Newfoundland & Labrador’s Weary explores the sonic pangs of heartache through the atmospheric stylings of sophomore album, Hush. Complete with emotive, lingering guitars and swooning melodies that, as described by creator Kate Lahey, offer up songs of loving, losing, longing and change. 

Following up their acclaimed debut album Feeling Things, which was nominated for MusicNL’s Alternative Album of the Year in 2018, Hush continues the trajectory for a project equal parts emotionally resonant and artistically striking. 

A nominee for MusicNL’s Rising Star of the Year in 2018 as well as earning a 2016 long listing for the Borealis Award, and with noted performances at East Coast Music Week Rising Star Stage, Flourish Festival, Bloom Fest, Lawnya Vawnya, Halifax Pop Explosion, Out of Earshot Festival, and MusicNL week, Weary’s trajectory continues to rocket skyward, as does their way around a tune that tugs at the heartstrings as well as engaging the mind.

Lahey caught up with The Herald for the latest in our album deep dive series, diving into the inner workings, and meaning, behind Weary’s Hush. 

Big Love 

This song is about struggling with mental illness, particularly watching a loved one struggling with mental illness and feeling both helpless and full of hope for their beauty, resilience and spirit. This song is about how we can feel trapped or limited by our minds, while our hearts are overflowing. 

Body 

This song deals with intergenerational loss from my perspective as a Newfoundlander. I wrote this song after my maternal Nan passed away, who I loved dearly. Making sense of the ways the memory moves across generations, how we hold multitudes, I attempt to work through my desire to remain connected to all that came before me, particularly my ancestral relationship to this island. 

Broken Window

Working through my relationship with my teen years, particularly my relationship with addictions, this song explores how loss and longing shaped my experience with trauma as a young person in Newfoundland. Images of smoking cigarettes, listening to The Strokes, skateboarding and even overdosing lace this song with fragments of memory that reflect the effect of brokenness I felt at that time in my life. 

Twin Flame 

Chris Meyers, who is the guitarist for Weary and also a co-vocalist on this song, is also my partner. It has been a long journey of finding how music fits into our relationship and how our relationship fits into music. This song was a really special opportunity to have those worlds interact creatively as we reflect on the many expressions of our connection. 

Trust

Trust explores a moment where my past and future collided. Love asked me to take a leap of faith into the unknown, while trauma filled me with fear. Working through a claustrophobic sense of flightiness, trust explores the ways in which our past can overwhelm our desire for a better future. In my search for belonging, security and safety, I found myself scared of the very things I long for because of their unfamiliarity. Trust is not about trusting someone else with your heart, but about learning to trust yourself. 

For all things Hush and Weary visit weary.ca and all official social medias.

On November 29, 2021, Bill C-4, a bill to amend the criminal code making it illegal to practice conversion therapy in Canada, was tabled. 

NL’s own Gemma Hickey was invited to Ottawa by the Minister of Justice to witness this pivotal moment in the House of Commons.  

We sit down with Hickey to talk Pride and the advances made towards ending prejudice for those in the LGBTQQIP2SAA community.

 How did it make you feel when you realized real change would be forthcoming?

I never thought I’d live to see this day. My life could’ve ended as a statistic. I attempted suicide as a teenager because I saw a conversion therapist and spent the start of my senior year of high school in hospital recovering. I spoke at the press conference following the tabling of the bill alongside Ministers David Lametti, Marci Ien, Randy Boissonnault, Pascale St-Onge, and Rob Oliphant MP and dedicated my speech to all the members of my community whose lives ended tragically by suicide. 

Following the presser, I met with fellow Newfoundlander and Labradorian Minister Seamus O’Regan to celebrate. 

What exactly is conversion therapy? Can you explain to those who don’t know? 

It’s a pseudo-medical practice of attempting to change a person’s sexual orientation and gender identity to heterosexual or cisgender. Misleading marketing campaigns have promoted this view for years enabling countless vulnerable youth to be placed in harm’s way. 

Efforts to restrict and ban the practice have recently gained momentum due to the hard work of survivors like myself, who have shared our stories in the hopes that others will be spared. Together we formed a network and created the political will that converted a country. On December 2, 2021, through a rare occurrence of bi-partisan cooperation, conversion therapy became illegal in Canada. A bittersweet victory because of all the causalities my community endured.

It’s Pride season across the country. How far have we come? Are we getting to where we need to be? 

The activist in me was born the day I left that hospital. No one believed me that conversion therapy existed back then. I devoted the next three decades of my life to advocacy co-leading movements that fostered societal recognition, such as same-sex marriage, gender neutral identification, the removal of the gay blood ban, and so on. 

Locally, I became General Director of LBGT-MUN, co-chair of NGALE and chair of Pride until becoming more involved on the national scene as the Presidents of Egale Canada, PFLAG Canada and a founding member of Canadians for Equal Marriage. I’ve witnessed, and been a part of massive societal change, and although we’ve made great strides, we’re not there yet. 

We need accessible healthcare for transgender individuals, improved mental health supports for the LGBTQQIP2SAA community and representation within our education system. Also, if businesses and organizations are celebrating Pride and not updating their forms or computer systems to include gender-neutral options and the honorific Mx., they’re not practicing inclusivity. After I won my fight for gender-neutral identification I wrote airplanes, universities, insurance companies, etc. That fight continues to this day.

In July of 2015 you walked almost 1,000 kilometers across Newfoundland to raise funds and awareness for survivors of religious institutional abuse. The anniversary of your Hope Walk is coming up. Does the journey continue?

