Emm Gryner (born in

Sarnia Sarnia is a city in Lambton County, Ontario, Canada. It had a Canada 2021 Census, 2021 population of 72,047, and is the largest city on Lake Huron. Sarnia is located on the eastern bank of the junction between the Upper and Lower Great Lakes, ...

, Ontario) is a Canadian singer, songwriter, recording artist, and author. She has released 20 albums as a solo performer, and has collaborated with artists including

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...

and

Chris Hadfield Chris Austin Hadfield (born August 29, 1959) is a Canadian retired astronaut, engineer, fighter pilot, musician, and writer. As the first Canadian to perform extravehicular activity in outer space, he has flown two Space Shuttle missions and ...

Early life

Gryner's childhood was spent in

Forest, Ontario Forest is a community in Lambton Shores, Ontario, Canada, near Sarnia and Lake Huron in Lambton County. It has a population of 2,876 (2011 Census) and a land area of . Community Forest's high school is North Lambton Secondary School. This ...

. Her father was of half Irish heritage and her mother was

Filipina Filipinos () are citizens or people identified with the country of the Philippines. Filipinos come from various Austronesian peoples, all typically speaking Filipino, English, or other Philippine languages. Despite formerly being subject to ...

. She started to learn piano at age 4, picked up

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

around age 14, and later took up guitar as well. Gryner attended North Lambton Secondary School in

. Following high school, she graduated from

Fanshawe College Fanshawe College of Applied Arts and Technology, commonly shortened to Fanshawe College, is a public college in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. It is partnered with private ILAC International College. One of the largest colleges in Canada, it ha ...

's Music Industry Arts program in 1995. Gryner has two brothers, Tony and record producer and musician Frank.

Career

Gryner started her music career in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, where her original song "Wisdom Bus" won a nationwide songwriting contest sponsored by

Standard Broadcasting Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object th ...

. With the prize money, she recorded an album called '' The Original Leap Year'' and released it on her own Dead Daisy Records. The album attracted the attention of

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. Mercury Records released ...

, who signed Gryner to a recording contract. Gryner's first release on Mercury was 1998's ''

Public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociology, sociological concept of the ''Öf ...

'', a

Britpop Britpop was a mid-1990s United Kingdom, British-based music culture movement that emphasised Britishness. Musically, Britpop produced bright, catchy alternative rock, with significant influences from British guitar pop of the 1960s and 1970s. B ...

-inspired album that yielded a Canadian hit called "Summerlong". She was nominated for the Best New Solo Artist Juno Award in 1999.

Bowie Band

Also in 1999, Gryner was asked to join

's band as a backup singer and keyboard player. The gig saw Gryner performing with Bowie at

Glastonbury Festival The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts (commonly referred to as simply Glastonbury Festival, known colloquially as Glasto) is a five-day festival of contemporary performing arts held near Pilton, Somerset, England, in most su ...

, on ''

Later with Jools Holland ''Later... with Jools Holland'' (also known as ''Even Later... with Jools Holland'', and previously known as ''Later Live... with Jools Holland'' and ''...Later with Jools Holland'') is a contemporary British music television show hosted by Jo ...

'', ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') is an American Late night television in the United States, late-night live television, live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The ...

'', and other venues around America and Europe. She appears on the live albums '' Glastonbury 2000'' and ''

Bowie at the Beeb ''Bowie at the Beeb'' is a compilation album by the English singer-songwriter David Bowie, first released in 2000. Originally, it came in a three-CD set, the third, bonus CD being a live recording made on at the Portland BBC Radio Theatre, pa ...

'', as well as ''

Toy A toy or plaything is an object that is used primarily to provide entertainment. Simple examples include toy blocks, board games, and dolls. Toys are often designed for use by children, although many are designed specifically for adults and p ...

''.

Solo career

After

Universal Music Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as Universal Music Group or Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum ...

took over

, Gryner returned to her Dead Daisy Records label, releasing several albums, including ''Girl Versions'' and ''Asianblue'', which were both nominated for Pop Album of the Year at the

Juno Awards The Juno Awards (stylized as JUNOS), or simply known as the Junos, are awards presented by the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize outstanding achievements in Canada's music industry. The Grammy Awards are the United S ...

