North Vancouver musician Laila Biali loves to get tips.
The host of CBC Music’s Saturday Night Jazz, she regularly receives recommendations from her listeners and crowd-sources her fans about what to play at concerts and what to listen to.
A few years back, before the COVID-19 pandemic, she would leave a box on stage for concert-goers to place notes and Biali usually honoured their wishes when she returned to the community.
Last year, she even dropped a recording called Your Requests based on the public feedback and, these days, she’s tuning into what her 14-year-old son is streaming, from Travis Scott to Taylor Swift, to get a sense of what’s trending with younger audiences.
Still, for her upcoming performance at Coquitlam’s Evergreen Cultural Centre with her jazz trio, which includes her husband, drummer Ben Wittman, whom she met while on tour with Paula Cole, Biali plans to stick to her set list.
And besides her trio, Biali will share the stage with one of the most sought-after musicians in Canada: Port Coquitlam resident, bassist and educator Jodi Proznick, a JUNO award nominee.
Speaking from Toronto on July 15, Biali, a JUNO award-winning jazz singer, pianist and composer who has worked with the likes of Chris Botti, Suzanne Vega and Sting, told the Tri-City News that she’s got a lighter touring schedule than past summers.
Her next date is booked for Waterloo’s Jazz Festival before returning home to B.C. to play Coquitlam on July 27 and Pender Island on Aug. 2 for its Mosaic Arts and Culture Festival — a gig she requested after a tip from singer–songwriter Jill Barber (the wife of CBC Music and CBC Radio 3 personality Grant Lawrence).
The easier summer line-up, she said, not only allows her to hike with her family around B.C., but it also gives her time to finish the production of her new album, Winter Songs, which is due to come out in December; the release party will take place in her hometown of North Vancouver.
As for her upcoming show in Coquitlam, Biali promises to perform a mix of original and cover songs “reimagined from the Great Canadian Songbook,” she said, and especially tunes from Your Requests, which earned a 2024 JUNO nomination.
She’s also looking forward to the pre-concert fun for Evergreen’s Summer Cocktail Concerts series: Ticket-holders can enjoy beverages during the patio social, including the special mix “The Jodi,” based on one of Proznick’s favourite drinks.
Biali's Coquitlam concert comes seven months after she played at the Inlet Theatre Music Series in Port Moody last December.
For tickets to see Laila Biali at the Evergreen Cultural Centre (1205 Pinetree Way, Coquitlam) on Saturday, July 27, you can visit the facility’s website or call 604-927-6555.