The journey never ends. I knew in 2013 when I founded the Pathways Foundation that we had only scratched the surface when it came to this issue. It’s been almost seven years since I ended my walk at the Mount Cashel Memorial in St. John’s. Since that time countless bodies of children have been discovered across the country at the former sites of residential schools and more allegations have surfaced against clergy all over the world. I formed a network with other Canadian survivors called ACTS Canada (Advocates for Clergy Trauma Survivors). 

We’ve been to Rome twice to lobby church officials to release church records, to the United Nations in Geneva to lobby against child torture and launched a national campaign to lobby the church to release the names of the credibly accused. Except for the UN, all other attempts remain futile, forcing survivors to litigate or remain in the shadows.

What is ‘On The Fringe’? can you expand this to fit two lines?

In my day job as Executive Director of Artforce (formerly For The Love Of Learning) I offer support to youth, many of whom are marginalized within society. They struggle with homelessness, addiction, mental health, etc. As an arts-based charity we offer creative projects in film, writing, photography, music, theatre, art, etc. We pair young people up with well-known artists from the community through workshops and mentorship programs and promote their work at festivals, exhibits, on stage or in a publication. On The Fringe is our latest production in partnership with Walsh Productions. It debuted on CBC Here & Now recently and highlights the challenges that sex workers faced during the pandemic. Some of our clients are sex workers and as a result couldn’t apply for government support during Covid-19. 

Do you have any bucket list items left to conquer? 

Always. I’ve got several projects ongoing now. I’m working on my second book and my first feature length documentary film. But I wouldn’t rule out politics or another long walk in my future. 

Every situation, good or bad, is an opportunity. My losses in life have turned me into a winner. 

While many see you as a leader and an advocate for all, do you see yourself as inspirational? 

I don’t really think about how others see me. I only think about how I see myself. When I look in the mirror now, I’m finally happy with the image staring back. I learned how to become the hero of my own story. I may not have faith in the institution of the church anymore, but I have faith in the people around me who inspire me every day. 

From Gimmie All Your Lovin’ and Sharp Dressed Man to Legs and La Grange, ZZ Top will celebrate 50 years of kickin’ it and keepin’ it real when they take to the stage at the Mary Brown’s Centre on May 13th & 14th. 

Ahead of the maiden voyage on NL soil, vocalist and guitarist Billy Gibbons chats with The Herald.

We’d love to know if there’s anything you are looking forward to and if you will get time between the two show dates to do any touring around our city while you are in St. John’s?

It seems we’re charged large to finally make it. Looking forward to seeing the sights and would be open to checking out the marine life. 

Frank’s (drummer Frank Beard) an intrepid fisherman so you might see him casting off if there’s time. As far as local cuisine is concerned, we’re looking forward to cracking a lobster or two … We’ll bring the Whisker Bomb hot sauce for good measure. 

It’s the 50th anniversary of the band. I’m dying to know if live performances are still providing the high they once did? Is it still a thrill to step on the stage in front of fans and rock out to Sharp Dressed Man?

Oh, yeah! We get a real charge out of it. We get out there, the crowd is up for it, you plug it, turn it up and it’s magic. Works just about every time. 

My daughter is 13. She’s a fan. I’m 52 and I’m a fan. Does the multiple generation appeal thrill the band as they tour? Wondering if, when the band started 50 years ago, you realized the possibility of such mass appeal and longevity. 

We’ve borne witness to the intergenerational phenomenon and it always impresses us. When we first started, the audiences were, for the most part, our same age or maybe a little older. As things progressed, those folks had kids and they brought them along and when those kids grew they came to the show and then they had kids and now they’re out there. Age is kind of irrelevant when your aim is having a good time. 

You lost a friend and a band mate in Dusty Hill, but the band has said the show must go on in his memory. Tell us about his place in your legacy of performances and recordings. 

To us, nobody was as genuine nor as talented as Dusty. 

Making loud noise was what he lived to do and nobody did it better. It’s an understatement that he’s sorely missed, but we carry on in righteous memory of The Dust. 

Your hat is famous. I read the tale about how it was quite the trade. Any other signature pieces that fans should be on the lookout for when you take the stage? 

The hat was acquired on a visit to Cameroon in West Africa, which I like to say is the source of just about everything we like including the blues and soul food. It’s made by the Bamileke people there and was gifted to me by a tribal chieftain. 

He liked my Texas style cowboy hat and I was told it would be wise to gift it to him. I figured we could make it an even trade and he was up for that so he got the 10 gallon and I get the famous Bamleke hat. 

Speaking of Texas duds, there’s a limited edition line of BFG boots out now from Alvies that bear my brand. Get ‘em while you can: alvies.com/pages/bfg-boots-billy-f-gibbons

You’ve worked with some interesting artists. I noted back in 1969 there was a Jimmy Hendrix experience when you were with the Moving Sidewalks. Anything to share from those days?

Off stage (Hendrix) was kind of shy and on stage he was ferocious. He was very friendly and showed us some guitar moves that we still employ to this day. We once got to hang out and jammed together with sponges wrapped around the headstock of our respective guitars. 

We dipped those sponges in day-glow paint and spattered a blank canvas under blacklight as we played. The resulting painting, if you want to call it that, is long gone, but the memory lingers.

When you think of music’s good old days, what decade comes to mind and why? 

