Victoria Canal

{{short description|Spanish-American singer and songwriter (born 1998)}}

{{Infobox musical artist

| name = Victoria Canal

| image = Victoria Canal 2023 (cropped).jpg

| caption = Canal in 2023

| alt =

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1998|08|11}}

| birth_place = Munich, Germany

| origin =

| genre = {{hlist|Indie pop|pop rock}}

| occupation = {{hlist|Singer|songwriter}}

| instrument = {{hlist|Vocals|piano|guitar}}

| label = Parlophone

| website = {{URL|victoriacanal.com}}

}}

Victoria Canal Tinius (born August 11, 1998), known professionally as Victoria Canal, is a Spanish-American singer and songwriter.

Early life and education

Canal was born in Munich, Germany,{{Cite web |last=James |first=Alastair |date=2023-06-22 |title=Singer-songwriter Victoria Canal: 'I can balance out the perception by just being me' |url=https://www.attitude.co.uk/life/singer-songwriter-victoria-canal-i-can-balance-out-the-perception-by-just-being-me-437903/ |access-date=2023-08-08 |website=Attitude |language=en-GB}} to Gwen Tinius, an architect and artist, and Francisco Canal, a businessman. She was brought up in a global third culture kid lifestyle, living in Shanghai, Tokyo, Barcelona, Madrid, Dubai, and Amsterdam. Canal is of Cuban and American heritage, but refers to herself as Spanish-American, as she says Spain is where she was raised most of her life. She was born without her right forearm due to amniotic band syndrome,{{Cite web |last=Jeffrey |first=Joyann |date=August 22, 2022 |title=Chris Martin performs duet with singer-songwriter: 'One of the best songs ever written' |url=https://www.today.com/popculture/music/coldplay-chris-martin-duets-swan-song-victoria-canal-rcna43874 |access-date=August 8, 2023 |website=TODAY.com}} but once her grandmother introduced her to music early on, from age six onward, she began taking classical lessons in both piano and voice and learned how to play at a high level despite her disability.{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=December 3, 2019 |title=Victoria Canal Talks "Drama" In Advance of New EP |url=https://americansongwriter.com/victoria-canal-premieres-new-track-in-advance-of-ep-drama/ |access-date=August 8, 2023 |website=American Songwriter}}

By age 11 she discovered songwriting and drew inspiration from artists like John Mayer and Gavin DeGraw, delving further into pop sensibility. She participated in local and school competitions and began booking her own concerts. Upon moving to Barcelona in 2013, Canal decided to switch to an online school program to free up more time to pursue music more professionally.

Career

= Beginnings, 2013–2014 =

At age 13 while living in Dubai, Canal recorded her first original demo CD at JR Studios, which received several placements on MBC, Dubai One, and others. Following that she was granted a full-tuition scholarship to Berklee College of Music's summer performance program.{{Cite web |last=McLaughlin-Duane |first=Rebecca |date=2013-06-15 |title=Bright future ahead for Dubai pianist |url=https://www.thenationalnews.com/arts-culture/music/bright-future-ahead-for-dubai-pianist-1.302132 |access-date=2023-08-08 |website=The National |language=en}}

Canal moved to Barcelona at age 14 and studied at Jazz Conservatory en el Aula del Conservatori, but returned to Berklee College of Music that summer with a second full-tuition scholarship. After receiving her certificate from el Aula del Conservatori, Canal began traveling back and forth between Madrid and Atlanta, Georgia,{{Cite web |date=2016-03-07 |title=Music Monday: Meet Victoria Canal |url=https://celebsecrets.com/music-monday-meet-victoria-canal/ |access-date=2023-08-08 |website=Celeb Secrets |language=en-US}} in the fall of 2014, to begin training with vocal coach "Mama Jan" Smith.{{Cite web |last=Adams |first=Leah |date=March 16, 2016 |title=All Access Music An Interview With The Promising Singer, VICTORIA CANAL On Her Debut EP, "Into The Pull", Why She Loves John Mayer and Much More! |url=https://music.allaccess.com/an-interview-with-the-promising-singer-victoria-canal-on-her-debut-ep-into-the-pull-why-she-loves-john-mayer-and-much-more/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160504010322/https://music.allaccess.com/an-interview-with-the-promising-singer-victoria-canal-on-her-debut-ep-into-the-pull-why-she-loves-john-mayer-and-much-more/ |archive-date=May 4, 2016 |access-date=August 8, 2023 |website=All Access Music}}

