Toronto’s all-girl pop-rock band, Girl Pow-R are back with a brand new single, “This Is Us”. Hot on the heels of this year’s early success for “Never Let Go“, which debuted on the iTunes Canada Children’s chart at #2 (second only to cultural force “Baby Shark” but ahead of genre mainstays such as Sharon, Lois & Bram, The Wiggles, and Raffi), and #15 in the U.S.
With lyrics like “passionate for some change,” “take our message, shout it out,” and “we won’t be pushed around, we are strong, we are proud,” the latest song from the all-girl supergroup continues to embody their core mission of banding together and uplifting their peers.
Check out the video below, and find out more about Girl Pow-R in our Five Questions With segment.
Care to introduce yourself to our readers?
Carina: I’m Carina and I am 17 years old. My background is Italian, and I am a singer, dancer, and actress from Markham Ontario. I have been performing since the age of 2 and a half, and I am so thankful for the opportunity to perform with Girl Pow-R.
Kalista: Hello! I’m Kalista Wilson, I’m 15 years old and I am a member of Girl Pow-R!
Milana: We participate in many shows and festivals throughout the year. We are also excited to be part of the Boys of Summer Tour this August, touring in the United States.
Ava: Hi, I am Ava Scaccia, I am 14 years old and I am from Vaughan.
Tell us a bit about your music and writing style.
Carina: The vision of our music is to inspire others through the messages in the lyrics. For example, our song “Stronger than Yesterday” is about moving forward from a bad situation and becoming a better version of yourself. Our music can apply to not only our fans, but it can inspire anyone to ignore haters and believe in themselves. When our fans are going through a hard time, they can use the lyrics in our songs to remind them that they are strong enough to get through it. Before writing a song, we brainstorm a bunch of ideas and topics and share stories/experiences that would be relatable to the general public.
Kalista: In Girl Pow-R, we like to perform our own original music, along with covers, that have a “pop-rock” sound. We make sure there is a pop rhythm with drums, guitar, and piano. For covers, we look for a good message in the song’s lyrics and, if there are any ‘bad’ lyrics in the song, we change them.
Milana: When Girl Pow-R performs, you can expect to see us sing, dance and play instruments. Our music gets our audience singing and dancing to every beat.
Ava: Every girl in the group has a social cause so we try to incorporate that into our lyrics and music. We also try to add important and inspirational messages in our songs, as well.
Do you have any upcoming shows? For someone who has yet to see you live, how would you explain your live performance?
Carina: Yes! We will be performing as Canadian Global Ambassadors at Youth Day July 21st at Yonge-Dundas Square. We are also currently performing around Ontario as part of the Northern Heat Festival series. Something else we are beyond excited about is our first U.S. tour this August. We will be performing in Washington DC, Philadelphia, New York, and Boston as one of the entertainers on the “Boys of Summer” Tour. A performance from Girl Pow-R can range from singing and dancing, along with instrument-playing, at various performances. We perform a mix of popular cover songs, along with our own original music. We have created six original songs, which are part of today’s album launch.
Kalista: We have quite a few shows lined up for the summer of 2019. Our next big show is Youth Day Toronto where we will be singing, dancing and interacting with the audience. We also have a U.S.A. tour coming up called “Boys of Summer” where we were chosen to do a 20-minute set. We will be doing high-energy dancing, singing our originals and covers, and meeting people from all over the country. We will be heading to Washington DC, Philadelphia, New York, and Boston! So, far, since we started Girl Pow-R, we have performed at over 150+ shows in Canada, with a few in the US.
Ava: Yes, our next show will be Youth Day 2019 on July 21st and we are very excited to perform our new originals. Our live performances are very energetic and fun. We also always try to incorporate the audience in our set, as well. For example, we have choreography that we teach to the audience so they can participate with us.
If you were asked to suggest only one of your songs for someone to hear, which would it be?
Carina: If I were to suggest one song from Girl Pow-R for someone to hear, I would suggest our newest song “This Is Us”. This is because it introduces who we are and talks about are individual social causes that we each have like Give Peace a Chance, and Mental Health Awareness. I also think that it is empowering and has a catchy melody.
Kalista: I would like people to hear our newest song, “This Is Us” because it really talks about who we are as a group. It talks about how we all have social causes (such as Give Peace a Chance, Children’s Health, and Mental Health) and how we want to help change the world for the better. I think that song sums up who we are as people.
Milana: I would love to have every girl and boy listen to the song “This Is Us”. I believe it depicts what our group is all about. We each have social causes that we are passionate about. We want to reach out to every girl and boy and let them know they can make a difference in this world by helping those in need.
Ava: I think I would suggest “Never Let Go’’ which is one of our newest songs. It is about how people will always try to bring you down or say hurtful things to you, but you can’t let that bother you. You need to stand up to them and stay true to who you are.
Canadian Beats is all about Canadian music, so who are your current favourite Canadian bands/ artists?
Carina: Some of my favourite Canadian artists include Shawn Mendes, Justin Bieber, Drake, Michael Bublé and Alessia Cara. I am inspired by their hard work and dedication to get to where they are today.
Kalista: My favourite Canadian artists would have to be Drake, obviously, his music will never get old. I also love Alessia Cara because she is all about being yourself and how you don’t need to show off your body so much to be a good performer or singer.
Milana: My favourite current Canadian band would, of course, have to be Girl Pow-R! My favourite Canadian artists are Drake, Justin Bieber, Shawn Mendes and the iconic Céline Dion.
Ava: Currently, some of my favourite Canadian artists are Shawn Mendes and Alessia Cara because I like their music styles and they have amazing voices.