Didn’t Carly Simon sing “these are the good old days?” I would think it’s the 40s and 50s, the era when country, Jesus, hillbilly and blues came together. As far as the band is concerned, La Grange broke us out, which was a real kick. 

And on into the 80s with the advent of MTV which brought new twists and turns into the mix. Now that we’re hitting the road again, this just might be the time! 

Anything else you want to share about the show and the tour? Newfoundlanders think our province is fairly cool, but having you b’ys visit will make us so much more so! 

We’re excited to come and visit so get out and see us. It’s gonna be a good time!

For tickets and more visit mbcentre.ca

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Seafarer and singer-songwriter, Scott Gilbert has harnessed the power and passion of the sea, as well as his home province for his sophomore record The Distance. 

Recorded at Rock Island Studios in Green Harbour, The Distance is a proverbial hybrid of classic rock, sharp blues licks and cutting, close to home lyrics thrown down with all the grit and determination that the man himself can muster.

Gilbert sat down with The Herald for a deep dive into The Distance in our latest album deep dive!

The Distance: Written at sea. At the time I was reflecting on my shipmate’s separation from his wife, which made me reflect on my own parents’ separation when I was a teenager. That’s where the line comes from, “As we survey the wreckage in our kitchen before the dawn. All is quiet, uneasy peace now, how can we save, what’s already gone.”  

I remember sitting on the kitchen counter witnessing the end of a relationship, but the song is really about any relationship that withers away. Absence doesn’t always make the heart grow fonder … sometimes The Distance is too great.

Ramona & Johnny: Sitting around on the ship one evening talking about music, The Ramones in fact, and the name Ramona came up. I thought it was cool name that I could incorporate into a lyric so I wrote it down and started to form the St. John’s story of Ramona and Johnny. 

Two townies that were perfect for each other but never gave love a chance. One of my favourite lyrics on the album: “They exchanged sacrificial numbers, not knowing if the other would call.” 

Not Here to Tell You: A song about Hobo Bill … well sort of.  He was the inspiration for the song, but as a sailor you visit many countries and harbour fronts and there are many people who may be down on their luck just looking for a helping hand. 

People just pass them by daily and they sit in silence minding their own business. Not there to tell you their problems, not there to burden you with their pain. It’s a song about compassion and looking at the other side of things.

Soak Through my Skin: Straight up love song. Again, as a sailor, we spend time in the worst kinds of weather and at times we can be soaked through the skin with rain and or seawater!  Wouldn’t it be nice to have somebody in your life that actually soaked through your skin? Who became a part of you and loved you so deeply?  “Ive never known love, but I ‘ll take the chance ‘cause you’ve got me so convinced. Like rain, blown by the wind, you soak through my skin.” I love this lyric.

Night Like This: Party song, no deep meaning. Reach way back into my memories and recall being so afraid to talk to girls in a bar. What do you say? Do I look ok? Getting the courage up to actually ask for a dance or can I buy her a drink? You give anything just for her to respond in a good way … instead, nothing! Crash and burn! 

Forget About The Sea: This is really a sailor’s song. Every sailor wants to forget about the sea when they walk down that gangway. To run across that pier and hug your family is an amazing thing. For me, Newfoundland is home and when the light at Cape Spear comes into view … I’m almost home and it’s the greatest feeling in the world sailing in through the narrows. 

Find Yourself: A song about addiction and finding your way back. I’ve never really been addicted to anything that had me in a place like the character in the song, but I can imagine it’s a hard hole to crawl out of.  “Help me, help you, find yourself” … with a lot of love and understanding I believe anything can be done. 

Better Off Alone: This is also a song about finding yourself while you are in the middle of a crisis in your life. Sometimes it seems as if everybody is pulling you in different directions. Wanting you to do things that just aren’t right for you.  

Sometimes you need to take a break from all of that and let change be your guide. Sometimes you need to be alone to get to the next chapter in your life. 

I wrote this in 2016, but reading the lyrics today … it definitely could be a COVID Anthem!!! “Hard to breathe, better off alone”…. oh yeah!!

Winds Of February: As a seafarer and a songwriter, I am most proud of the lyrics in this song. This is a true story. This is a sad story and this is my best writing I think. 

We were finished recording my debut album at the time, but when I returned home I decided to record this one acoustically and get it on there. 

When we started jamming it with the band it took on a Tragically Hip feel with a touch of Pink Floyd at the end. 

The song is so powerful that I felt we should release it again with the full band. 

WEEKEND NEWSCAST

They’d spend over a decade together, generating solid ratings, before passing the torch to current senior anchor Jodi Cooke. Within the past year, Amanda Mews has joined the anchor desk, forming an anchor team that is taking the show to new heights. 

“It’s not easy putting together a show like this. It takes a real team effort. But it’s rewarding knowing that a large audience tunes into us each weekend to get their news,” says Cooke, who’s been in the anchor chair since 2013.

The supper-hour weekend newscast remains a ratings winner, thanks in large part to its talented anchor team and award-winning journalists. But this show, of course, offers even more community-driven pieces than the weekday brand. Yes, there’s breaking news, like high-angle rescues or the occasional court case, but there’s also the opportunity to cover softer stories like charitable events.

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Cooke and Mews make a formidable team. Cooke has been with the station for 13 years, covering the province’s top news stories while doubling on the anchor desk, while Mews has also been with the station for a decade, climbing the corporate ladder with hard work and pure talent.

We chatted with the talented anchor team about their favorite interviews and, well, reveal some things that might surprise you.

