BifNakedBif Naked: the quintessential tough girl, a rocker-chic legend with the colorful sleeves to prove it.  Personally, I expected a woman with flinty attitude, an intimidating squint and perfected sneer, traits that typically accompany the genre that Naked is immersed in.  Instead, I was greeted with is a larger-than-life, genuinely sincere personality in a small package.    

The recent pixie-cut compliments her defined features, creating emphasis on her intensely observant eyes and quick smile. Naked’s an animated character, a chronic hand-talker with a subtle wit that is almost unnoticeable.

Behind this wise-cracking front is a remarkably strong woman who has triumphed over her fair share of obstacles.  Adopted by American missionaries in India, Naked eventually settled in Winnipeg and went to university there to study theatre.  She’s always been frank about her bisexuality, her strict health habits as a “straight-edge” and a difficult abortion. In January 2008, she was diagnosed with breast cancer.

And yet she still manages to keep it real. 

She loves her dog Nicholas, runs errands, picks up groceries and goes to the office like any regular hardworking schmuck.  Well, a schmuck that wakes up at four a.m.  

“I get up usually around four, and you know, do some work and feed Nicholas really early. He gets up with me, and then he goes back to bed.  Then I get in the shower and have some coffee and a couple bananas, then we go out the door.  I walk Nicholas, then I go to the gym.  After that I run my errands, and then off to the office or the studio.”

It’s exhausting to read, let alone comprehend that she juggled this though her grapple with cancer.  “Having breast cancer and going through treatments during recording wasn’t really the biggest challenge,” admits Naked. “It was just so annoying for me because I wanted to be consistent in attending my vocal sessions.”

“Recording during treatment was difficult, because sometimes your lymph glands swell up, some days they don’t and some days you don’t feel like you can get out of bed.  You just can’t really predict it.  Every day is different, and every chemo is different.”  

Naked’s new album, coming out on May 5 this year, is titled “The Promise.”  She reflects on the different interpretations of the title, concluding that “promise is a word I really liked.  Just because of what it could mean to different people, and for some people it’s something that was broken.  And to others, it’s something that you keep.  I guess I just made a promise that I was going to get a record out for my fans, and that’s what it is.” 

She did keep her promise, and when she hears that she is considered an inspiration to her fans and listeners alike, Naked simply replies with “well they inspire me too.”

Naked took six months to record the album, a tad bit longer than her average accelerated rate.  She collaborated with musician, writer and producer Jason Darr for about half the songs in “The Promise,” and attests a lot of the new unique sound to his influence.   

“My favorite part was working with Jason for sure,” says Naked. “I’ve never written with him before and I really enjoyed it.  It was like finally finding a collaborative mind that we thought the same way about melody, and we thought the same way about the complexities of lyrics.  It was a really great process.  He’s a huge part of the album, and he produced the whole thing.”

Fans can look forward to another strong compilation of songs, in which Naked follows her tradition of tackling tough issues that emerge through the lyrics.  The single, “Fuck You 2,” is an angry song in which Naked expresses the last stage of a breakup.  “It’s basically a song about unrequited love.  Once you get past the point of being heartbroken, it’s your big ‘hey, wait a minute’ moment.  All of us can relate to that feeling,” says Naked.

“I have a different favorite every day.  ‘Blue Jay’ reminds me of Anastasia (her 10-year-old bichon that recently passed away), and I really like ‘Crash and Burn.’  Jason made me sing lower than I’ve ever sang before, so it doesn’t sound like me, to me.  I like that about it, it’s the most interesting.” 

Naked has put a notable amount of work into this album.  “It was a great process,” she emphasizes. “Hopefully I’ve pushed myself farther as a songwriter and as a vocalist.”

What’s next on Naked’s ever-full plate? 

“I imagine like usual, when we put a record out somewhere, we will put our a tour to support it.”  Canadian fans can anticipate seeing the petite rocker grace their stages, because Naked’s favorite place to tour is where she was raised. “I cut my teeth touring in Canada,” she smiles. “So it will always hold a place in my heart.”






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