Why do you spell your name ''Bet.e''?The idea for that came to me in a moment of inspiration, quite some time before I began my career as a singer. These moments of grace are unique; you never know when they'll manifest, so I try to pay attention and somehow record the idea, trusting that it'll make sense eventually.
In this case, the meaning was tied into my newly-forming identity as an artist. ''Betty'' is a diminutive of my given name and the ''e'' after the period stands for several things.
First of all, and this serves as a reminder to remember who I was before all of this happened, ''e'' is the first letter of my given name. Secondly, it stands for ''evolution,'' which is a cornerstone of who I am and what I do. It also stands for ''ecstasy,'' which is a good direction to aim for since the happier you feel, the more you can give and the better everything goes. Last but not least, the ''e'' stands for ''ego'' as in, keep it small, which is why it's a small ''e'' and purposely not spelled in capital letters.
So every time I hear the name ''Bet.e,'' as opposed to my given name, which at this point only close family members use, I'm reminded of very important aspects of my identity, as I become more and more of whom I was meant to be.
Biography:a portrait of bet.e“When I was ten, I’d sometimes take the train by myself to visit my cool aunts who lived in Toronto,” recalls Bet.e. “One day, one of them sat me down in her living room, saying: ‘It’s time you listened to some real music!’ At home, easy listening artists like Ray Conniff and Barry Manilow got a lot of airplay and I guess my aunt wanted to widen my musical horizons. She played Mahalia Jackson, Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles and Otis Redding, along with other music from the legendary Stax/Volt label. I sat on that sofa a long time, astounded, transformed and delighted. My biggest musical awakening came via Aretha Franklin’s Respect. “
A simple anecdote, a youthful souvenir, and the tone is set to my meeting with Bet.e. In the bistro where we’d agreed to meet, the singer greets me with a radiant smile. Her new album and first as a solo artist, b.coming, is now ready. The result is entirely convincing: she has every reason to feel enthusiastic and relieved!
Though immersed in music since her childhood in Trois-Rivières, Québec, Bet.e became a singer simply by following her instinct. “I wanted to sing at a very early age,” she candidly admits. “When I was a young child, my grandmother gave me a special book in which to write the meaningful moments of my life. Each section, divided yearly, would hold photos, artwork, notes about school, classmates, etc. For every new year, the question: what will you be when you grow up? was asked. As a response, I experienced my first clairvoyant flash: I saw myself in the future, holding a microphone and singing. As it happens, I had a very perceptive teacher in elementary school who before long had me interpreting songs like the Ave Maria in Latin during special school celebrations at church. Even so, I hardly dared sing in public and never would’ve admitted to harboring the dream of actually becoming a singer.”
Timidity followed Bet.e until her college years. “I knew my game plan was fragile and was afraid people might destroy it by mocking me in a ‘You sing? Since when? Let’s hear it!’ kind of way. “
As an alternative to protect her secret ambition, Bet.e studied the field of psychology. Though she enjoyed this curriculum, she quickly understood that pursuing it seriously would never quite fulfill her because music remained her main love. “I listened to all types of music. During the ‘80s, I was mostly into rock and pop. There was a lot of great music out there: U2, Depeche Mode, Eurythmics, The Cure, Siouxsie and the Banshees, and Kate Bush, to name a few. In my teenage years I listened to punk and industrial bands such as The Clash, Sex Pistols, Suicidal Tendencies, and Einsturzende Neubauten.”
Punk music? As she sings So Danço Samba and other Brazilian songs, it’s hard to imagine Bet.e
with an orange Mohawk haircut. So, when did music from Brazil arrive, ultimately carrying her
former duo Bet.e & Stef to national acclaim? “After my punk phase, I listened to progressive and
psychedelic rock. After that, I discovered vocal jazz with Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong
and Sarah Vaughan. Then for about a year, it was all about Billie Holiday because her voice
touched me so deeply, I could barely listen to anything else.”
That’s when guitarist and singer Stef came along. He was dating one of Bet.e’s sisters. She’d become smitten seeing him perform bossa nova in Montréal cafés. “They gave me the Getz/Gilberto album for my birthday. I listened to it non-stop for about a year and a half, mesmerized at how beautiful, rich and rhythmic this music was. To this day, these sounds enchant me!”
For the duo to emerge and evolve both here and abroad, it took a wedding. “Our first performance took place at my other sister’s wedding. We recorded a short demo and got the gig. A few months later, the phone began to ring! Appreciative guests from the wedding offered small contracts here and there and that’s how it got started. When people would call, I’d feign consulting a busy schedule before immediately phoning Stef, totally excited, saying, "Stef, we have another gig!”
After adding a few songs to the initial demo, which earned them their first exterior stage performance at the Montreal International Jazz Festival in 1997, the duo then released Jazz Bossa Nova, a first album created independently on a shoestring budget. It went on to break sales records by winning over music fans from Trois-Rivières to Tokyo, selling 50 000 copies, a real rarity for a self-produced indie album. “Singing bossa nova felt right for me because I sincerely loved it. It was also fitting for a beginner, more than, say, an Aretha Franklin song,” modestly admits Bet.e, looking back on her accomplishments.
Five years after their first CD, Bet.e & Stef launched Day by Day. Under their own independent label, it was distributed this time by Universal Music Canada, which helped expose them to a much larger audience. During those times, the opportunities they’d always dreamed of began materializing and, though their popularity swelled, a certain weariness ensued. “I wanted a different challenge, to go further musically, to progress,” explains the singer, “and I couldn’t see myself achieving that in the long-term with this band.”
Despite their growing acclaim, the duo parted ways in 2003. Although on the cusp of broad international success, theirs was a mutual and friendly separation, which left Bet.e more room to evolve outside of what could have become a gilded cage. “It was the end for Bet.e & Stef because we’d planned it all along. We’d agreed that after achieving a certain level we’d both do other things,” declared the duo in the cultural weekly paper Voir.
This turning point provided fertile ground for Bet.e’s growing desire to evolve. Things took shape as the deeply personal path of soul-searching developed into Bet.e’s b.coming.
The original songs speak of changes in our lives and of crossroads taken that may help us find not only ourselves, but true and lasting happiness. Cole Porter’s You’d Be So Nice To Come Home To, arranged in bossa-nova style, underlines Bet.e’s enduring love for this genre. “I recorded it for my mother, who loves this song,” affirms Bet.e, “but did it as a bossa nova!”
A result of Bet.e’s meandering journey of personal growth, b.coming has taken on more of a soulful flavor. Not surprising, really, from an artist who might conceivably name her future children Aretha and Otis.
Serene, radiant, confident, Bet.e has now integrated her spirit with her talent, and the music is proof.
Written in collaboration with writer and music-lover Stanley Péan.
