Vancouver Island Musicians
Vancouver Island has always punched above its weight in Canadian music. From Rock and Roll Hall of Fame legends to Juno Award winners to rising country stars splitting their time between Qualicum Beach and Nashville, the artists connected to this island tell stories that matter – stories of resilience, community, creativity, and belonging.
The PULSE Community Podcast has been proud to bring these conversations to mid-Vancouver Island listeners since 2024. We have also been lucky to talk to many musicians touring the Island. Below you’ll find every musician who has joined hosts Peter McCully and Dave Graham on The PULSE, with a link to each episode.
Whether you’re a lifelong fan or discovering these artists for the first time, there’s a conversation here worth your time.
Nationally & Internationally Recognized
Ethan Askey
Blues/Roots/Rock | Cranbrook, BC (visiting Vancouver Island artist)
Ethan Askey is a singer, songwriter, and blues harmonica player who has spent the better part of 30 years with a harmonica in his pocket and a story ready to tell. Known in music circles as Shorty, he built his reputation as a sideman and session player across genres from blues to Celtic punk before stepping out front with his 2022 debut Walk When You Wanna Run, which spent over 160 weeks on the Canada Roots and Blues Top 50. His band The Elevators’ new album Outside the Lines – featuring Steve Marriner and Susie Vinnick – is out now. Catch his full story and a live performance of “Swing Like That”.
Read More & Listen →Randy Bachman
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame | BTO | The Guess Who
Two-time Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee and one of the most celebrated figures in Canadian rock history. Co-founder of both The Guess Who and Bachman-Turner Overdrive, Randy joined The PULSE ahead of BTO’s Back in Overdrive Tour launching in Victoria. He told the remarkable origin story of “Taking Care of Business” and introduced his son Tal and daughter-in-law Coco as the new BTO lineup carrying the legacy forward.
Read More & Listen →The Bills
Folk Roots | Victoria, Vancouver Island
Chris Frye is a founding member of The Bills, the Juno-nominated acoustic quintet that formed in Victoria nearly 30 years ago and has spent three decades exploring folk roots music built on intricate vocal harmonies, adventurous instrumental arrangements, and songwriting rooted in Vancouver Island life. The band’s catalogue includes the 2004 album Let ‘Em Run, whose Juno-nominated title track remains a fan favourite, and the collaboratively written The Trail of Tales. With new material in the works to mark their 30th anniversary, The Bills continue to bring their genre-bending sound to stages across the region, including an upcoming matinee performance at Parksville’s Knox United Church as part of the Salish Coast Music Festival.
Read More & Listen →Chris Buck
Country | Based in the Okanagan
Chris Buck is a BC-CCMA Award-winning country artist whose career has taken him from Ontario bar stages to Nashville publishing rooms and back to Canada, where he’s now thriving as an independent artist. With a gold record, over 13 million streams, and a brand new nineties-inspired album featuring the top-40 single “One, Two Step,” Chris is one of the most compelling voices in Canadian country music today. He’s also the founder of Boots and Boats — a Singer-Songwriter Festival making its Vancouver Island debut in Nanoose Bay this summer, featuring 21 artists performing over three days in a stunning waterfront setting.
Read More & Listen →Bruce Cockburn
Canadian Music Hall of Fame | 13 Juno Awards
One of Canada’s most revered singer-songwriters, with more than 40 albums and a career spanning over five decades. A Canadian Music Hall of Fame inductee and 13-time Juno Award winner known for weaving politics, spirituality, and extraordinary guitar work into a singular body of music. Bruce joined The PULSE ahead of his Port Theatre Nanaimo and Victoria tour dates to discuss his musical journey from Paris streets to global stages.
Read More & Listen →Bill Henderson
Chilliwack | Canadian Music Hall of Fame
Frontman of Chilliwack, one of the most beloved Canadian rock bands of all time and a Canadian Music Hall of Fame inductee. Bill joined The PULSE to discuss Chilliwack’s final tour and reflect on a remarkable career that produced some of this country’s most enduring rock anthems.
Read More & Listen →Greyston Holt
Actor / Musician | Classical & Rock Guitar | Salt Spring Island
Better known for his acting, Greyston Holt is a Salt Spring Island musician at heart, one who nearly chose a Marshall full stack over Hollywood. He fronted the Vancouver post-punk band The Mary Belle before turning to acting full time, and still picks up his classical guitar when a role calls for it, working out Francisco Tarrega’s Capricho Arabe for a scene on Chesapeake Shores. Raised around his father’s musical circle on Salt Spring, he counts Valdy, Harry Manx and Chilliwack’s Bill Henderson among his island neighbours.
