Best Music Act: Jess Knights

photography by Neil Zeller

JESS KNIGHTS

A much-loved Calgary musician, Jess Knights is a one-of-a-kind act that you won't see anywhere else. This soul-roots singer-songwriter puts rhyming words to 12 bars, a beat and performs them around our gorgeous city. Whereas you may know her for her heartfelt debut EP released in 2018, Won't Wait, that was played on countless local radio stations, Jess worked on something special over the past few months that is finally ready to be shared. Jess comes out on the other side of love and loss not with bitterness, but rather a sense of self-assuredness.

Her new debut full-length album, Best Kind of Light, was released on June 19th after being postponed due to COVID-19, and traces a reflection on what was with a recognition of what is, and a choice to remember the good and hopefully learn from the not-so-good. Jess and her band members, Stephen Fletcher, Cam Dougal, Graeme Rife and Barry Mason, were very much looking forward to bringing their music to new cities and venues across the country on their spring/summer tour of Western Canada, but this was cancelled due to the pandemic. Luckily, Jess was inspired to continue on by other local artists and musicians who persevered and continued to share their art in innovative ways, regardless of the current climate, through livestreams, curbside concerts, and other avenues to ensure our Calgary art scene remained vibrant.

At this time, Jess asks us to support local musicians by purchasing or pre-ordering their albums, buying their merchandise or donating to them so that we can all emerge strong from this pandemic. Best Kind of Light is now available for purchase, so make sure to pick up your very own copy of this local Calgary sensation.

FIRST RUNNER UP: REVV52

SECOND RUNNER UP: Hayden McHugh