Devan

r musical vision. As an emerging producer, her intriguing electronic textures elevate the emotions in her songwriting – and that ever-changing sonic landscape is central to her overall artistry. That’s especially clear in her brand new music, with much more to come.

“For me, the last year has been a big reflective time and an opportunity to look inward, and to deal with some emotions in a way I hadn’t been doing,” she says. “These songs came out of me digging up a lot of experiences from years ago, and I think writing these songs has been very healing and self-actualizing.”

In an effort to stay on track and to keep a schedule during the pandemic, Devan picked up a book titled The Artist’s Way and devoted herself to its 12-week program, which helps readers to overcome barriers to creativity. At first it felt uncomfortable, even torturous, but it led to her write songs about some heavy subject matter she hadn’t taken the time to process. By writing these songs, Devan has discovered she’s living in the present, no longer dwelling on how things used to be. That’s especially true on “Without You,” as she dismisses an ex-boyfriend who’s trying to reinsert himself into her life, now that her career has taken off.

“This song came out of a DM-slide from an ex. We had a brutal break up and I was pretty devastated by it at the time. 5 years later, he’s messaging me saying he loves my music and is so proud of me. It came across as condescending, ” she explains. “I was ranting to my friends and co-writers Jack Emblem and Jesse Gold about it, so this is kind of my bitchy anthem and a celebration of moving on.”

Born in Toronto, Devan and her family moved to London when she was 3 years old. Surrounded by a variety of music and performing arts, the cultural scene in England shaped her aesthetic at a young age. But when her family returned to Toronto for her high school years, she lost some of her confidence. Although she enjoyed being on stage for assemblies and talent shows, she remained uncertain about her ability to set her poetry to music. However, at university, she dedicated more time to practice guitar and started playing at coffeehouses and other small venues. With encouragement, she started to see a music career as a viable option and began to further develop her voice as a singer, songwriter and producer. As a member of the band Wild Rivers, Devan had grown used to life on the road, where she found it easy to brush things aside. Being at home in Toronto gave her the chance to contemplate; she started to spend the first 20 minutes of each day journaling. The reflection brought out a new dimension to her writing, as well as her sound. Although there are elements of acoustic music and indie pop in her style, she has so far eluded a defining term, allowing her to explore the sonic spectrum. For that inspiration, she looks to modern stars like Billie Eilish, Frank Ocean, and Dominic Fike, as well as influential performers such as Fleetwood Mac, Coldplay, and John Mayer. Despite their different musical styles, she considers all of them to be “songwriters at their core, who are able to dress up their songs in lots of different ways and still have them feel authentic.”

She adds, “Genres can be limiting because it’s easy to get hung up on ‘What does this sound like?’ or ‘Where does this fit in?’ I’ve been trying not to think in that framework. I try to use what hits me emotionally and feels authentic as my compass to determine which songs I write are right for my project. It’s nice that genres are blending a lot more these days, because it feels liberating.”