JODI COOKIE

Can you take us on a journey back to your first memory of working at NTV?

My situation arriving at NTV was entirely unique. Prior to my first day at work, I had only been in Newfoundland for a couple of days. My husband grew up in Logy Bay and had wanted to move back home for some time. We had met while I was working at CTV Atlantic as a reporter in Moncton and my husband was training to be a pilot at Moncton Flight College.

Despite the fact my grandfather was a Newfoundlander, he died before I could meet him and the rest of my family moved to Cape Breton. Other than my husband’s family, I didn’t know anyone in the entire province. I was so nervous to start but the NTV team was incredibly welcoming. Toni-Marie , Glen Carter and Mark Dwyer took me under their wing and even invited me out for an evening with friends, right off the hop. I couldn’t believe how kind everyone was. I remember everything like it was yesterday, even though it was over 13 years ago. I remember what I wore my first day of work – a blue button-down top and brown suede blazer. I was so nervous. 

You’ve literally filed thousands of stories throughout your career. What was the toughest story you had to tell?

There are so many tough stories. Still, the one that instantly comes to mind is the Cougar Flight 491 crash. That day is so clear to me. It’s the subsequent days that become a bit of a blur. On the morning of March 12, 2009, I had a headache and popped home to grab some Advil. I was heading home when I received the call for all hands to return to the station. 

As information started piling in, we scrambled. I had friends who had family on that flight. I raced sailboats with two men who were on that flight. It quickly became a lesson for me as a young journalist – how to separate personal emotion and connection from story-telling and fact sharing. Rod Ethridge recently wrote a book titled 18 Souls where in one of the chapters a family recalls realizing the crash was bad when they saw me arrive at the hospital with my camera set up near the helipad. I have the same memory of that day – always feeling like I was in the way, and encroaching on what would ultimately become the worst time in people’s lives. It was hard to share their stories, but it was imperative we did.

This industry affords us an opportunity to interview some incredible people. Tell us about your favourite or some of your most favourite interviews?

Hands down, it was Chris Hadfield. He was so kind to me and answered every single question I asked him, including if he believed in God. I was so interested to talk to an astronaut about what it must be like to feel so small and to see a world below you in an entirely different lens. He answered that question by telling me he knew we weren’t the only ones and that unless you believe in something bigger than yourself – whether God or something else – you’ll never quite appreciate the gift of life and your role in it. He didn’t rush our interview at all. Full disclosure, he is the only interview I’ve asked to take a photo with at the end.

In keeping with this theme, who would be the ultimate interview for you (alive or dead)?

Geoff Stirling. I only met him once. He was kind and gentle. He wore a yellow, velour tracksuit and had yellow lens glasses. I was enamoured. I didn’t grow up knowing the legacy or legend of him the way my husband did, but meeting him once left a lasting impression. I wish I got to know him the way others here at NTV did.

Is there a definitive moment from your childhood that stands out, perhaps even defining you?

Skiing. My parents had no idea that encouraging outdoor sport for my brother and I would eventually take us around the world, be the connection for how we both met our spouses, form our careers (I was an action sports television show host before becoming a journalist) and create the lives we have now. My parents took us skiing and our love for the sport shaped our lives as we know them today.

There are many facets to being an anchor, broadcaster and journalist. What’s one part of the career that most people don’t know?

We always have our cell phones on the news desk. Breaking news is a different business today in the world of social media. We are always ready to receive information and we could be dissecting as it comes in, while we are on the air and bringing it to the viewer within seconds of sourcing it. That happens more often than you may think.

What’s the best piece of advice you can give a new journalist?

Don’t be discouraged. We are in the midst of our very own industrial revolution right now. With the closure of newspapers and sometimes television stations, new journalists are often discouraged from entering the business for fear of not knowing what the future of it looks like. Local news matters and it always will. People will always seek information. Journalists are the trusted ones to deliver it.

Most embarrassing moment of your career?

It wasn’t here, it was at CTV Atlantic and I was covering the Sidney Crosby first round draft pick. I was at his coach’s home watching it in Cole Harbour. As I threw live to my anchor, I said something stupid about how ‘Sid the Kid’ would surely enjoy Philly Cheese Steaks at his new home in PA. I totally gapped and didn’t know what to say. My anchor corrected me and reminded me he was going to Pittsburgh, not Philadelphia. I wanted to disappear.

 The best thing about your co-anchor?

You’ll run out of room on the page. I adore Amanda and I think the viewers can see it. We have worked together for nearly a decade and are friends outside of work. We share wardrobe, wine nights and so many inside jokes. I can’t tell them to you though. She would kill me.

AMANDA MEWS

Can you take us on a journey back to your first memory of working at NTV?

It may not be my first memory of NTV but it was within my first year at the station and it really made me feel like a part of the team.  It was my birthday, I had planned to go home to Birchy Bay that weekend but there was a snowstorm. I was running around doing my job as a production assistant when Toni-Marie corners me. 

Now, I’m also still a little star-struck by Toni at this point. So even though I’m super busy I stop and have a chat. It turns out she was distracting me while a birthday cake was being lit. I rushed into the studio on a mission and the whole crew is there to sing Happy Birthday. I remember just being so surprised and grateful. I hadn’t seen anyone receive a birthday cake at work before.   Sounds trivial but it’s a testament to the amazing camaraderie I’ve experienced at NTV since the beginning. We’re like a family.

 You’ve literally filed thousands of stories throughout your career. What was the toughest story?

