GAYANCE

About

Gayance, the Montreal Nord artist born Aïsha Vertus, came to music production sideways, teaching herself Ableton Live during the pandemic with a little help from Foxtrott and Belgian Congolese producer Peter Clinton. That self taught hustle paid off fast: her debut EP No Toning Down dropped in 2021, she signed to London dance label Rhythm Section the following year, and her debut album Mascarade landed in March 2023 and earned a shortlist spot for the Polaris Music Prize. Before the beats, Vertus was already deep in the Montreal music world as a club DJ, documentary filmmaker and festival programmer. Her 2012 film Piu Piu captured the Montreal beat scene and featured Kaytranada among others. She has also hosted content for VICE Québec and Noisey France, and served as creative producer for the Vision Hip Hop QC exhibition at Montreal's PHI Center. Mascarade came with a visual album co directed with French Canadian director Maïlis, which earned a shortlist nod at the Young Director Award in Cannes.