who is willowbrook?
Hello! My name is Willowbrook :)
I'm a 21-year-old queer folk musician. I was born and raised in a small farm town called Leamington, Ontario, also known as the Tomato Capital of Canada. My entire family is musical. We all play an instrument or two, and my mom was a performing singer-songwriter as I was growing up! In fact, my birth name is Melody, so you know they secretly hoped I'd turn into a musician too :)
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Under the name Melody Grace, I released my first-ever EP in January 2022, 'What's the Forecast?'. It was my self-produced COVID bedroom release, which I admit I went into with little to no understanding of how to produce. It's honest and charming but it certainly is not my best work. I've come a long way since then and have been able to learn from a lot of very talented musicians and producers.
Not long after, I chose my new name, Willowbrook. I rebranded and re-released 'What's the Forecast?' under my new name, soon after releasing my first studio single, 'Sweet Diana'.
It tells an innocent queer love story about some of my favourite classic Canadian childhood characters: Anne Shirley and Diana Barry from the novel series Anne of Green Gables.
From my 2022 September release to the last day of 2022, Sweet Diana hit 50,000 streams; a reception I could have never imagined. I was able to venture out on a mini-tour and played my first out-of-town show in the beautiful city of Montreal. I am constantly grateful for the immense support I have received in such a short time.
After another small single release, I was chosen to work with a recording company called Plaid Dog Recording, a Boston-based studio that runs through crowdfunding to help small artists create professional sounding music without going broke. As a 19 year old living on my own, it was the experience of a lifetime! I got to fly to Boston and record my most recent release, Eden, a 4 track EP that plays with the concept of Man, Nature, the Beyond, whatever that means to you.
Campfire God Song, the 4th track on the EP, took off on TikTok. After only 6 months, it passed 1 million streams! I still can't believe it. This EP has built my confidence to keep making music for people.
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If you want to keep up to date with the Willowbrook happenings, make sure to sign up for the Willowbrook Newsletter and follow my Instagram where you can get live and last-minute updates (and the occasional goofy meme).
Willowbrook is about community—a space for safety, acceptance, and a comfortable place to challenge perspectives and grow together.
Just as I used to dance under the safety of the branches of the willow, I hope you can find refuge and joy in my art.