So far my specialty has been entertainment reporting and human interest features, something that often shelters me from the tough, gut-wrenching stories that I’ve watched my colleagues bravely tackle. At least twice a year I speak with the parents of Riley and Alex Mercer of Conception Bay South about fundraisers they set up in memory of their children. It doesn’t get easier. My heart just breaks for them every time. 

This industry affords us an opportunity to interview some incredible people. Tell us about your favorite or some of your most favourite interviews.

The obvious answer here is Jimmy Kimmel.  He is by far the biggest celebrity I’ve ever interviewed. Securing that interview reassured me of my abilities and was a real practice of staying calm under pressure. Another one of my favorite interviews was with local visual artist Clifford George, who has been exhibiting in galleries for decades. We met at the Christina Parker Gallery where he was exhibiting.  He told stories and read me poems that inspired him. I could have sat and chatted with him for hours. Not long after that interview, I received a package from Clifford that contained a handwritten note, the book of poetry he was reading, and a signed sketch of the poet.  It was the most meaningful gift I have ever received.

In keeping with this theme, who would be the ultimate interview for you?

Betty White. I think she would be an amazing person to talk to. The woman has been on television for 80 years.  She is a pioneer. Did you know that she had full creative control of her own sitcom when she was just 28? That was in the1950s. How cool is that? And she’s still going.

Is there a definitive moment from your childhood that stands out, perhaps even defining you?

I was always a very theatrical child. When we lived in Postville, Labrador, my parents would record videos of my sister and I to send to our grandparents in the mail. Before the days of iPhones. In one of the videos, when I was about three or four years old, I pretended to be a reporter. I remember sitting down in a wingback chair, cross-legged, saying I was reporting for the local news and my next guest was my “beautiest” sister. I’m not sure if that was a defining moment but looking back on it, it’s a funny foreshadowing.

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There are many facets to being an anchor, broadcaster and journalist. What’s one part of the career that most people don’t know?

You have to love it to enjoy it. I think you have to have a genuine interest of what’s happening in the world because your day doesn’t end when the work day does. In order to stay up to date on the latest local and international news, there has to be an interest outside of the 9 to 5.

What’s the best piece of advice you can give a new journalist?

Don’t stop learning. It sounds cliché but this industry is ever-changing and you need to move with it. Learn everything you can about the latest technology and keep up on social media. I need to take my own advice on this one but it’s true.

Most embarassing moment of your career?

When interviewing the chef de mission for the Summer Olympics, I asked him (Curt Harnett) what it was like cooking for Olympic athletes. Turns out a chef de mission has nothing to do with food.  They actually “manage” the team.

Tell us the best thing about your co-anchor?

She is passionate, hard-working, quick-thinking, fair, and hilarious. I’ve admired Jodi since I started with NTV News in 2009 and she took me on my very first shoot while I was an intern. We went to a Needs store and shot video of lottery tickets. But the best thing would have to be her sense of humor. I think our friendship outside of work has created the chemistry we have on the anchor desk. 

From the moment he began his first news job as a copy boy for the then Evening Telegram, Glen Carter was seduced by the sound of the wire. The clickety-clak of the ancient hump of a machine, with its endless stream of ink and paper, bringing stories from around the world to Carter’s fingertips. They were the stories written by craggy journalists on far-flung assignments and in the centres of power around the globe.

That was a long time ago. His job with the newspaper led eventually to a career in television news and postings in St. John’s, Halifax, Ottawa and Calgary.

NTV, though, is where it began, and today, it’s where Carter is the senior anchor for the award-winning NTV Evening Newshour. In April, Carter is being honored with a lifetime achievement award by the Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA), recognizing his long career and his contribution to journalism.

“I can’t think of anyone more deserving than Glen. His contribution to broadcasting is vast, not just in this province but throughout Canada,” says friend and colleague Mark Dwyer, NTV’s Director of News and Current Affairs. “He’s covered many of the stories that defined this province, from the Ocean Ranger tragedy to the Cougar 491 crash, and Glen told each story with true professionalism.”

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LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT

His lifetime achievement award puts him in elite company, a distinction already bestowed on Canadian broadcasting’s giants like Peter Mansbridge and Lloyd Robertson, among others. “I am really humbled by this,” says Carter, 62. “It comes as a real surprise and I’m so appreciative.”

Carter broke into the broadcast business in ’80 with NTV. He would spent the next 25 years anchoring newscasts across Canada before returning to NTV in 2005. He championed First Edition for many years before making the move to the flagship show in 2013. And his talent is a direct connection to the show’s success. Sitting alongside co-anchor Toni-Marie Wiseman, the NTV Evening Newshour remains not only the province’s top newscast but the most-watched show in the entire province.  His daily Carter File feature, which delves into the top news stories of the day, is also a staple in the show.

We sat down with Glen to talk about his many years and his many memories.

Take us on a journey back to your first memory of working at NTV.

“My first day on the job at NTV was in 1980. It was my first day in television and it’s hard to describe the excitement I felt as a young television reporter. The newsroom was much different then, a very small, but dedicated crew. I was fascinated by the whole process of putting a show on air, still am, of course. I was just a kid with a lot to learn.”

You’ve literally filed thousands of stories throughout your career. What was the toughest story you had to tell?

“It’s not so much an individual story, but a kind of story. The stories that deal with someone’s pain are the one that stand out – whether it’s a family touched by tragedy because of an impaired driver or a victim of senseless violence. Or murder. The stories about people who are victims of some cruel circumstance beyond their control are the ones that stick with me.“

This industry affords us an opportunity to interview some incredible people. Tell us about your favorite or some of your most favourite interviews?

