The two-time JUNO Award-winning singer-songwriter from Montreal places the history of African-American musical culture at the heart of her work, reflecting on the social realities that have influenced the genres of blues, jazz and soul. Her trilogy highlights the history of African-American music, inspired by soul icons such as Billie Holiday, Nina Simone and Etta James.
2018’s Nameless, was about confronting historical silences and sorrows. This blues-tinged album has become an audiophile’s reference recording across the globe and led to two sold out shows at the Montreal International Jazz Festival in 2018. Her second album, Stay Tuned! was a call for revolution. This album won the 2020 JUNO Award for Vocal Jazz Album of the Year as well as the Félix prize for Best Jazz Album at the 2019 ADISQ Gala, was shortlisted for the Polaris Music Prize and featured among the 19 best Canadian albums of 2019 by CBC. Dominique Fils-Aimé [FEES-em-AY] was also nominated that same year as Radio-Canada’s 2019-2020 “Revelation in Jazz”. In 2021, Dominique closed the final chapter the trilogy with Three Little Words, a call for reconciliation. The record received rave reviews in prestigious publications all around the world. It made the Polaris Short List, and claimed the #1 spot for best-selling album in Quebec and #2 in Canada. On stage, whether in Canada (double-bill with Allison Russell at Toronto’s Koerner Hall) or in Europe (opening for Melody Gardot, Diana Krall, and Ibrahim Maalouf), Dominique Fils-Aimé’s magnetic presence captivates the audience, leading them on a transcendent journey.
In her fourth album entitled Our Roots Run Deep, Dominique Fils-Aimé frames her latest installment with a loose, dreamlike narrative structure that tells a story of growth. For Dominique, nature acts as an anchor—a source of inspiration that provides her with metaphors to express the unique but interconnected journey of a human being.
“Just as we cannot see the mycorrhizal network that allows trees in a forest to communicate with each other underground, I believe our souls do the same and that music can be a fertilizer for this invisible communication network” – says Dominique
