Sandra Sutter Announces New Album, Shares Single for “Sunshine Child”
Calgary-based singer-songwriter Sandra Sutter is sharing today “Sunshine Child,” a jazz-infused love letter to the youth in her life. With lyrics that draw on the beauty of the natural world, the single serves as a reminder that no matter where their journey leads, they are never alone. “Sunshine Child” will appear on Sutter’s third album, Shadow Stories, set for release on June 13, 2025.
“I want young people to know that they are loved, that even as they walk their own path, they are never truly alone,” says Sutter, explaining what inspired her new song.
“As adults, we have to learn to let go, but that doesn’t mean we stop caring. Youth are full of light, and even when they enter a room feeling uncertain or afraid, they bring something powerful and good. Their presence is a gift, and their light deserves to shine.”
Sutter, who is Cree-Métis, also acknowledges the painful realities Indigenous youth continue to face.
“We have lost so many young lives to suicide in Indigenous communities,” she says. “And we continue to grieve for the children found buried at former residential school sites. Even in their absence, their light remains. It is up to us to honour it.”
Shadow Stories follows Sutter’s acclaimed 2017 debut, Cluster Stars, which sought to make conversations around truth and reconciliation accessible to both Indigenous and non-Indigenous audiences. That album earned both a Native American Music Award and an Indigenous Music Award, cementing Sutter’s place as a songwriter unafraid to tackle weighty themes with grace and sincerity. With Shadow Stories, Sutter continues to make music for everyone, building bridges of understanding, while drawing from a well of influences, including folk and jazz. Having started her musical foundation in jazz, some of the album’s tracks are reimagined versions of early works, now reinterpreted through a jazz-inspired lens. Through this album, Sutter hopes to inspire Indigenous youth to embrace jazz and other less familiar genres, empowering them to share their own stories as multifaceted individuals.
Review
“Sunshine Child” is a beautifully tender and emotional track that hits right in the heart. From the very first line—“I’m spinning around you in a coloured arc”—you’re pulled into a swirl of vivid imagery and deep vulnerability. The lyrics read like a letter from someone coming to terms with the fact that they can’t protect someone they love anymore, and that realization is both heartbreaking and deeply relatable.
There’s a real sense of warmth and sadness woven together here. Lines like “you’re not indestructible, no no, my sunshine child” and “can’t watch you forever” capture the helplessness of watching someone grow up or grow away, knowing you can’t shield them from the world. It’s reflective, honest, and delivered with such softness that it lingers long after the final note.
Sunshine Child” is more than a song—it’s a soft, lingering farewell. It feels like that quiet goodbye you weren’t ready for, carried by tender melodies and heartfelt emotion.