“My favourite interviews are with people who have honest, compelling stories to tell about something in their lives that made them stand out, and not necessarily good things, either. People who have faced things that most of us can only dream of or dread. I interviewed a Holocaust survivor once who described in detail her coming face to face in Auschwitz with death camp doctor Joseph Mengele. She survived, her parents and siblings didn’t.”

In keeping with this theme, who would be the ultimate interview for you (alive or dead)?

“John Fitzgerald Kennedy. I’m sure he’d have as many questions as me.”

Is there a definitive moment from your childhood that stands out, perhaps even defining you?

“I think my father’s involvement in politics (Walter Carter) helped drive me towards journalism. They go hand in hand, and well, I wouldn’t have been a good politician.”

There are many facets to being an anchor, broadcaster and journalist. What is one part of the career that most people don’t know?

“The degree to which journalism is a calling as much as it is a career. There’s a kind of personal oath that goes along with the job, a commitment to the fundamentals of fair, balanced reporting.”

What’s the best piece of advice you can give a new journalist?

“Be forever curious, often skeptical and always compassionate.”

Toughest day you ever had on the job?

“August 2, 1995. It was the day my colleague, sportscaster Brian Smith was shot and killed by a deranged man in the parking lot of our television station, CJOH, Ottawa.”

What’s the most embarrassing moment of your career?

“Too many moments and so little space. Live on air, I once called the American presidential election ‘A race for the outhouse.'”

What’s the biggest change you’ve seen since breaking into the business?

“The proliferation of cameras that enable anyone to tell a story. The easy access, on social media and the like, to news and information. The critical need for vigilance to separate lies from truth, and fact from fiction.”

For more stories like this, click here

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Shea Heights native who now calls Alberta home, Lisa Baker proudly waves the Newfoundland and Labrador flag as one of our top comedic exports to kick off the new decade. 

Having shared the stage with national and international names like Mike McDonald, Tom Green, Rob Schneider, Paul Reiser and Dave Coulier, Baker’s relatable – and at times blue – hysterical comedy has made her an in-demand and sought after name across the country.

Ahead of her provincial return alongside friend and collaborator Mike Lynch for Getting to Know Me Vol. 4, Baker caught up with The Herald to talk mending Alberta/Newfoundland relations, our built-in island humour and more!

What’s the comedy climate in Alberta compared to Newfoundland? Any dramatic differences?

Honestly out here I have a bigger Alberta following than I do a Newfie following out West in the sense of people that will come to the show and say, look, I came to see you tonight. I do have quite a few Western followers, which blows my mind. All I had to get rid of were the local references. They didn’t know what Quidi Vidi was or Torbay or Shea Heights or any of that stuff. I remember when I worked in the trades I remember saying to one of the fellas one time who was bugging me, “Buddy if you knew where I was from in Newfoundland you’d shut up by now  because I am from Shea Heights.’’

But other than local references I didn’t have to change much. They love my accent. Even when I do crowd work and I’m talking to a woman in the audience and I say, “now what’s your name me ducky?” and they’ll just lose it. 

When I’m talking about my accent to Albertans, they’re laughing at the whole thing because “Oh my God it’s hilarious,” but in Newfoundland they’re laughing at the miscommunication factor, because to them what I’m saying sounds right. 

There’s nothing wrong with the way I’m talking but here they think this whole thing is hilarious, “she sounds like a leprechaun.”

Burning question, how is life for a NL comedian living in Alberta post-election? 

I don’t typically do political or topical humor. I just don’t. It divides an audience. It divides a room. We see enough of that, we hear enough of that, so I try to focus on just silliness. 

But I do joke about how hard it is right now to be a Newfoundlander in Alberta and my boyfriend’s Alberta born and raised, which is something I never thought I would ever end up in. And so I talk about our language barrier and stuff. He talks funny. He has to say every single letter and every single word and every single word in every single sentence. Like who has that kind of time? 

I talk about how with our relationship, we’re trying to mend Alberta/Newfoundland relations. The joke gets dirty, but I do also say the b’ys up here say they’re going to declare war against Newfoundland. Then I say yes now, why don’t you finish the Henday first? There’s a ring road they’ve been working on out here (Anthony Henday Drive) that they’ve been working on since I moved here seven years ago. You won’t get out of bed for less than 30 dollars an hour. We’ll get out for EI. We’re going to win this war.  

I also talk about how I’m a reverse Newfie. I go to Newfoundland, I make the money and I come back to Alberta and spend it in the land of  five per cent sales tax. So I’m a reverse Newfie. But I lead up to it explaining that I do love it here and this is my home. By the time I do it they’re clapping and cheering and they love the joke. I’ve told it in small towns where I did not think it would go over well at all. 

What’s your take on Newfoundland’s comedy climate? It feels like all of us know more than a few folks who are inherently funny.

 I don’t think I understood how lucky I was at the time. Comics up here that have come up through the scene in Edmonton and out West have said to me how are you so good at dealing with a heckler? And I said, because in Newfoundland the heckler may very well be funnier than you. It’s almost like a free education in comedy.

Up here you got some guy, some rough neck on his couple of days off and he’s sitting in the audience loaded drunk screaming “Go Oilers!,” where in Newfoundland the person that’s yelling stuff at you is actually saying something quite clever and witty. And so you have to try to top that. 

