She had planned to tour the world in 2020. Instead, she’s settling for bringing part of the world to everyone else.
Montreal-based, Deep Cove-born pop musician Maryze has released her new song “Muse” alongside an accompanying music video which features visuals of people around the world, including some from North Vancouver, expressing themselves and how they’re endeavouring to stay inspired while in self-isolation due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Even though Maryze (born Maryse Bernard) wrote the breezy French electro-pop track earlier in the year to be released on her forthcoming debut album, she decided to release it early with a music video as a way to create and connect with far away loved ones and friends during this strange time, she says.
“When all this started happening I just decided I really love this song, it’s really fun, I thought it would be a nice time to release it and it would also be a nice time to make a collaborative music video because I’d never done that before,” says Maryze.
Her North American tour, which was slated to kick off last month, was cancelled due to the pandemic, as were a slew of Canadian festival dates and some European shows she had lined up for the fall.
Sequestered at home in Montreal as the health crisis raged on, she put out a call for people to upload video of how they were passing the time and stretching their creative muscles during self-isolation.
“At first I kind of thought I’d just be receiving submissions from family and friends, but then as it started getting shared around I started getting submissions from people I’d never met from Europe, the States, and Brazil,” she says. “Then all of a sudden there was 70 people – and I was not expecting that at all.”
The around-the-world visuals of the music video show people doing all manner of quarantine activities – from dancing around and laughing about, to dressing up and chowing down.
“It was really heartwarming and it just really reinforced that we’re all going through a very similar experience and similar uncertainties and ups and downs,” says Maryze. “Re-watching it now it just gives me such a sense of community and togetherness, despite it being a difficult time.”
In 2019, Maryze released her debut EP Like Moons followed by a month-long North American tour.
Her debut full-length album is expected to be released next year.
