Megan Folden

Belle Plaine is paradoxically open about the fact that her creative process is a fairly insular one. It’s something she recently wrote about in her newsletter, The Belle Plaine Weather Report, as she touched on the changes that the COVID-19 pandemic has brought to her and her husband, fellow singer-songwriter Blake Berglund’s, routine.

“I’m stubborn when I work. The door to my office is locked. I crave privacy that verges on secrecy. I rarely share anything unfinished. It’s revolutionary that in recent months I’ve begun to seek feedback from a few trusted friends and have overcome the compulsion to resist any and all input.”

It would be entirely wrong, however, to say that the singer’s creative life isn’t without many collaborators, one of them being Berglund. In May, 2022, the pair gave the public some insight into their life away from the stage with a Creative Saskatchewan-funded hour-long film, Belle Plaine & Blake Berglund’s Living From Home. The intimacy of the project is immediately obvious in the teaser trailer (see below), with the camera following them as they pour coffees, rummage through their freezer, and record music. Before releasing the film to audiences, Plaine wrote that the piece was about a reset of sorts.

“Blake and I were experiencing what living from home was like. We were supposed to be living on the road! In the van. Bouncing from city to city, venue to venue, hang to hang. How are you supposed to do that in a global pandemic? We made Living From Home with all this in mind. Blake keeps saying that it was my vision, but the truth is that I couldn’t see much at all. I needed to be seen… [the project] is a representation of getting my feet back on the ground and my head back in the clouds. Where they belong.”

Blake and Belle used the funding from our Market and Export Development Grant’s Micro Stream to work with little jack films—who has worked with other Creative Saskatchewan-funded artists like Ellen Froese— and a host of other local collaborators, including Bryce Lewis, Chris Dimas, Bryn Besse, and Steve Leidal. The film was screened at a virtual event on May 1, 2022, and the duo say that embarking on this project opened new avenues for their long-time creative partnership.

“[It] allowed us to expand into a new creative discipline and revenue stream. The pandemic’s influence on digital broadcasting supported the idea of long form video as an income stream and content generator. It also allowed us to expose ourselves to our support with more intimacy and connection. Using the Substack platform to deliver additional behind-the-scenes insights and backstory, we found this project to be one that connected with our supporters on levels alongside studio albums and live performances.”

Though both artists have since returned to the stage, Belle Plaine at the 2022 Regina Folk Festival and Blake at Montmartre’s All Folked Up Music Festival, the pair say they are continuing to document their life for a video-based follow up.

“We continue to work in collaboration with little jack films in an ongoing accumulation of thoughtful video content, already sussing out the storylines – Living From The Country? Living From Kentucky? Either way, the cameras are rolling.”

Blake and Belle aren’t the only ones using the Market and Export Development Grant to their advantage. Saskatchewan musical heavy hitters like JJ Voss, Nick Faye, Universal Honey, and Jess Moskaluke are among the music-based recipients who have received this form of funding in the last year. The micro stream has a maximum of $5,000 per applicant (which can represent up to 50% of your overall marketing budget. Within our major stream, meant for larger-scale marketing opportunities, that maximum can jump up to $25,000 per applicant per fiscal year. The deadlines to apply depend on your artistic medium. You can be publishing a book, crafting, creating visual or performing art, promoting music, getting eyeballs on a film or television project, or doing some interactive digital work— you’ll have a different deadline in each instance.

By John Loeppky.

It’s approximately 1,894 miles between Nashville, Tennessee and Spiritwood, Saskatchewan, but thankfully — for 2019 Saskatchewan country music emerging artist award (SCMA) winner Shantaia, sound waves travel much faster than what would be a 29 hour journey by car. The up and coming artist, who says she’s been singing since the age of three, has used Creative Saskatchewan funding to finance two recent singles: “Broke to Brand New” and “Hung Over You”. Those dollars came from our Market & Export Development Grant – Micro Stream.

Shantaia says she’s at a point in her career where she’s “fighting” to move from being seen as an emerging artist to someone who is more established. Music site Canadian Beats’ Jenna Melanson called “Broke to Brand New” a track that highlights a “bigger and bolder sound” as well as being a tune that “…flawlessly blends the sounds of modern country with her buoyant pop sensibility to create an empowering feel to the penetrating lyricism of the song.” The single has racked up more than 722,000 plays on Spotify, been featured on numerous playlists, and has charted highly since its release in January—with over one million streams on all platforms. The single also came in in at #33 on Mediabase’s charts. June’s “Hung Over You” isn’t too far behind.

Shantaia says she’s received positive feedback from across Canada and that her social numbers haven’t stopped climbing since “Broke to Brand New” hit the airwaves and streaming platforms.

“[It’s] my highest streaming single yet! We are so proud of the hard work we’ve put into this song and the accomplishments it has had so far…New fans have reached out to me more than ever saying they have heard “Broke to Brand New” on the radio all over Canada, which has definitely been a huge reason why my Instagram numbers and streaming numbers have increased!”

Despite the increase in listeners, Shantaia didn’t spend the entirety of 2022 just in the studio. She participated in some significant US-based events—like January’s Whiskey Jam and February’s Tennessee Songwriters Week—but also spent some time on the road opening for The Washboard Union and Raquel Cole on their Road Back to Cavendish tour. Closer to home, she played Dauphin, Manitoba’s Country Fest and some Canadian Country Music Awards events in Calgary, Alberta. She may have taken a break from releasing music for two years prior to 2020, but since then it’s been full steam ahead.

Next on the artist’s to-do list is to continue working on a full-length album in 2023, which includes her most recent single “Know You”. She wants to take the momentum she’s gained from these singles (as well as from opening for acts like Kane Brown, Emerson Drive, and Charlie Major) and pile it into this new record. Her previous EP, Chapter One, was released in 2020 and she’s also worked on tracks that include Brody Siebert’s “Ashes on the Bar” and a Blue Jays Sessions offering that also featured another Saskatchewan artist, Alex Runions.

Whenever that new record lands, we know it will have some distinct Saskatchewan country sounds embedded in it. After all, you can take the artist out of the prairie but that doesn’t mean you can take the prairie out of the artist.

“I’m so proud to be from Saskatchewan and so grateful for everything you guys have done for me!”

Nashville-based rising stars like Shantaia aren’t the only ones using the Market and Export Development Grant to their advantage. Saskatchewan musical heavy hitters like JJ Voss, Nick Faye, Universal Honey, Belle Plaine, Blake Berglund, and Jess Moskaluke are among the music-based recipients who have received this form of funding in the last year. The micro stream has a maximum of $5,000 per applicant (which can represent up to 50% of your overall marketing budget. Within our major stream, meant for larger-scale marketing opportunities, that maximum can jump up to $25,000 per applicant per fiscal year. The deadlines to apply depend on your artistic medium. You can be publishing a book, crafting, creating visual or performing art, promoting music, getting eyeballs on a film or television project, or doing some interactive digital work— you’ll have a different deadline in each instance.

By John Loeppky.