I feel like if anything it makes us better comics. We had to hustle that little bit harder and we had to grind that little bit harder because our scene wasn’t as big and we didn’t have as much mic time. But at the same time we also have so many more experiences and relationships to draw from to be able to create authentic humor and write those jokes and come up with those funny scenarios, because nine times out of ten we’re not even exaggerating. We’re telling this story verbatim and it is hilarious. It’s a normal way of life for us. If anything we come by more naturally.

With folks like yourself, Mike Lynch, Colin Hollett, Matt Wright, Vicky Mullaley and others, it feels like there’s a new wave of Newfoundland born comics. Are you still keeping tabs on the scene here?

The raw talent on the island that I’ve seen develop into a polished sort of thing is absolutely beautiful. And even more so when you think that they did it on their own. I know they have access to the Internet. You have social media and Netflix, all that kind of stuff. They can see comedy, but still it’s not the same as having access to pro comics that are touring. I love the fact that we kind of go back, we help them out and we can stay in touch, and we can all talk to each other. But what they’re creating there is almost unheard of. 

You’ll be returning to Newfoundland with your longtime friend Mike Lynch for the fourth installment of Getting to Know Me. What’s your thoughts on how the show has progressed?

It’s incredible. The first year when he messaged me and said it sold out I was like, what? Because the tickets just went on sale like 10 minutes ago. Our thing is we’ll roll with it as long as they’ll let us. Certainly we intend to do it as long as possible. We love it. We love the fact that we can be silly and creative and write these foolish sketches and people enjoy them as much as they do. We’re so grateful for that.

The response we get is overwhelming. It really is. From the time that we announce it to the tickets going on sale, to showing up on the island to show and everything, the whole experience is unbelievable. Newfoundland makes you feel like rock stars. 

I can’t thank Mike enough for bringing me on board to do this with him. For whatever reason, and we don’t question it, Mike and I just work really well together. We write really well together. He’s very close to my family. My mom’s birthday was yesterday and he went over and dropped off flowers for her. We’re all pretty good friends. But I’m so stupidly proud of Mike Lynch. And he’s so humble, which annoys me sometimes. But at the same time it’s working for him. I laugh and think like dude, just be a little bit arrogant will ya? In the Edmonton scene here he is just adored. The comics here absolutely adore him. Like I’m a typical Newfoundland woman. I’m always angry, I’m always idling on about an eight, is what I tell people. But Mike is very sweet and kind and a courteous kid. But with Newfoundlanders, I could cry when I think about how lucky we are and how wonderful it is that we’re still being embraced that way.

Tickets to Getting to Know Me Vol.4 with Baker and Mike Lynch at Labrador West Arts and Culture Centre on Jan. 26th, Lawrence O’Brien Arts Centre on Jan. 29th, Holy Heart Theatre on Feb.1-3 and Corner Brook Arts and Culture Centre on Feb. 8th available now.

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A veteran of the stage and screen for over three decades, beloved comedian Jim Gaffigan brings his real life observations and, oftentimes, hilarious self-depreciating insights to Mile One Centre to kick off 2020 with some laughs on January 19th.

The Newfoundland Herald caught up with Gaffigan to talk the balance between work and home life, aiming to punch up, battling stage nerves and much more!

You’ve always been the type of comic who draws from your own life experiences and often poke fun at yourself before you would others. Have you ever been pressured to adapt a more rude or crude style?

There hasn’t been pressure. I think for me, I’m obviously human so there’s times when I’m tempted to do something. But then I’ll kind of like get a perspective on it where I’m punching down. 

I remember when I released my first comedy album, I was instructed to curse because it would make it more appealing for teenagers. And I just thought that was so funny. 

You know, I curse occasionally and it’s not like I don’t curse in everyday life. But if I’m writing and rewriting something, I can think of an adjective, you know? You want to remain authentic and also any kind of gimmick, I think an audience can pick up on it. 

Your family is a major part of your act and career, in both your material as well as being part of the creative process. How is that dynamic, balancing art and family?

It’s a never ending process. I mean, the advantage of working with my wife is that there’s a shorthand where she knows the material and she knows my point of view. From the beginning of our relationship we always kind of worked together and that was one of the things that we bonded over was the same kind of approach, particularly for stand up. 

We don’t really view the writing as an incredible laborious task. It’s something we have fun doing. I know that sounds kind of insincere. But it’s definitely complicated with five young children to find the time to do it like we used to. And it’s ever changing. 

There’s been times when we could write when I got back from a spot and there’s been times when I’d be writing when she would be breastfeeding and there’s times we’d be doing something together and she wouldn’t be able to see the act for a month or so. Those end up all being kind of advantages where she has a fresh perspective on things. 

Is there a place you feel more at home or comfortable when you compare stand up to writing or acting or any other medium you work at?

You know, I love acting and I love doing stand up and I love writing. The acting in particular provides kind of a forced break from stand up, even if it’s momentary. So they’re all so different that they can kind of feed each other. 

I love acting, but I wouldn’t say that I prefer one over the other. But I do feel as though I’m very much a comedian. I’ve been doing it for 30 years. It’s not something that I’m kind of doing as a stepping stone. 

For a tour like The Pale Tourist, how much pressure is on you to provide fresh material? 

My tour is all new material. I think there’s an unspoken agreement with an audience that comes to a live show that not only is it new material, but it’s new material that is really good. I would never go to perform in a city if I didn’t have an hour of new material. 

