Nancy Rancourt is a pint-sized lesbian powerhouse. Proceed with caution, ladies – she's very hot! Nann (as she's known to her fans) was recently featured in Curve magazine as one of 13 Dykes to watch out for. This summer she shared the stage with Joan Jett at LA Pride. My temperature definitely rose as I sat down with Nann for the LoveGirls exclusive interview.
LoveGirls: This year you've performed at LA Pride (California, USA), Hamilton Pride (Ontario, Canada), and London Pride (Ontario, Canada), was there a noticeable difference where the type of crowds and gay pride vibe are concerned?
Nann: Yes. LA Pride was more high energy. They're obviously still fighting for their rights and there is a lot more passion. Where as I find that Hamilton and London pride is more about hanging out with friends or finding a date.
LoveGirls: How did you hear to the news that you were invited to LA Pride and would be sharing the stage with Joan Jett?
Nann: They actually asked me about four or five times. I was finally able to juggle my schedule around and decided to go. The excitement didn't really set in until I was in the plane on the way there and then I got kind of excited and giddy because Joan Jett is so hot!
LoveGirls: Is Joan Jett a good kisser?
Nann: How could Joan Jett NOT be a good kisser?
LoveGirls: When did you know you wanted to be a musician?
Nann: As soon as I could talk. I actually sang before I spoke.
LoveGirls: What did you sing?
Nann: It was 'You Are My Sunshine' but I couldn't say my S's yet so I sang 'Shun Schine.' I would sing the entire song and yet would'nt hold any type of conversation.
LoveGirls: I read that you received a Performing Arts music scholarship at age 13?
Nann: I did receive a scholarship enabling me to attend the Bach Academy. The scholarship was Canada wide, it came down to Barbie Redpath (a child star) and myself. I thought there was no way I was going to win, I actually cried when I found out I had.
LoveGirls: Where is the Academy and how long did you attend?
Nann: The Academy is now in Las Vegas I believe, when I went they had several locations with one in Ontario. Initially it was supposed to be a three-year course but the assessor decided that I would actually complete it in three or four months. They threw out the rulebook and decided to let me have my own style. They said I had a style they didn't want to undo, so I focused on the power in the diaphragm and the expression rather than mastering the Bel canto method.
LoveGirls: Did you also have to attend regular high school?
Nann: I was still attending high school at the same time. In my spare time I was actually a session vocalist at a recording studio and practicing piano – so I had no life, but really, I was so happy!
LoveGirls: How long have you been playing piano?
Nann: I only played for a few years as a child. I hated reading music, hated it with a passion, so I discontinued. As a young adult I went and bought a piano, sat behind it, and started teaching myself how to play by ear; for the mere purpose to write, I wanted to write without always using the guitar or having others co-write. It took me two to three years to learn to use both hands and have them do what I wanted them to do.
LoveGirls: You co-produced fellow indie artist Shauna Major's latest release; have you done much writing or producing for other musicians?
Nann: Yes. I've written, produced, co-produced, and engineered for a lot of artists.
LoveGirls: Is this something you plan to continue or are you shifting focus more to your own work?
Nann: I'm shifting focus onto my own work but I'm still producing and co-producing, especially with Shauna Major's work because I absolutely love her voice. There are a few other artists that I'm working with right now to get their solo CDs out there.
LoveGirls: Your 2006 CD (Skin & Bone) contained a range of songs: fun, sensual, and emotionally raw. What is the lyrical direction of your upcoming release 'Magazine Ragdoll'?
Nann: Skin & Bone was a launch pad to see where I was going. It was kind of a test run to see if people could handle me. The new single, Rely on Simple, is one step further. Magazine Ragdoll to me is, really, going to say a lot more because I get crass with how I express some things. There are going to be some real emotional elements in it as well, so it's going to have both sides of the coin.
LoveGirls: Do you think you went deeper into yourself with this project?
Nann: Yeah, I do, I do. There's an emotional side of, "I care" and then there's the emotionally explosive side of, "I care". Which is more like I care so much that it pisses me off and now I'm going to be sarcastic and tell you what I really think.
LoveGirls: Can you tell us a little bit about your writing process and what inspires you to choose a songs topic?
Nann: A lot of times it's about what I'm thinking or I'm experiencing, what I've witnessed. A lot of times – wow, this is revealing – it is what I'm secretly thinking or secretly feeling and I can't talk about it; because then it's in an 'I' format. If I write about it I can disguise some of myself in it by bringing in other elements that aren't necessarily about me. If someone were trying to get to know me through a song they'd really have to decode. Really, it's all there.
LoveGirls: Are there any plans to make a video for the first single 'Rely on Simple'?
Nann: There are. It's dependent on whether I sign with one of the labels that I'm having dialogue with. Or it's dependant on whether I get funding if I decide not to sign with any of those labels. We'll have to see where things go.
LoveGirls: Skin & Bone is available for download at iTunes and CD Baby, when do you expect the new single to be available online?
Nann: Well I heard back from the team and apparently it should be available within the next week on iTunes.
LoveGirls: If you could date one character, (not actress, but character), from The L Word who would ir be and why?
Nann: Oh, this one's going to shock people: Shane. That's even mind blowing for me. I don't think Shane is a 'bad girl.' I think it's because in some ways I relate to Shane. I think she's broken but actually very grounded. She knows who she is. She knows what she wants. And she feels very, very deeply because things affect her. I don't know, there is something very attractive about the character. And yet, it doesn't match up with the type of women that I would usually chase down; which is more the girlie-girl type.
LoveGirls: What exactly are 'naked Sundays', and how did they evolve into being?
Nann: Bastard! I knew you were going to ask me that. Okay, once a month, not every Sunday, but once a month, I like to be naked the entire day, in my home. You can do everything naked: cook naked, watch TV naked, sit at the piano and write naked. I think it makes you more vulnerable and comfortable with yourself. You can't be cocky. You can't hide behind anything. I don't know, it's changed something in my new songs.
LoveGirls: My final, and possibly most character defining question is: If you were forced to choose between either ice cream or cotton candy body spray, which would you choose, and why?
Nann: Oh boy! Cotton candy body spray makes me want to have sex – it's got to stay.
Nann is as real as she is talented; with nowhere to go but up the charts! I recommend you all check out her websites and buy her music! She's a 'sista' worth supporting!
http://www.nancyrancourt.com
http://www.myspace.com/nancyrancourt
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