BIO
Four time MusicNL Award Nominee Lorna Lovell (Country Artist of the Year and Indigenous Artist of the Year) is a Mi'kmaq Singer/Songwriter from Corner Brook, Newfoundland. Her debut Contemporary Country album, “Whenever I Sing”, was released February 28, 2020 across all digital download & streaming platforms, and is also available on CD. Country charm infused with sweet vocal tones and hints of Pop, Rock and Blues, the album is emotionally charged, uplifting, and sprinkled with humour. Lorna has been featured on several episodes of Village Beat and Local Sounds on Rogers TV, and recently opened for fellow Country Music Artist Jason Benoit at the Rotary Arts Centre as well as the First Light Art & Performance Centre. You can also catch her on the new Hospitality NL “We Are Tourism” ad campaign.
A true island girl, Lorna was born and raised in a tiny fishing community on the island portion of Newfoundland & Labrador, & enjoys hiking, beach combing and bird watching. Her love of singing and creative writing organically transitioned into song writing, inspired by her music-filled upbringing and songwriter father, Gordon Lovell, whose genres were Gospel & Folk. Other musical influences include Shania Twain, Miranda Lambert and Corey Hart. Lorna used some down time in 2020 to write and perform new songs live on Facebook for two weeks straight to stay connected to her fans. She has been showcasing her original work at festivals, pubs, theatres, in church, on television, and in a wikuom (wigwam) during Writers At Woody Point, since 2018!
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During a Songwriting Challenge hosted by MusicNL & Bell Media, Lorna co-wrote “Hope To Bring” with Rachel Cousins and Virginia Fudge. It was included on Rachel's self-titled Pop album and released in September 2019. Represented by Cymba Music Publishing, the song has been placed in a Citytv production (The Wedding Planners), and was a finalist in the International Songwriting Competition.
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Island Girl, the first single from her debut album, is a favourite on radio stations across the Province , & even as far away as Japan. It is a charming, upbeat tribute to tough, beautiful women all over the world.
Working with EvanMC Productions and through generous funding from ArtsNL, “All Your Dances”(track #4), was brought to life on screen in a new music video and released August 28, 2021. The video received 2nd Place in the Best Indie category of the 4th Annual Canadian Independent Music Video Awards in March 2022.
Lorna released two new singles in 2021, & one in 2022, all produced by Sevenview Studios: “Harder Next Time” is a swanky, Country-Blues tune that playfully tackles the difficulties of being in and escaping a toxic relationship, released August 2021; "Holidays Are Hard" sympathizes with the stresses that surround holidays, released December 2021; and "Pray Every Day" is an upbeat Christian Country song that suggests praying isn't only for Sundays!
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Her winning entry in Senior Music for the 2023 Arts & Letters NL Awards was for her original, "Come Home", written for the Indigenous children who never got to come home from the Residential "schools", and for our MMIWG2+. Lorna performed it at The Rooms in St. John's, Newfoundland for the awards reveal, as well as for the Premier's announcement of the Year of the Arts 2024.
Come Home is the 5th track on her second studio album, SONG SEEDS, out June 25, 2023, and part of a Twin EP project funded by ArtsNL. The twin being the second EP, "Bring the Fire" which released July 25, 2023 and features ECMA Award winning guzheng artist, Jing Xia (on Dragon - Bring the Fire).