. Gryner released '' Songs of Love and Death'', an album of cover versions of Irish songs, in 2005. The album attracted the attention of Irish media, and Gryner appeared on programs like The Late Late Show during her subsequent tour of Ireland. Between 2006 and 2020, Gryner released 11 albums, four EPs, and a "best of" compilation with two unreleased tracks. '' The Summer of High Hopes'', produced by Nathan Larson, was released in Canada and later in Ireland on the heels of a performance at Oxegen Festival;

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It was launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is Ireland's leading n ...

' Siobhàn Long said it was "the distilled voice of an original". In the November 2006 issue of '' Q'', U2 frontman

Bono Paul David Hewson (born 10 May 1960), known by the nickname Bono ( ), is an Irish singer-songwriter and activist. He is a founding member, the lead vocalist, and primary lyricist of the rock band U2. Bono is known for his impassioned voca ...

recognized the track "Almighty Love" as one of six songs that he wished he had written from the last twenty years of music. Her 2014 album ''Torrential'' was called "superb pop" by

' Tony Clayton-Lea. During the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, Gryner released the singles "Stronger Someone", in support of Bluewater Health Foundation, and "All Love All The Time" with

Rob Wells Rob Wells (born 1971/1972) is a Canadian producer and songwriter, and is one half of music production team "The Fourth Floor" with award-winning singer/songwriter/recording artist Shobha. Artists that Wells has worked with includes Ariana ...

, as well as the album ''Just For You'', a collection of jazz standards.

Space Oddity in space

In May 2013, Gryner arranged and performed piano on astronaut

's cover version of David Bowie's "

Space Oddity "Space Oddity" is a song by the English singer-songwriter David Bowie. It was first released on 11 July 1969 by Philips and Mercury Records as a 7-inch single, then as the opening track of his second studio album, ''David Bowie''. Produce ...

". The music video for the song features Hadfield on the

International Space Station The International Space Station (ISS) is a large space station that was Assembly of the International Space Station, assembled and is maintained in low Earth orbit by a collaboration of five space agencies and their contractors: NASA (United ...

and is considered the first ever filmed in space. Fanshawe College presents an annual Emm Gryner and Chris Hadfield Music Industry Arts Award to a Year 2 student in the School of Contemporary Media who demonstrates "a keen interest ..in the creative and technical aspects of the music industry ndleadership characteristics with respect to his or her classmates, faculty and staff, as well as exceptional creativity and dedication".

Other collaborations

Gryner collaborated with Larson in the band Hot One and appeared on the group's self-titled album in 2006. She is also a member of the collective The Cake Sale, along with Gary Lightbody of

Snow Patrol Snow Patrol are a Northern Irish–Scottish Rock music, rock band formed in 1994 in Dundee, Scotland, consisting of Gary Lightbody (vocals, guitar), Nathan Connolly (guitar, backing vocals), and Johnny McDaid (piano, guitar, keyboards, backi ...

, Bell X1,

Josh Ritter Joshua B. Ritter (born October 21, 1976) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and author who performs and records with the Royal City Band. Ritter is known for his distinctive Americana (music), Americana style and narrative lyrics. In 2 ...

and

Glen Hansard Glen James Hansard (born 21 April 1970) is an Irish singer-songwriter and musician. Since 1990, he has been the frontman of the Irish rock band The Frames, with whom he has released six studio albums, four of which have charted in the top ten o ...

. The collective is featured on ''The Cake Sale'', a multi-platinum-selling Irish album with proceeds to

Oxfam Oxfam is a British-founded confederation of 21 independent non-governmental organizations (NGOs), focusing on the alleviation of global poverty, founded in 1942 and led by Oxfam International. It began as the Oxford Committee for Famine Relief ...

