Best friends Janette King and Maryze are two of Montreal’s finest femme vocalists, and their friendship is straight out of a musical heroine biopic (when theirs hits theatres one day, we’ll let you know!): they’re both managed by their pal and local powerhouse Sarah Armiento of Hot Tramp Management, they’ve toured together, and now they’re continuing to raise each other up despite being on Canada’s opposite coasts. In a brand new feature for Also Cool Mag called “Friends Interview Friends,” Janette and Maryze interview each other and discuss their musical beginnings, the eternal cultural value of Britney Spears, and how COVID-19 has impacted their creative process in promotion for All My Friends Fest on Saturday, May 30th.

Janette King: Blessings. I have some questions for you! My first question is: what brought you to music? 

Maryze: My dad was a DJ for a world music show in the 90s, and he was always bringing home albums from all over the world in different languages and we would play them in our living room and dance around. He introduced me to all these different styles and sounds. So, maybe that’s what first made me connect with music. Honestly, pop music as well. I was thinking about the first time I heard “Baby One More Time” on the radio, and I remember thinking, “This is the BEST song I’ve EVER heard.” I don’t know how old I was, maybe 7, but I thought “wow magic is possible!” Just listening to music, and liking how it made me feel, and wanting to recreate that.

J: That actually brings me to my second question, which I had already written: what is your favourite Britney Spears song?

M: No way! I’m having such a Britney Spears moment right now. I feel like popular culture is really appreciating her as she deserves these days. The other day I was telling my partner how much I love her, and I actually started crying because I feel like she’s had it so unfair. Aside from all of that, I think… Can I choose two? A more popular one and a deeper cut? For the more popular one, I would definitely say “Toxic.” It’s such a banger and I feel like it’s definitely transcended time. It can be sung in so many different styles, I don’t care how you feel about pop music, you just have to recognize that it’s a great song. 

J: Truth.

M: Then a deep cut. So off that album that “Toxic” was on, In The Zone, there’s a few that just kill me. This question is the hardest I've ever had to answer... Damn. Maybe “Touch Of My Hand?” I think it’s about self-pleasure, which was a really bold song for her to put out.

 J: Do you do any other form of art other than music, and if so, what do you get from doing it?

M: I write poetry! I studied poetry and creative non-fiction in university, so writing is definitely my big one. I really miss writing more long-form, and I also really love doing photography. I’ve recently gotten into video-editing for my latest video as well.

J: At what age did you write your first song, and what was that experience like for you?

M: I wrote my first song when I was probably around 6 years old. My great aunt Tina passed away, and it was the first time that I had really experienced death in my life, so I wrote this really sad song about how I didn’t think it was fair that she had to go. It was also the first time that I felt I could use my sadness in a more positive way. It helped me feel better and helped me channel my emotions.

J: In what ways has the quarantine made you a better artist, and in what ways has it made you worse?

*both laugh*

M: It taught me that we always have the time for the things that we prioritize. Often through life, especially when we have other jobs, we’re focused on getting by financially and making art at the same time. Personally, there are always so many things I want to do, but I’ll put them off by saying “I’ll do this when I have time.” Now, having time in quarantine, being faced with all this time, I thought, “Okay, I can finally do all these things if I just set aside a few hours each day for them.” 

How it’s made me a worse artist… it goes hand in hand. When you have this indefinite period of rest, you kind of just keep putting things off. It's made me way more aware of time management, but has also made me procrastinate a lot more.

J: My last question for you is: how do you think music can change the world?

M: I think it can change the world by reminding us how we are more similar than we are different. People from all different places and mindsets can hear a song and feel so powerfully... its sadness or its joy, and that's just such an amazing thing that it can reach people from all walks of life, if we let it. I think that music is really powerful if we just open ourselves to feeling what it has to offer and how it brings us together with others.

For the second part of the interview, Maryze and Janette traded places, with Janette now in the interviewee seat. 

Maryze: Now I get to ask you some questions! You’re currently on the West Coast [of Canada], where you’re from. I was wondering if the environment inspires what you want to write about, and if you feel more inspired to write about things on the West Coast versus the East Coast, or wherever you are in general? 

Janette King: I would say that I’m inspired to procrastinate more on the West Coast *laughs*. The energy here is just so chill, which is great because it’s definitely been healing for my body and mental space. But in terms of being productive musically, being on the West Coast has inspired me to take things slow and to kind of go more inwards. It’s inspired me to be more experimental, playing for the fun of it and seeing what comes up. It's a longer way to write instead of being practical. I’m playing a lot more, which is good.

M: Can you describe an early music memory where a song just really hit you and left a major impact?

J: The first time I heard “Smooth Criminal” by Michael Jackson, it was over. My uncle had the album and was taking me to the store, and put the album on, and it changed my life. I had never heard anything that had hit me so hard in my chest before. It made me a dancer and a singer. That was when I was 8 or 9.

M: What was the first form of art you got into when you were younger?

J: I was a dancer for seven years. I studied hip hop, street jazz, and contemporary for a few years. It was my first art form, and then I played electric bass as well.

M: If you could collaborate with any artist, dead or alive, who would it be?

J: Amy Winehouse and Beyoncé.

M: If your music was an animal, it would be a….

J: It would be a raven! Very dark but beautiful.

M: This is my last one. If you could only write one last song, and get one last message out there, what would it be?

J: It would be to quit looking for happiness in the external world. My message would be to search for all your answers within yourself. 

You can catch both Maryze and Janette King back-to-back at All My Friends Fest on May 30th via Instagram live. Janette King will be performing on the Also Cool Mag Instagram from 4:30PM-5:00PM EST, and Maryze will be performing on the Canvas and Cassette Instagram from 5:00PM-5:30PM EST.

Donate to the All My Friends Fest GoFundMe here!

All proceeds directly compensate all artists on our festival lineup.

Follow Janette King: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

Follow Maryze: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook

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