and the bittersweet love song, Since I Met You. She will also debut three new Northern songs along with a couple of carefully chosen covers.
Originally from northern B.C., Netsena has long combined her own personal poetry with country, folk, and blues music. Years of vocal training and her own artistic innovation have helped Netsena to craft a unique voice through which to express her stories and feelings.
"Everybody has their own insight and window into what's going on in the world and in their world," Netsena said. "I think we all have a unique experience in the world that should be shared. As a kid I decided that I have a voice that's worth sharing."
Netsena's words and music offer a soothing journey along one young woman's path, reminding listeners of the struggles and celebrations that make their own lives unique.
The traditional roots influences in Netsena's music are coloured by a contemporary artistic sensibility. Netsena's appreciation for tradition and innovation is evidenced by the artist's eclectic influences, which include iconic artists from past and present, such as Nina Simone, Neil Young, Jill Scott and Rufus Wainwright.
Tickets for the Northern Performers Series are available through the NACC box office. - Northern News Services
Discography
Still working on that hot first release.
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Bio
Winner 2014 Aboriginal Peoples' Choice Music Awards (Best Folk/Acoustic CD)
Nominee 2014 Canadian Folk Music Awards (Best Aboriginal Songwriter)
Take You With Me may be the debut album from singer/songwriter Jasmine Netsena, but the resident of Fort Nelson, BC, is far from a musical novice. Rather than rushing into a first record, she chose to steadily sharpen her vocal, compositional and performance skills. In recent years, she has charmed audiences in Nashville, Texas, New York City, and across Canada, before finally deciding to commit her songs to disc.
We can be glad she did. All Netsena's patience and hard work have paid off with a truly compelling album, one that signals the arrival of a major young talent. This is a record written and recorded in the Great White North, but it's stylistic heart resides in the American South. Netsena grew up surrounded by the sounds of country, folk and blues, and she seamlessly incorporates these styles into her own music. The stories in these evocative songs, though, are deeply personal and strongly rooted in her homeland.
The ever-patient Netsena wasn't about make the record in haste. She travelled to Whitehorse for two extended sessions in late 2013 with noted producer Bob Hamilton. His work with acclaimed singer/songwriters Kim Beggs and Indio Saravanja had caught Jasmine's ear, so the pair settled into Hamilton's Old Crow Recording studio, along with an A-list cast of players that included Marie Gogo, Annie Avery, Leela Gilday, Robert Bergman, Ed White and Katie Avery.
Netsena's natural eclecticism is reflected in her choice of the two cover songs on the record. Written by Carlene Carter and Susanna Clark, the classic country-folk tune "Easy From Now On" is best known via Emmylou Harris' version. "Emmylou is definitely one of my favourite artists," Jasmine says, and she does the song (and Emmy) real justice. "Nothing In Rambling" is an old Mississippi blues tune co-written and made famous by the legendary Memphis Minnie, and the passion and purity in Jasmine's version brings Maria Muldaur to mind.
Music was a big part of Netsena's life growing up in B.C.."My First Nation heritage is Dene and Tahltan, and my grandmas would sing to me a lot, in their first language," she recalls. "Those were mostly drum-based songs. My mum is a huge music fan, and I grew up to a lot of country and folk music, from George Jones to Neil Young and Bob Dylan."
After teaching herself guitar, Netsena's focus then turned to writing and performing original roots-oriented songs. A year spent living in Manhattan proved a creative turning point, she explains. "One of my best friends there was a stand-up comic who ran an open mic night. I'd been too shy to get up and sing, but she forced me into it and that got me over my stage fright. I started playing every open mic night I could find, four or five times a week, and then I'd write songs on the weekend."
Netsena continued to perform at various clubs and festivals in the North, and in 2009 she showcased at Aboriginal Music Week in Winnipeg. The following year, she was featured on the APTN show Rising Stars, a tag she is certainly now living up to. In 2011, she headlined a concert at the Northern Arts and Cultural Centre (NACC) in Yellowknife, part of the centre's annual Northern Performer Series. In 2012, she performed at the Grand Ole Northern Opry, with Grammy Award winner Laurie Lewis as headliner, at the Yukon Arts Centre in Whitehorse. She most recently opened up for Buffy Sainte Marie at the Blue Feather Music Festival.
2014 is shaping up as a banner year for Jasmine Netsena, thanks to this vibrant and richly rewarding album. It is indeed one you will want to take with you.
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