Ottawa singer-songwriter Hannah Vig recently released her debut single, “clean break” on Valentine’s Day.
Currently in her second year studying English at the University of Ottawa, Vig has been performing at local venues as a solo act and alongside local bands such as Noise Hotel since February 2022.
The Charlatan sat down with Vig to learn more about her musical background and what it’s like to break into the “sad girl pop” scene.
The Charlatan (TC): How long have you been playing music?
Hannah Vig (HV): I briefly played the piano when I was nine, and then I stopped playing when we moved to Canada [from near Phoenix, AZ]. Then, I just started playing the guitar in quarantine in 2021. When I moved to Ottawa for school, my dad gave me one of his old guitars. I grew up singing with him. My dad is a little-known musician—he would always play the guitar and sing around the house.
TC: What was the production process of your new single like?
HV: My brother is a sound engineer, so we spent some time together in the studio. I paid him for it and everything. It was two days straight, and I spent seven or eight hours in the studio each day, so it was kind of exhausting. I’m still messing around, trying to figure out how to do that stuff on my own with sound production programs, but I’m very grateful to have had some help figuring it out. I’m really happy with how it turned out.
TC: How would you describe your music?
HV: My friend describes it as Taylor Swift if she was gay and had piercings. It’s a lot of sad girl pop. I love a good upbeat song, but it’s also very hard to make something upbeat when it’s just normally me doing acoustic. I want to get more into upbeat playing with a backing band sometime, but right now, my music is more indie pop.
TC: How did you decide to pursue music?
HV: It was honestly a happenstance. I always liked singing as a kid, but my first time performing ever was in April 2019 at a coffee house fundraiser for my local theatre in my neighbourhood. My friend and I did a cover of “Like I’m Gonna Lose You” by John Legend and Meghan Trainor. I did the Meghan Trainor part, and it was horrible. I was so nervous. There’s a video that exists, but nobody’s ever going to see that. I really enjoyed it. My first real gig was in February for Queer Connections. Since then, people have mostly been reaching out to me to play shows.
TC: Have you had any favourite gigs?
HV: I really love every show that I’ve played with Noise Hotel. We did a show in Avant-Garde in September. I joined them during their set for “Hard Times” by Paramore, and they joined me for “Forever and Always” by Taylor Swift. I love playing with a full band—it’s always a good time.
TC: Do you still get nervous when you’re performing? What do you do?
HV: It gets a bit easier after every show. I still get nervous, but even when I mess up now, I just play through it. There are all these superstitions for singers. You’re supposed to avoid dairy and cold water. I drink coffee or hot tea with lemon and honey religiously on days I’m performing. I even avoid my ADHD meds because they mess with my appetite, and I never wear anything on my wrist or my neck that might bother me while I’m playing.
TC: Do you have any non-musical artistic inspirations?
HV: My older sister is a photographer and I look up to her a lot. In terms of authors, my favourite book is The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton, and I’m a diehard Percy Jackson [and the Olympians] fan.
TC: What would you be doing if not music?
HV: Music is more of a side thing because I have this horrible fear that if I monetize any of my creative passions, I’ll resent them. My original plan was going to be teaching, but within the last six months or so since I’ve been working at the Ottawa Public Library, I realized I’m a lot more passionate about that. I plan on going and doing my graduate school in information sciences to become a librarian.
Vig’s “clean break” is out now on all music platforms.
This interview was edited for length and clarity.
Featured image by Bianca Miron.