Read More & Listen →Roy Forbes
Singer-Songwriter, Roots, Country-Soul
Roy Forbes picked up a guitar at 14 in Dawson Creek and never looked back. Known in his early years as Bim, he spent more than five decades writing, recording, and performing across Canada, earning a place in the BC Entertainment Hall of Fame and an honorary doctorate from UBC. His songs have been covered by Shawn Colvin, Sylvia Tyson, and Steven Page of the Barenaked Ladies. He has hosted Roy’s Record Room on CKUA Radio for more than 20 years, spinning 78s, 45s, and LPs from his own eclectic collection. His album Edge of Blue is a remarkable return.
Read More & Listen →Ajay “Blue Jay” Friese
Vancouver Island singer-songwriter
Recording as Blue Jay Friese – Ajay released his debut album Postcards in March 2025, a collection of folk-influenced acoustic songs shaped by his multicultural upbringing and life across three continents. Ajay is also known as a screen actor – a series regular on Netflix’s Lost in Space and a current cast member of the MGM+ comedy American Classic alongside Kevin Kline and Laura Linney. Hear his story on The PULSE Community Podcast.
Read More & Listen →Colin James
Blues-Rock | 8 Juno Awards | 21 Albums
Eight-time Juno Award winner and one of Canada’s most celebrated blues-rock guitarists and performers. With 21 albums, four decades on stage, and a reputation as one of the finest live acts this country has ever produced, Colin joined The PULSE ahead of his Chasing the Sun Tour with Vancouver Island dates in Sidney, Qualicum Beach, Port Alberni, and Campbell River. He spoke about recovering from a serious car accident, writing a memoir, and the music that keeps calling him back.
Read More & Listen →Andy Kim
Canadian Music Hall of Fame
“Rock Me Gently” Canadian pop legend and Canadian Music Hall of Fame inductee, best known for his 1974 number one hit “Rock Me Gently” and his co-writing credit on “Sugar Sugar” by The Archies — one of the best-selling singles in pop music history. Andy joined The PULSE alongside the 20th anniversary of CBC’s The Debaters to discuss his beloved annual Andy Kim’s Christmas Show.
Read More & Listen →Grant Lawrence
CBC Broadcaster | The Smugglers | Author
Beloved CBC Music broadcaster, bestselling author, and frontman of Vancouver garage-rock legends The Smugglers. Grant joined The PULSE to announce his Stories & Songs Tour – an intimate travelling show bringing Jill Barber, Joel Plaskett, Danny Michel, and Desiree Dawson to small, meaningful venues across Vancouver Island including Errington and Tofino. He also shared the remarkable story of his son’s band Blue Jay Valley becoming Canada’s youngest signed band.
Read More & Listen →Grant Lawrence
Stories & Songs Tour | Vancouver Island
Grant came back to The PULSE when the Stories & Songs Tour returned to the islands for another run of shows, proving that the appetite for intimate, artist-driven touring on Vancouver Island is very much alive. A second conversation with one of Canada’s most engaging storytellers.
Read More & Listen →Tom Lavin
The Powder Blues
Canadian Blues Legend Founder and frontman of The Powder Blues, one of Canada’s most celebrated blues bands, whose debut album became one of the best-selling Canadian blues records of all time. Tom joined The PULSE for a conversation about a life lived deep in the blues tradition and what keeps the music alive on Vancouver Island.
Read More & Listen →Natalie MacMaster
Order of Canada | Cape Breton Fiddle | Juno Award Winner
One of the world’s most celebrated fiddlers and a proud recipient of the Order of Canada. Natalie’s Cape Breton fiddle playing has earned her fans on every continent and a legacy as one of this country’s greatest musical ambassadors. She joined The PULSE ahead of her Vancouver Island tour dates.
Read More & Listen →Harry Manx
Blues/World Fusion | Salt Spring Island, Vancouver Island
Based on Salt Spring Island, Harry Manx has spent decades fusing Delta blues with Hindustani classical music into a sound critics call Mysticsippi blues. Born on the Isle of Man, he came up working sound at Toronto’s El Mocambo before busking his way across Europe and Japan and studying ragas in Rajasthan for five years. He plays the Mohan Veena, a 20-string Indian instrument, alongside guitar, and has earned seven Maple Blues Awards and six Juno nominations across a career of 20 albums. Her talks about his new album, Falling Upwards, led by the single Pork Pie Turban.
Read More & Listen →Sean McCann
Great Big Sea | Folk-Rock
Co-founder and lead vocalist of Great Big Sea, the Newfoundland folk-rock band whose infectious energy and storytelling made them one of Canada’s most beloved acts for over two decades. Sean joined The PULSE alongside the Father’s Day Car Show in Qualicum Beach for a conversation about music, the road, and life after the band.