's Make Trade Fair. In 2011, Gryner formed Trent Severn with

Dayna Manning Dayna Manning (born April 27, 1978, in Stratford, Ontario) is a Canadian folk and pop singer-songwriter, as well as a producer and sound engineer. As a teenager she released her first album, ''Volume 1,'' on EMI and Nettwerk, with featured music ...

and Laura C. Bates. Their debut self-titled album was released on Gryner's Dead Daisy Records label in 2012, followed by Trillium (2015) and Portage (2017). In 2014, Gryner assembled the band Trapper with Sean Kelly (on guitar), brother Frank Gryner (on guitar), Jordan Kern (on bass) and Tim Timleck (ex- Universal Honey on drums), playing "1980s-style melodic hard rock." In May 2015, Trapper opened for Brit-rockers

Def Leppard Def Leppard are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Sheffield in 1977. Since 1992, the band has consisted of Rick Savage (bass, backing vocals), Joe Elliott (lead vocals), Rick Allen (drummer), Rick Allen (drums), Phil Collen (guitar, ...

on three Canadian tour dates in Montréal, Ottawa and London, Ontario. Gryner had met and become friends with Def Leppard lead singer

Joe Elliott Joseph Thomas Elliott (born 1 August 1959) is an English singer-songwriter, best known as the lead singer and one of the founder members of the hard rock band Def Leppard. He has also been the lead singer of the David Bowie tribute band the ...

when she toured as a backing singer with

. Gryner performs her ballad-style cover of Def Leppard's ''

Pour Some Sugar On Me "Pour Some Sugar on Me" is a song by the English rock band Def Leppard from their 1987 album ''Hysteria''. It reached number two on the US US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart on 23 July 1988. "Pour Some Sugar on Me" is considered the band's signatu ...

'', arranged for the

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London, England. The RPO was established by Thomas Beecham in 1946. In its early days, the orchestra secured profitable recording contracts and important engagemen ...

Eric Gorfain Eric Gorfain is an American violinist and founder of The Section Quartet, a string quartet that plays cover versions of rock songs. He is married to singer-songwriter Sam Phillips, with whom he has toured and recorded. Gorfain studied music at U ...

, with the band on their album

Drastic Symphonies ''Drastic Symphonies'' is a remix album by English rock band Def Leppard with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, released on 19 May 2023 through Bludgeon Riffola and Mercury Records. It was produced by Nick Patrick and Ronan McHugh, and contains ...

. She also appeared with Def Leppard and the

BBC Concert Orchestra The BBC Concert Orchestra is a British concert orchestra based in London, one of the British Broadcasting Corporation's five radio orchestras. With around fifty players, it is the only one of the five BBC orchestras which is not a full-scale sym ...

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the List of most-listened-to radio programs, most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 14 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the sta ...

's ''Piano Room'' in support of the album, performing ''Pour Some Sugar On Me'', ''Hysteria'', and Bowie's ''Life On Mars''.

Other work

In 2005, Gryner was featured as a fallen angel in the video for Daniel Victor's ''The Grace'' of album ''Act I:A Goodbye Friends of the Heavenly Bodies'', reaching #1 on

Much Music Much is a Canadian English language discretionary specialty channel owned by BCE Inc. through its Bell Media subsidiary that airs programming aimed at teenagers and young adults. It is headquartered at 299 Queen Street West in what was o ...

and International modern rock radio charts, becoming the sixth most-played song on Canadian Rock Radio charts and certified Gold in 2006. In 2008 Gryner acted and sang in '' One Week'', a film by director Michael McGowan. In the film she sings Un Canadien errant; she also contributed her song "Blackwinged Bird" to the soundtrack. In the summers of 2007 and 2008, Gryner and

Danny Michel Danny Michel is a Canadian artist, songwriter and producer. Michel (Mish-elle) is a multi-Juno and Polaris Music Prize nominated songwriter from Ontario, Canada. Michel began making solo records in the 1990s after being a member of many bands, ...

co-hosted '' Under the Covers'', a

radio show A radio program, radio programme, or radio show is a segment of content intended for broadcast on radio. It may be a one-time production, or part of a periodically recurring series. A single program in a series is called an episode. Radio netw ...

about

cover song In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song released ...

s, on

CBC Radio One CBC Radio One is the English-language news and information radio network of the publicly owned Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It is commercial-free and offers local and national programming. It is available on AM and FM to 98 percent o ...

