Where were you at in your music career when you had your first child? Was there much discussion about how that life choice would affect your career within the music/entertainment industry?

At the time we started having children, my career in the music industry was self-guided. I worked for myself and from home, so that transition wasn’t too challenging. It was when I started a ‘day job’ when my eldest was just over one year old that we had to make arrangements for alternate care for her. It was a dream job for me, so we did what we could to make it work with various care options, including part-time daycare and family.

As a working parent in the music industry, what are some of the biggest challenges you are facing?

The music industry can be so ad-hoc and random with gigs popping up literally with an hour’s notice, particularly for my husband who’s a working musician. Our biggest challenge is finding reliable, affordable, spontaneous childcare in off-hours than traditional care (evenings and weekends). The new government regulations with grants and subsidies are essentially only helpful for registered care and on a full-time basis, so are less supportive of the nighttime, freelance industry.

What is one change (big or small) within the industry that could make a positive impact for working parents?

That would be to make childcare more accessible to our industry, ideas such as: conferences and industry events to provide childcare at hotels (particularly at night when it’s needed most), presenters to provide childcare for visiting performers, funders to include costs for care as necessary.

How do you find support and community with other working parents in or out of the music industry?

We get together with others with shared experiences. Some of our close friends have kids of similar ages to ours, some are long out of the young children phase. We are really blessed with an incredible support system and community around us!

What’s one specific example of an organization/venue/company doing something great to help support working parents?

My current employer, the National Music Centre, is a family-forward organization. We are a family destination after all! We have flexibility around family needs and are very supportive when things come up, as they always do in life. We also have work from home policy that supports the opportunity to be able to manage our home lives. It’s really a culture and can be created and fostered if the desire is there. I believe that if you treat your team with dignity and respect in all that we are as humans, the work environment is a happier and more productive place.

What could a music event (festival, conference, etc.), do or provide to make it easier for you to participate?

Events/festivals could prioritize providing family programming, reliable and safe childcare for all hours, choose host hotels with family-friendly accommodations (i.e. kitchenettes, high chairs, multiple beds with crib options) that allow for late checkout and. Honestly, parents setting up for parents would go a long way!

Can you shout out another music mama doing great things?

Jazz vocalist Aimee-Jo Benoit in Calgary has a great blog that resonates: MOTHER/MUSIC/HOOD https://www.aimeejobenoit.com/mothermusichood