Chelsea Stewart

Chelsea Stewart is a multi-talented singer/songwriter working in a diverse range of genres from classical to jazz and everything in between, Chelsea Stewart takes you on a musical journey visiting the eras of Billie Holiday, Donny Hathaway, Bob Marley, and Mariah Carey. Chelsea has sung for and shared the stage with two legends in their respective genres, Stevie Wonder and Bobby McFerrin. Receiving standing ovations at local jazz festivals and on the international stage, Chelsea has been an opening act for various artists, like R&B artist Mario, and reggae super stars Beenie Man and Marcia Griffiths. The talented singer/songwriter is currently recording her debut album with Grammy winning reggae legends Sly and Robbie, and her debut FACTOR-funded reggae EP ‘Genesis’ was released in October 2018. This project was nominated for the Reggae Recording of the Year JUNO award in 2019!

What was the best advice you received as an up-and-coming artist?

I think the best advice I received was to invest in myself. My Mom always said, “Once you invest in yourself, others are willing to contribute to your growth because you’ve shown everyone watching that you are willing to put your money where your mouth is.” So together we’ve promoted our own shows, funded tours, produced our music AND manufactured and distributed our very own CDs (through our label Baby Mama Music). I’ve sold over 70,000 copies in Toronto which helped me to reinvest in my career and be a full time artist. Shoutout to my city for supporting me!

Along the way we realized that as artists in Canada, we didn’t have to do it all by ourselves so we started to apply for funding from FACTOR and that has been a tremendous help. #ThankYou

What do you find exciting about the Canadian music industry today?

What’s exciting is that the industry is beginning to realize that it needs to make some changes to promote Black artists as much as every other artist. There is so much talent within the Black community that has not been acknowledged or properly celebrated. Because of this, many artists have had to go to the US to finally be appreciated or given up completely. It seems like the Canadian music industry might’ve realized that they’ve let too many gems slip through their hands and are finally willing to do the right thing.

As we enter a month celebrating the history, achievements and contributions of the Black community, how do you feel as a Black artist?

I was born in Toronto, but I am excluded from access to my music being played on major Canadian radio stations. As a Black female artist in Canada I wish that I was afforded the same opportunities given to reggae artists who live abroad and are not Canadian born, and artists that are Canadian but not Black. I wish the talents of Afro-Canadian artists were acknowledged 365 days of the year instead of just 28 days in February. I am very grateful to FACTOR and the government of Canada for the opportunities that they provide local artists like myself. My debut self titled album was made possible because of FACTOR, and I feel that they do make an effort to highlight Black artists because I’ve benefited from those efforts in the past and even right now!