But I’ve been doing it so long and stand up is such a self-assignment thing. Some of it is also going to places like Newfoundland where there’s gonna be material that is specific and unique to that experience. So I selfishly get a lot out of it, too, whether it’s specific material about the area or it holds up a mirror to my own culture or my own experience. 

You mentioned Newfoundland. Any thoughts or impressions on the place ahead of January 19th?

There’s some pretty fascinating places I’ve gotten to go. I don’t know what to expect. From comedians or even working with tons of Canadians in the entertainment industry there is Newfoundland and the mythology surrounding it. But then there’s also the experience of encounters on the ground. There’s so much of it and I’m kind of a nerd for history and culture. I have so many questions.

At this stage in your career do you find there are nerves before a live performance? Is there a process to help squash that before taking the stage?

Well, I would say that there’s not necessarily nerves, but there is a focus. I’m always working on new or newish stuff, so the focus is about that. But I don’t have close to the nervousness that I used to have. I used to really battle with stage fright. But I think there is a vulnerability that people find engaging for any performer. Someone that is a blanket overconfident person, we might feel comfortable around them, but you don’t feel a sense of empathy or humanity towards that person.’’

So I know that sounds kind of like a lofty thing, but the nerves or the concern are something that, and I would hate myself 20 years ago for saying this, but those are your friends. That’s what makes you human and what makes being a human live performance better than a robot.’’ 

Tickets available at the box office, by phone or at mileonecentre.com 

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Vancouver indie rockers Said The Whale are no stranger to Newfoundland and Labrador. The trio of Tyler Bancroft, Jaycelyn Brown and Ben Worcester celebrates their 20th anniversary of their first performance in St. John’s by bringing their Cascadia Canadian tour to St. John’s on December 2nd at The Rock House.

Bancroft caught up with The Herald to talk West Coast culture, memories of The Rock and being proudly ‘uncool’. 

You guys are back in St. John’s on December 2nd. Said The Whale always seems to take the time to include us in your touring schedule. Very rare for most groups. 

The first time we ever came to St. John’s, it was in 2009. We were playing okay shows all across Canada. And then we played at The Ship. Jud Haynes put it on for us and it was packed, sold out and we could not believe it. 

And we just at that moment realized that so few bands make the effort to go out to St. John’s, that when you just simply make the effort, people will come and they’re appreciative. So that makes it easy for us. And plus, the city itself is one of my favourite cities in the world. 

Newfoundland, there’s so much history, there’s so much passion and reverence for the past. It’s just so rooted in tradition. I love it. I can’t wait to be there. 

You’re touring in support of Cascadia, a record that is decidedly more optimistic than its predecessor, which was released in the wake of a lot of changes in the band. 

The record before this one, As Long as Your Eyes are Wide, was sort of the first foray into a three piece. And along with that came a departure sonically. We were experimenting and as well, the themes of that record were pretty heavy and somber. 

This one is definitely like a return to comfort and a return to the sound that we’re perhaps more known for. More kind of guitar based indie rock and a lot of nature based, which is another thing that we became known for when we first started as a band. And that’s perhaps our signature. 

It all just feels very comfortable now in a good way. I think it was important to be out of your comfort zone and that helps you grow as an artist. But it is also nice to just feel content and comfortable.  

The bio on your website describes Said The Whale’s music as “pure west coast.” Take me through what it means to have that west coast flavour. 

I think more of it is kind of an attitude and the way that attitude shows itself in the music. For us we are writing songs through the lens of people who live on the West Coast and have a deep respect for nature and a sense of place because there really is no where like the Pacific Northwest. And it’s a very special place. 

People who are from here and people who have been here realize how breathtaking it is and it’s easy to take for granted. And so we try not to by honouring that in our music to some degree. Even the songs we’re writing that are blatantly referencing the West Coast or natural themes are still through the lens of us as people who live here and have that sort of ethos about us.

Said The Whale is a band that have been labeled as indie. What does indie mean to you in 2019?

Some would say that indie is a way of operating whereby the artist is more in control of decision making. You’re operating at a smaller scale, or perhaps part of some fabric of counterculture as a way of describing music. To me, it’s always sort of being intrinsically connected to the early 2000s rise of like indie rock in Canada, specifically like Arcade Fire and Broken Social Scene were at the forefront of this indie rock revolution in Canada where it just got really popular. 

That happened to be at a time where I was having a musical awakening. I was 18 years old when all that stuff was going on. It was very influential for me. Sonically, I equate that to up tempo guitars, roomy drums, a lot of organic sound and kind of murky production in some way and melodies that are sweet and beautiful but not necessarily makes the radio. 

Said The Whale seems to always connect with audiences in a live setting. Why do you think that is?

I think a lot of it is just sort of the sense of connection that we can get onstage with people. Mainly, I think a large contributor to that is the fact that we are not very cool (laughs). I think when you see a band on stage and they’re very cool it’s intimidating and it can be hard to relate to that band because they’re so cool. And you as an audience member are probably not as cool or you don’t feel as cool. 

I think when people see us onstage for better, for worse, because, you know, it’s maybe hindered our potential for mainstream success, we’re not that cool. We look pretty average. We act fairly average, but are quite relatable people. We’re very approachable and generally friendly. You see a lot of smiles on stage. So I think that level of down to earth, like hometown, kind of yee-hah country approachable vibe makes it so that the live show feels very intimate regardless of how large the venue is. 

For tickets and more on Said The Whale at The Rock House visit saidthewhale.com and visit the event page on Facebook.