Jann Arden

by Nathan Whitlock

With a soulful voice and soft-rock songwriting style that often belies her brutally frank and gleefully rough-edged public persona, Jann Arden constantly defies expectations. Her self-deprecating manner can sometimes make it seem as though she has not yet gotten her due as an artist, but the stats tell another story: 19 Top 10 singles, 8 JUNO Awards, 10 SOCAN Awards, a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame, a spot in the Canadian Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame, The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal. All of this success began with the slow-burn, Heart-lite ballad “I Would Die For You” off her 1993 debut album, then exploded with the release of “Insensitive” from 1994’s Living Under June. While her sense of humour and gift for gab have brought high-profile stints on radio and TV, the songs Arden writes are melancholy, painfully romantic, and often shot through with themes of empowerment. Ten albums later—including a live album with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, and two albums of her favourite cover songs—Arden is like an older sister who is scarily serious one minute, and a total goof the next.