Aleksi Campagne

media release: Named Penguin Eggs & Roots Music Canada’s New Discovery of the Year! , ALEKSI CAMPAGNE offers a contemporary, indie-folk take on the time-honoured fiddle-singing tradition. Born and raised in Montreal, Aleksi blends folk songwriting with an edgy, multi-layered sound resulting from his unique combination of voice, violin and looping-effect pedals. He was awarded the 2024 Canadian Folk Music Award for francophone artist of the year for his debut album which features the same 10 songs in English and French. Thematically, Aleksi’s debut album is about all the firsts of growing up–from first loves to first moves, the first steps of your career and even first breakups.

Aleksi is uniquely qualified to offer a contemporary, indie-folk take on the time-honoured fiddle-singing tradition. At five years old, he began performing alongside his mother, Canadian folk icon, Connie Kaldor. At 19, Aleksi moved to Paris to study under jazz violin legend Didier Lockwood. At 21, Aleksi became the only student to have ever been accepted into the classical violin, the jazz violin and the jazz voice performance programs at McGill University. Since then, Aleksi had graced the lineups of some of Canada’ most beloved folk festivals—including the Mariposa Folk Festival, the Regina Folk Festival, and the Northern Lights Festival, among others. Aleksi tours festivals and venues across Canada with a four-piece band made up of some of the finest young musicians Montreal has to offer: Stephane Krims (Bass), Aaron Dolman (drums) and Zach Bachand (guitar).

Aleksi’s last year has been a whirlwind! In July 2022, Aleksi was selected as a Mariposa Folk Festival Emerging Artist to perform at the festival. In December, his single Another Day was picked by Paul Corby as a Top Single of 2022. In March, he was celebrated by Tom Coxworth as one of the Top 5 Favourite acts at the Folk Alliance International Conference, alongside acts like The Fretless and Mary Gautier. In May, his single Won’t be Scared was selected as the only Canadian finalist in the Kerrville Folk Festival’s Grassy Hill New Folk Competition for Emerging Songwriters. In July 2023, Aleksi launched his debut album to critical acclaim. In a review in Le Devoir by Sylvain Cormier, Aleksi’s debut was compared to that of Patrick Watson and Half Moon Run.