Pop-Soul Artist Jennarie Turns Vulnerability Into Victory With Debut EP, Never Been Small, After Canada’s Walk of Fame Emerging Musician Runner-Up Win
Toronto-based artist Jennarie is redefining what pop, R&B, and soul sound like in 2025 with her bold debut EP, Never Been Small — a fearless, body-positive celebration of self-love, growth, and unapologetic authenticity. The project arrives after a whirlwind year that saw her viral anthem “Never Been Small” soar past 2.3 million Spotify streams and ignite a movement that stretched far beyond music.
With 157k Instagram followers, 16k on YouTube, and over 230k on TikTok, Jennarie has quickly become one of Canada’s most exciting new voices. Her radiant confidence and genre-defying sound have earned her a spot in the RBCxMusic First Up 2025 Cohort and the Canada’s Walk of Fame / RBC / Stingray Emerging Musician Program, where she claimed second place for her boundary-pushing artistry.
Born in Montreal and based in Toronto, Jennarie (she/her) blends pop, R&B, and jazz into a sound that’s as rich and layered as her story. Proudly queer, body-positive, and neurodivergent, she crafts songs that speak directly to the soul—songs that lift, move, and remind listeners of their own power.
The EP’s title track, Never Been Small, transformed pain into purpose after online comments about Jennarie’s body went viral. Instead of retreating, she responded with the lyric heard around the world: “I have never been small, I have never been thin, I’m almost six feet tall, so tall I stretched my skin.” That line, and the song’s message, resonated globally, catching the attention of SZA and Meghan Trainor, and landing a spot in Rosebud Baker’s Netflix special The Mother Lode.
Across six tracks, Never Been Small is a genre-blending masterclass in vulnerability and resilience. From the soulful empowerment of “Stop (You Can Let It Go)” to the sultry, introspective “Minding and Business,” Jennarie builds a soundscape rooted in radical honesty. “I’d Rather Be Ugly” flips beauty standards on their head with the powerful lyric, “The closer I am to beauty, the further I get from myself,” while “Melodies” and “Summer With You” bring light, warmth, and community into focus.
“Music has always been how I make sense of the world,” Jennarie shares. “Every lyric, every note, is written with intention and is a mirror of how I’m feeling, processing and what I’m thinking about. This record is about growth, reclaiming joy and standing tall in a world that asks you to shrink.”
She adds,
“Never Been Small is more than a title—it’s a declaration and a promise. It’s for every person who’s ever been told they take up too much space. You deserve to exist fully, loudly, and with love.”
Produced by Nick Tateishi, the EP features lush strings, horns, and group vocals from a circle of Toronto collaborators who share Jennarie’s vision for inclusive, soul-centered pop. Supported by the Ontario Arts Council and powered by a growing community of fans, Never Been Small is just the beginning of Jennarie’s world-building journey.
As she prepares for new music, live performances, and future collaborations, Jennarie continues to prove that being big—in sound, in heart, in presence—is something to celebrate. With every lyric, she reminds us: we were never meant to be small.
Hi Jennarie, good to see you again! What did being runner-up in the Canada’s Walk of Fame Emerging Musician Program teach you about yourself?
Great to see you again too! Thank you so much for having me. The programming for the Emerging Musician Program officially begins in 2026, and I can’t wait to meet the incredible cohort in person, learn from the mentors, and perform at Festival du Voyageur in Winnipeg in February.
Even though things are only just getting started, winning second prize has already been such an honour. It’s boosted my confidence and given me so much hope for my next project. Being an independent artist isn’t easy but support like this changes everything. I can’t wait for 2026 — it’s going to be incredible. I can already feel it!
When you wrote “Never Been Small,” did you realize it would spark a body-positivity movement, or did that surprise you?
I never expected it to spark a movement, I don’t think I’ve even recognized it as a movement until this very moment! I originally wrote the first verse to cope with online harassment. I made a video of myself singing it and shared the hate comments on screen, names unblurred, as a way to reclaim my power.
When SZA shared the video on Instagram and Meghan Trainor reposted it on TikTok, I realized it had the potential to reach a lot of people. What I didn’t expect was for thousands of people around the world to comment and share how deeply they relate. It’s been both exciting and healing to see the videos people make using the song, and to read their stories through comments, DMs, and even emails.
Maybe my song has indeed sparked a movement, but its message is rooted in body liberation politics I learned from the people who came before me: the Black American women and queers who led the early body positivity movement in New York in the ’60s, the authors whose books I’ve read (shoutout Sonya Renee Taylor), and the hundreds of folks educating online on social media.
This whole experience shows just how powerful vulnerability can be… how much impact there is in sharing your truth and fighting for what you believe is right.
What’s the most memorable fan message you’ve received since the song went viral?
Honestly, I can’t say that one particular message stands out more than another, they’re all so deeply personal. What means the most to me is that people of all ages are willing to share their inner worlds and tell me what the song means to them. It can be so hard to find community, especially for folks who don’t live in big cities, so I love the sense of connection and community that we’ve built virtually around this song.
Additionally, I must say that one of my favourite things is seeing people covering songs off the EP and making them their own. It’s such a thrill to hear their versions of my songs, or to watch people dance, lip sync, and interpret the music in their own way. Truly a dream come true for me.
How did it feel to have “Never Been Small” noticed by SZA and Meghan Trainor?
I’ll never forget the feeling I had when I saw the notification that SZA liked my reel… then commented… then shared it. My partner and I were literally freaking out in the apartment: “SZA SHARED! SZA SHARED!” The same thing happened with Meghan. When I saw a few fans comment, “Meghan reposted your video!” on TikTok, I thought I was dreaming. I went to check, and there it was — my video in her reposts. It was such a surreal moment because “All About That Bass” was one of my favourites when it came out. It’s also crazy how a video I made on my balcony, self-filmed, edited and posted, ended up reaching so many women I’ve looked up to since I was a kid including Rosie O’Donnell and even Queen Latifah. What a blessing.
When you say, “We were never meant to be small,” what do you hope listeners feel in that moment?
Above all, seen and empowered. We’re living in a very challenging time for body acceptance and liberation. The culture has shifted drastically, and celebrities appear thinner and more surgically enhanced than ever before. Dont get me wrong, I believe everyone has the right to do whatever they want with their own bodies, but these trends have a massive impact on society, especially on young people.
I want listeners to know that they are beautiful as they are, that their worth goes far deeper than their appearance, and that all bodies deserve respect and have the right to take up space. You were never meant to be small!