CONTEMPORARY ROOTS ALBUM OF THE YEAR | Lisa LeBlanc | | The JUNO Awards

At 26 years old, the captivating singer-guitarist-banjo player has sold over 140 000 records on two continents. She toured in Canada, France, Belgium and Switzerland and received critical acclaim for her work including the exceptional honour of the Prix Felix at the ADISQ awards in Quebec for being the “Discovery of the Year.” She was awarded prizes in France and Belgium and was nominated for a JUNO Award in the “Francophone Album of the Year” category in Canada. Her ability to compose rousing, heart-wrenching narratives from everyday tales of love, friendship and heartbreak has been compared to the sharp wit of Courtney Barnett, the rambling honesty of Bob Dylan and the high-flying sincerity of Dolly Parton.

The majority of LeBlanc's first album was written from Rosaireville, her native village in New Brunswick, in Granby during her studies at l'École nationale de la chanson as well as in Montreal, where she now resides.

In 2013, LeBlanc hit the road and followed the path of the Beat Generation across Nashville, Memphis, New Orleans, Las Vegas, Austin and San Francisco. It was during this trip that she found the inspiration for Highways, Heartaches and Time Well Wasted, a six track EP available since November 2014. Recorded at Mountain City Studios and Mixart Studio in Montreal, Why You Wanna Leave, Runaway Queen? came together over the spring of 2016. Joseph Donovan took the reigns as producer.