Serena Ryder and actress Ellen Page (a fellow Canadian) have much in common, besides their physical resemblance – both are highly talented, in their 20s and on the cusp of major fame. Like Page, Ryder has already earned raves for her work; having won the 2008 Juno for New Artist of the Year.
When Ryder won the Juno Award in April, many were left scratching their heads. It was not in criticism of Ryder’s deservedness of the accolade. But to them, her name was not new at all. She’s just one member of a group of underrated Canadian female singer/songwriters. (Ryder has been active in the Canadian music industry for years before nabbing the Juno.)
She's proven herself to be a hard-traveling troubadour, with a long series of tours in her native Canada, France and Australia. In the U.S. she's shared stages with artists as Paolo Nutini, and Xavier Rudd, not to mention performances at festivals as Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, and Denver’s Mile High Music Festival.
2008 was a rough year: she toured a lot, and spent a lot of time by herself on the road, she went through a breakup, and her best friend died. Ryder put all of that pain into her latest album.
Losing her friend and manager of six years - Bonnie O'Donnell - was possibly the biggest blow in Ryder's personal life during the making of the album, which is dedicated (as was Ryder's '08 Juno for Best New Artist) to her memory. After O'Donnell's passing in January, Ryder says she emerged from "three weeks of being in an absolute haze" to find the music pouring out of her. Half of the material on "Is it O.K." was completed in a one and a half week burst of creativity. Songs inspired during that time include "Dark as the Black", "Truth", "Stumbling Over You" and the twangy, folk-rocking title track.
"She would have loved it, I think she would have loved it,"” Ryder says when asked what O’Donnell’s reaction to the record would be. "There were a lot of songs that were written after she had passed on. She would definitely have loved the record. I hope."
Her lead single, "Little Bit of Red", exemplifies that liberation of pain. At the height of the song’s chorus, Ryder sings, "Your black and white needs a little bit of red," reflecting on her frustration with constant human urge for self-definition in order to feel comfort.
"I like to think of the line as maybe even bleeding a little bit," she says. "The song is really about trying to fit yourself into those boxes and using those boxes as excuses for a lot of your fears. But humans are multi-faceted beings. There’s never one thing that can define us."
Ryder says she likes to keep things open-ended with her words. "It makes it like something we can all relate to - how you feel when somebody loves you or doesn't love you. We can all relate to that regardless of whether it's a dude, or your mom, or your friend."
My friend Sacha called the singer the missing link between Melissa Etheridge and Beth Hart, and I agree with him: it's not just the vocals that range from raspy (Ryder smokes) to smooth (not to mention her 3-octave range, on a good day), it's also in the lyrics in which she pours out her heart. In interviews I've seen comparisons with Aretha Franklin, Stevie Nicks, Tracy Chapman, Melissa Etheridge, and Janis Joplin. And she can rap!
While surfing the web in search of info on the 25-year-old, I suddenly realize I have heard Serena before on some Canadian rock radio station: "Just another day" is a tune that I found myself humming at one point several years ago :)
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