by Kate Higginson
I first saw FONTINE at Boy Golden’s Best of Our Possible Lives listening party on February 11, 2026. Her voice was absolutely captivating and I immediately wanted to know more about this person. When Winnipeg Folk Fest announced that FONTINE was playing on the Main Stage, I knew I had to try and get an interview. Unfortunately, due to scheduling conflicts, we weren’t able to meet in person; however, she has so graciously sent her answers to my many, many questions!
Stylus: Can you introduce yourself, and describe the genre/ sound of the music that you create?
FONTINE (F): My name is FONTINE! I’m a queer and Indigenous artist based in Winnipeg, MB. I guess the sound or genre is sort of indie rock, with a bit of singer/songwriter at its core.
Stylus: Who or what kicked off your motivations to pursue music?
F: My dad is a musician and I grew up watching him play shows all my life, so that was definitely a huge motivation for me!
Stylus: Does it influence your music/sound in any way?
F: I am sure it does in some way, but I think my sound is more influenced by the music my parents listened to when I was a kid and also the music I listened to, [like] Sheryl Crow, Queen [and] Avril Lavigne.
Stylus: When was the last time you felt inspired and who/what was it?
F: I was recently at Telluride Bluegrass Festival and saw so many insanely talented musicians playing there. I was so inspired to go home and practice!
Stylus: Do you actively seek out inspiration, or does it find you?
F: Sometimes if I am stuck I will seek it out, but generally I am more inclined to wait for it to come to me.
Stylus: When you are inspired, what do you do with it? Do you bank it for later or write immediately?
F: I try to write immediately, otherwise I will lose it. I have a lot of songs that I have half-written and I think are good ideas, but when I try to go back to them after a while (post-inspiration-strike), I find it difficult to put myself back in that place and therefore hard to finish the song.
Stylus: Your EP Yarrow Lover follows the navigation of a breakup. Is writing a cathartic way for you to process your emotions?
F: It is genuinely the only way I know how to process emotions! It’s extremely cathartic to be able to release my feelings through music. Sometimes I’ll write something I didn’t even know I was feeling until after the song is finished and I can be like, huh, well I’m glad that’s outside of my body now.
Stylus: It’s really beautiful to see this tight-knit collective of creatives that you work with. Who do you collaborate with most often and why?
F: I think it is really beautiful too! It is my favourite part of Winnipeg and our community. I mostly collaborate with Boy Golden as a part of that band, and he co-produced and engineered the Good Buddy record. We’ve been friends for a really, really — like, really — long time, so it feels easy to make music with him! Also my band is made up of Austin Parachoniak and Corey Hykawy who are in the [Boy Golden] band, plus Field Guide [Dylan MacDonald] when he is available! All of these people are my best friends and I feel crazy lucky to get to hang out with them and be on the road with them and be creative with them. Kris Ulrich is joining the hot bois™ for our Folk Fest set, and he produced the Yarrow Lover EP when we were living together a while ago — also another best friend!
Stylus: Your song “Body Double” is about your struggles with ADHD and needing a body double in order to do everyday tasks and human things. I also have ADHD and I find I need a body double as well in my everyday life and when I write almost anything. When working on a project, do you find that you need a body double through collaboration to flesh out a song?
F: I find I mostly need a body double for every single thing other than songwriting, hahahaha. I like to do this on my own mostly. I find I can really take my time to work out ideas and melodies. If someone else is around, I get a little shy and nervous and put pressure on myself to try to only say my “best” ideas out loud and end up losing what I could have maybe gotten out had I been by myself.
Stylus: Out of curiosity, when writing and producing your own music — because you’re so close with your collaborators — do you notice as you listen back to a song that there are specific motifs or lines that sound like one of your friends, and not like yourself? If yes, do you welcome it or do you change it?
F: Absolutely! I hear every single one of my friends’ sounds when I write my own stuff. Sometimes I’m like, this is awesome, and sometimes I’m like, oh, I just fully stole this. Fun fact: the last verse of “Home Right Here” is almost word for word the same as a verse in Boy Golden’s song “Out on the Weekend” and I didn’t realize until I had finished the song and then we had a BG rehearsal and played his song, hahahaha. Then it was kind of this fun little bit of lore that was created in our universes. If you know, you know, sort of thing.
Stylus: You’re playing the Main Stage of Winnipeg Folk Fest on July 9 (CONGRATULATIONS!), how are you feeling about your upcoming performance?
F: Thank you! I am so, so excited! I feel so grateful for all of the support that the Folk Fest has given me and my pals throughout the years. I remember getting my first Folk Fest offer and how cool and exciting that was. Flash forward to receiving this year’s offer to play the Main Stage and it was the exact same feeling!
Stylus: Who can we expect to see accompany you onstage, or is it a surprise?
F: My band will be my hot bois™ (Austin Parachoniak, Corey Hykawy, Field Guide, Kris Ulrich), plus a few special guests who you will have to watch to see!
Stylus: Do you have any upcoming projects? Will you be playing any new material at Folk Fest?
F: There is some stuff on the horizon. [I’m] always making new stuff, hehe. There will maybe be a new tune in there! Definitely at the workshops, I love to throw in a new song or two to test them out!
