St. Thomas University graduate Jerry-Faye Flatt and her band, Jerry-Faye, were nominated for best solo recording award by Music New Brunswick for their self-titled EP.
Flatt, the lead vocalist and one of the guitarists, said she was surprised when she heard the news.
“It’s kind of nice to know that our EP hasn’t been forgotten about and that people liked it,” said Flatt.
She said it has been difficult for the band to practice together since the COVID-19 outbreak. Their drummer, Liam Bunin, moved to Prince Edward Island. The band hasn’t met together since COVID. The rest of the band, which includes Dylan Ward on lead guitar and Sheehan Flatt on vocals, is based in Fredericton.
Flatt is an active member of the Maritime music scene. She’s performed in music festivals like the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival, Shivering Songs and Folly Fest.
The Music New Brunswick awards promote musicians from across the province. Paige Young, a solo performer from Saint John who won Local FM’s Femcore artist of the year, said she highly values local scenes.
She thinks they offer up some of the best experiences for musicians and fans alike to express themselves.
“I think that there’s a lot of undiscovered talent that people don’t realize,” said Young. “I think it’s always important to showcase that talent and let as many people as possible see it.”
Jean Surette, executive director at Music New Brunswick, said emerging artists are important to the organization.
“We try to guide [emerging artists] when they have a new release, album, or are going on tour,” said Surette. “We provide them with as much info on how to set that up properly.”
Flatt said that when the pandemic started, nobody knew what was going to happen, but it’s exciting to see how everyone is adapting.
“It was just so dark,” she said.
Since then, Flatt has played shows with other bands, such as Marian, that have been livestreamed. She finds the experience different and said the lack of clapping is the strangest part.
Despite COVID, Flatt said she’s grateful to musicians and promoters for keeping local scenes alive through innovations like online performances.
“I’ve been taking a little break right now because of the whole COVID thing and it’s been nice to just relax,” Flatt said. “When we do get back into the swing of things I’m sure we’ll be working on new music.”