. In October 2016 Gryner starred in ''Joni Mitchell: River'' at the Grand Theatre in London, Ontario along with

Louise Pitre Louise Pitre (born January 1, 1957) is a Canadian actress in musical theatre. She performs on Broadway and in Canada. She is best known for her role as Donna Sheridan in the ABBA-themed musical '' Mamma Mia!'', which earned her a 2002 Tony Award ...

and Brendan Wall. The play and performers met with positive reviews: in the

London Free Press ''The London Free Press'' is a daily newspaper based in London, Ontario, Canada. It has the largest circulation of any newspaper in Southwestern Ontario. History ''The London Free Press'' began as the ''Canadian Free Press'', founded by Willia ...

Joe Belanger commented that "her vocal range, the emotional qualities of her voice and its sound relike a touchstone to Mitchell throughout," and Mary Alderson wrote that "she is stunning in her a capella numbers". In September 2021

ECW Press ECW Press is a Canadian book publisher located in Toronto, Ontario. It was founded by Jack David and Robert Lecker in 1974 as a Canada, Canadian literary magazine named ''Essays on Canadian Writing''. They started publishing trade and scholar ...

released Gryner's book ''The Healing Power of Singing: Raise Your Voice, Change Your Life (What Touring with David Bowie, Single Parenting and Ditching the Music Business Taught Me in 25 Easy Steps)'', described as "part study in the art of singing, part guide to finding one's voice, and part memoir." The book became an Amazon bestseller in 2022.

Dead Daisy Records

Gryner's label, Dead Daisy Records, also released the debut records for Atlantic Canadian indie band In-Flight Safety,

Daniel Ledwell Daniel Ledwell is a Canadian record producer and multi-instrumentalist. Music career In 2008 Ledwell produced his debut solo album, ''Two Over Seven'' in his home studio."", ''Chart'', January 16, 2008. Retrieved January 19, 2014. It was releas ...

, Andrew Spice, Cicero, and Toronto songwriter Royal Wood.

Discography

* '' And Distrust It'' (1995) * '' The Original Leap Year'' (1997) * ''

'' (1998) * ''

Science Fair A science fair or engineering fair is an event hosted by a school that offers students the opportunity to experience the practices of science and engineering for themselves. In the United States, the Next Generation Science Standards makes ex ...

'' (1999) * ''

Dead Relatives ''Dead Relatives'' is the fifth full-length album by Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these con ...

'' (2000) * '' Girl Versions'' (2001) * ''The Winter'' (EP) (2002) * '' Asianblue'' (2002) * '' Songs of Love and Death'' (2005) * '' The Great Lakes'' (2005) * '' The Summer of High Hopes'' (2006) * '' PVT'' (2006) (originally issued as a bonus disc with ''The Summer of High Hopes'', later sold separately) * ''

Goddess A goddess is a female deity. In some faiths, a sacred female figure holds a central place in religious prayer and worship. For example, Shaktism (one of the three major Hinduism, Hindu sects), holds that the ultimate deity, the source of all re ...

'' (2009) * ''Stray Bullets'' EP (2010) * '' Gem and I'' (2010) * ''Northern Gospel'' (2011) * ''She's Gone: A Hall & Oates Tribute EP'' (2012) * ''The Best of Emm Gryner'' (2012) * ''FrostPop'' (EP) (2013) * ''Torrential'' (2014) * ''21st Century Ballads'' (2015) * ''Calmphonic'' (2016) * ''Aonarán'' (2016) * ''Slant'' (EP) (2017) * ''Only of Earth: Days of Games'' (2017) * ''Just for You'' (2020) * ''Business & Pleasure'' (2023)Nick Krewen
"Emm Gryner talks healing, life coaching and her new album 'Business & Pleasure'"
''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part of Torstar's Daily News Brands (Torstar), Daily News Brands division. ...

'', December 8, 2022.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gryner, Emm 1975 births Living people Canadian pop guitarists Canadian pop pianists Canadian women singer-songwriters Canadian women guitarists Canadian people of Irish descent Musicians from Sarnia Singers from Ontario Fanshawe College alumni Canadian musicians of Filipino descent Canadian women bass guitarists Canadian women pop singers 20th-century Canadian women singers 21st-century Canadian women singers 21st-century Canadian pianists 21st-century Canadian bass guitarists Second Motion Records artists 20th-century Canadian women pianists 21st-century Canadian women pianists Canadian women memoirists 21st-century Canadian memoirists 20th-century Canadian singer-songwriters 21st-century Canadian singer-songwriters