Read More & Listen →Kyle McKearney
Country / Americana / Bluegrass | Alberta (touring Vancouver Island)
Kyle McKearney is a Metis singer-songwriter and frontman of The Outliers, based in Alberta and rooted in the musical traditions of northern BC. Raised in Fort St. John, where long winters and a family steeped in country, bluegrass, and honky-tonk left him little to do but pick up a guitar, Kyle has built a career on his own terms – touring with We Will Rock You, earning a placement on the season 18 finale of Heartland, and releasing his most personal album to date, To the River, mixed by Vance Powell (Chris Stapleton, Willie Nelson). His band plays country, Americana, and bluegrass with swagger and soul, and this summer they’re bringing the To the River Tour to Vancouver Island.
Read More & Listen →Crystal Shawanda
Juno-Nominated Blues Artist | Indigenous Artist
A gold-selling country music star who found her truest voice in the blues tradition. Crystal’s Juno-nominated album Sing Pretty Blues announced her as one of the most powerful voices in Canadian roots music, and her commitment to First Nations representation in mainstream music makes her story as important as her sound. Crystal joined The PULSE in a conversation that ranged from the blues to belonging.
Read More & Listen →Terra Spencer
2025 Music Nova Scotia Entertainer of the Year | Folk
An award-winning singer-songwriter with a story unlike anyone else in Canadian folk music. Terra Spencer moved from life as a funeral director to becoming the 2025 Music Nova Scotia Entertainer of the Year, collaborating with folk legends David Francey and Stephen Fearing of Victoria along the way. She joined The PULSE in a conversation about music, mortality, and finding your voice.
Read More & Listen →Sean Thomas
Vancouver
A Vancouver-born singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer who has been making music since the age of five. Now 24, he has co-produced albums with Debbie Gibson, served as music director for her Las Vegas residency, and worked with Joey McIntyre, New Kids on the Block, and New Edition. His debut single “Better” – written, recorded, produced, and mixed entirely himself – features over 100 stacked vocal layers and signals the beginning of his solo chapter. Hear his story on the PULSE Community Podcast:
Read More & Listen →Neil Osborne / 54·40
Canadian Rock
30+ Years Frontman and creative force behind 54·40, one of the most enduring bands in Canadian alternative rock. With more than three decades of recordings and relentless touring, Neil joined The PULSE to discuss the band’s new album and the creative fire that keeps them going.
Read More & Listen →Brad Merritt / 54-40
Bassist & Co-founder
Brad is the co-founder and bassist of 54–40, one of Canada’s most enduring rock bands. Born out of the Vancouver punk scene and rooted in British Columbia, 54–40 has been recording and touring for 45 years – releasing their new album Porto, recorded live in Portugal, in 2025. A band that helped define the sound of Canadian alternative rock, they remain restless, relevant, and road-ready. Brad joined The PULSE Community Podcast ahead of the band’s only Vancouver Island appearance at Rock the Range.
Read More & Listen →Shari Ulrich
Juno Award Winner | Singer-Songwriter | BC Music Hall of Fame
A west coast music icon with a career spanning five decades. Juno Award-winning singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and film composer whose roots run deep in the BC folk and rock tradition. Shari joined The PULSE for a wide-ranging conversation about music, life, and the stories that endure.
Read More & Listen →Valdy
Canadian Folk Icon | Gulf Islands Resident
For more than five decades, Valdy has been one of Canada’s most cherished folk voices – warm, wise, and deeply rooted in the west coast landscape he calls home. A Gulf Islands resident and beloved national treasure, Valdy joined The PULSE for a personal and wide-ranging conversation about his life, his music, and what it means to belong to a place.
Read More & Listen →Jamie Wollam
Drummer | Salt Spring Island
Jamie Wollam grew up in Southern California, drawn to the drums after a Kiss concert at age 10, and went on to build a career touring and recording with David Crosby, Jackson Browne, and Tom Morello, including two posthumous Michael Jackson recordings. Since 2010 he has held the drum chair for Tears for Fears, bringing a rock-rooted power to the band’s synth-driven catalogue and singing backing vocals on tour. After decades on the road, Jamie settled on Salt Spring Island, where he runs a home recording studio offering remote sessions and drum lessons.
Read More & Listen →Vancouver Island Rooted
Amarii
Singer-Songwriter | Qualicum Beach
A Qualicum Beach singer-songwriter bringing a fresh, original voice to the mid-Vancouver Island music scene. Amarii joined The PULSE alongside Sunfest’s Mike Hann in a conversation about emerging local talent and the festival community that supports it.
Read More & Listen →Vince Ditrich
Spirit of the West | Nanoose Bay | Author
Drummer and long-time manager of legendary Canadian rock band Spirit of the West, now living in Errington and channelling decades of music-industry stories into his acclaimed Liquor Vicar novel trilogy published by Dundurn Press. A kidney transplant survivor with a remarkable life story, Vince was the very first musician featured on The PULSE — back on December 17, 2024 — and set the tone for every conversation that followed.
