Singing in both English and French, music being a universal language, Shonk aims from the heart straight to the heart. She insists that music informs all aspects of her life and she is, above all, a music fan. Asked to name some of her current musical preoccupations, she cites Kurt Vile, Mac DeMarco, Amy Winehouse, Adele and Feist. “Feist has provided the soundtrack of my adult life. I’ve seen her four or five times live and to see how free she is on stage…how she invites the audience to be free themselves…so beautiful, authentic, contagious.”
It is evident that Gabrielle Shonk is embracing the opportunities before her and is only sometimes thinking about “not messing it up.” She is committed to following her instincts instead of obsessing over where she arrives. As she reasons it, “One can’t control what will happen, but you can make the journey fun and meaningful.”