Jeffery Straker looks toward a brighter future in the lyric video for his optimistic new single Light A Fire — premiering exclusively on Tinnitist.
Co-written and produced by Royal Wood, the folk-pop singer-songwriter’s optimistic track is “an uplifting anthem about making positive change and being your best self,” Straker says. “Losing my mom last year led to the realization with every fibre of my being, of how short our time is here. And with that, I’m striving to be the best I can be and I hope others are too. Make small changes, make tomorrow better than today. Be a better friend, better brother or sister, do more in your community. Make this all matter.
“Working with Royal Wood on this song was one of those great musical experiences that one hopes for. We got together for the co-write and the song came out of us quite easily; the music and lyrics felt natural and fluid. Even the hook just kind of fell out of my fingers on the piano keys. Royal offered that this might be a tune he could lend his production chops to and it felt like the perfect fit. It was a fun song to record and between us we played all the instruments and sang all the vocals in just one day. It’s contemporary folk-roots in flavour, packs a good message, and keeps the toes tapping.”
As does Straker — the singer-songwriter pianist performs over 100 shows per year across Canada and abroad. He has won a 2019 Western Canadian Music Award, seen his music used in film and TV, and has toured internationally as far as The Netherlands, England and Mexico. His tour stops range from intimate house concerts to club and theatre shows and include folk and jazz festivals. He’s also taken the stage in sold-out concerts of his music performing with multiple symphony orchestras. A significant career boost came from winning the prestigious Vina del Mar (Chile) song competition in 2014, representing Canada. Performing live to a festival crowd of 20,000 people and to a TV audience of 100,000,000 viewers across the Spanish- speaking world, he gained a fan following in Latin America.
Jeffery’s last full-length recording, Dirt Road Confessional, launched in May 2017. With Straker’s personal storytelling style woven through the tracks it saw critical comparisons drawn to the likes of Harry Chapin, Kris Kristofferson and Billy Joel.
Watch Light A Fire above, listen to Dirt Road Confessional below, and keep up with Jeffery Straker via his website, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