Read More & Listen →David Gogo
Blues Guitar | Vancouver Island
A guitar player’s guitar player and one of Vancouver Island’s most treasured musical institutions. David Gogo’s blues is raw, honest, and deeply felt — the kind that reminds you why the music matters in the first place. He joined The PULSE ahead of the 2025 Parksville Beach Festival.
Read More & Listen →Sylvia Humble
Humble Harmony | Community Singing | Parksville & Nanaimo
After a cancer diagnosis prompted a profound career change, former government worker Sylvia Humble founded Humble Harmony – a community singing initiative running inclusive, joyful singing groups across Parksville and Nanaimo where perfection is never required. Sylvia teaches harmony by ear, without sheet music, and has built something genuinely rare: a space where music is purely about connection. She joined The PULSE to share her inspiring journey and the Vancouver Island community she has created through song.
Read More & Listen →Laura Kelsey
Vocalist & Songwriter | Nanaimo
Laura Kelsey is a Nanaimo-based vocalist and songwriter with a powerhouse voice shaped by over a decade of performing across genres – from symphonic metal and death metal to folk and blues. Her debut full-length album Hidden Mountains, recorded at Canary Sound in Lantzville, is a journey into modern mythology and mystery. A Factor Canada juror, TELUS Storyhive filmmaker, and VIA Rail Artists on Board participant, Laura brings a restless creative spirit to everything she touches.
Read More & Listen →Ken Lavigne
Canadian Tenors | Carnegie Hall | Vancouver Island Tenor
A founding member of The Canadian Tenors and co-founder of the acclaimed tenor trio Romanza, Ken Lavigne is one of Vancouver Island’s most celebrated performing artists. He has performed for royalty, shared stages with David Foster, and fulfilled his lifelong dream of performing at Carnegie Hall with the New York Pops Orchestra. Ken joined The PULSE to discuss his remarkable journey and his latest show.
Read More & Listen →Lance LaPointe
BTO | Port Alberni
Vancouver Island Music Awards Artist of the Year Port Alberni’s “Campfire Lance” — Vancouver Island Music Awards Artist of the Year and now touring North America as the bassist and vocalist for Bachman-Turner Overdrive. Lance joined The PULSE for a conversation full of warmth, humour, and the kind of road stories only a lifetime in music can produce.
Read More & Listen →Ryan McMahon
Ladysmith | Singer-Songwriter | Burton Cummings | Tom Cochrane
Ladysmith-based singer-songwriter with nearly two decades on the road alongside Canadian rock royalty Burton Cummings and Tom Cochrane. Ryan joined The PULSE to discuss his solo work, his single “There She Is,” and the Vancouver Island sunrises and newfound love that inspired it.
Read More & Listen →The Heels featuring Kyla Rawlins
Country Trio | Qualicum Beach & Nashville
An all-BC female country trio – Kyla Rawlins of Qualicum Beach, Bobbi Smith, and Brittni Dominelli – who built their band from humble beginnings at a North Vancouver café and have since taken their harmonies all the way to Nashville. Multiple BCCMA Award winners including Country Group of the Year, The Heels have performed at the Grand Ole Opry House, opened for Alabama, Lonestar, Dierks Bentley, and Lee Brice, and scored a viral international hit with “Hush Money” – reaching number one in France and charting across Europe. Now splitting their time between Qualicum Beach and Nashville, The Heels joined The PULSE to talk about their journey from BC to Music City.
Read More & Listen →Zachary Stevenson
Parksville | Chicago Jeff Award Winner
Raised on an apple orchard in Parksville and now one of the most celebrated musical theatre performers in North America, Zachary Stevenson is a winner of Chicago’s prestigious Jeff Award. He joined The PULSE to discuss his Holly Jolly Christmas show – a vintage Buddy Holly rock and roll Christmas experience performed with his wife Molly and the Lovettes – and what it means to come home to Vancouver Island each December.
Read More & Listen →James Vickers
Blues | Indigenous Artist | Vancouver Island
A teenage blues prodigy and proud Indigenous artist, James Vickers leads the James Vickers Band and has already represented the Fraser Valley Blues Society at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis. His music blends the honesty of the blues tradition with the edge of rock and the poetry of other influences – a voice unlike any other on Vancouver Island.
Read More & Listen →Vince Warry
Nanaimo | Tribute Productions | Original Music
Nanaimo-based rock artist, history teacher, and one-man tribute machine — honouring The Cult, Led Zeppelin, The Doors, and the Tragically Hip on stages across Vancouver Island. Vince joined The PULSE alongside Milner Magic’s festive brass shows to discuss his original EP Like a Runaway Train and the creative life he has built alongside his teaching career.
Read More & Listen →Are you a local musician?
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