= 2015–2016 =

As her training became more serious, Canal and her mother relocated to Atlanta in April 2015 so Victoria could record her debut EP, Into the Pull, and go on her first tour. Canal recorded the EP with her vocal coach, Jesse Owen Astin, and Demond Mickens, targeting its release on January 29, 2016.{{Cite web |title=Into the Pull - EP by Victoria Canal |url=https://genius.com/albums/Victoria-canal/Into-the-pull-ep |access-date=August 8, 2023 |website=Genius}}{{User-generated inline|date=September 2023}}

= 2017–2020 =

In 2018, Michael Franti discovered Canal on Instagram and invited her to travel to Nashville, Tennessee, to write and record a song with him for his upcoming album.{{Cite web |last= |title=Meet Singer/Songwriter Victoria Canal |url=https://michaelfranti.com/meet-singer-songwriter-victoria-canal/ |access-date=August 8, 2023 |website=Michael Franti & Spearhead}} After the song was released, she was brought onto Franti's Follow Your Heart World Tour in 2019 along with Snarky Puppy. The tour brought her to household-name venues, including Red Rocks Amphitheater in Colorado. Franti and Canal performed the song they wrote together on CNN Español.{{Cite web |last=Egaña |first=Camilo |date=October 23, 2019 |title=Victoria Canal: "No hay suficiente empatía en este país" |url=https://cnnespanol.cnn.com/video/victoria-canal-cantautora-violencia-armada-empatia-camilo-sot/ |access-date=August 8, 2023 |website=CNN Español |language=es}}

During this time, Canal released a number of singles including "Ebony", "He Won't Know", and the breakout singles "Drama" and "Second" (which two became part of her 2020 EP Victoria), while also featuring on "Will Call", a track by Third Story's Elliott Skinner. "Drama" received support from Rolling Stone and HuffPost, among others.{{Cite magazine |last=Mullings |first=Morgan |date=November 15, 2019 |title=Song You Need to Know: Victoria Canal, 'Drama' |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/victoria-canal-drama-song-you-need-to-know-912840/ |magazine=Rolling Stone |access-date=August 8, 2023}}{{Cite web |last=Wong |first=Curtis M. |date=December 20, 2019 |title=With 'Drama,' Victoria Canal Could Raise Bar For Disabled Artists In Pop Music |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/victoria-canal-drama-music-video_n_5dfb8d12e4b006dceaa9fc57 |access-date=August 8, 2023 |website=HuffPost}}

In 2020, Canal's submission to NPR's Tiny Desk Concert contest was featured on NPR.org.{{Cite web |last=Madden |first=Sidney |date=May 18, 2020 |title=Heat Check: Tiny Desk Contest 2020 Edition |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/allsongs/2020/05/18/857133657/heat-check-tiny-desk-contest-2020-edition |access-date=August 7, 2023 |website=NPR}}

= 2021–present =

In 2021, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Canal relocated with her family to Amsterdam where she began working on more music. During that time, Chris Martin, frontman for the band Coldplay, found her music through a post she shared online and was later sent her Instagram profile by a friend. Martin later introduced Canal to the team at Parlophone Records.

Canal signed a recording deal with Parlophone and began releasing music under their label in May 2022.{{Cite web |last=Major |first=Michael |date=September 16, 2022 |title=Victoria Canal Releases New EP 'Elegy' |url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwmusic/article/Victoria-Canal-Releases-New-EP-Elegy-20220916 |access-date=2023-08-08 |website=BroadwayWorld}} She released three singles, "own me", "pity season", and "swan song",{{Cite web |last=Major |first=Michael |date=September 16, 2022 |title=Victoria Canal Releases New EP 'Elegy' |url=https://www.broadwayworld.com/bwwmusic/article/Victoria-Canal-Releases-New-EP-Elegy-20220916 |access-date=2023-08-08 |website=BroadwayWorld}} a track Martin regarded as "one of the best songs ever written",{{Cite web |last=Jeffrey |first=Joyann |date=August 22, 2022 |title=Chris Martin performs duet with singer-songwriter: 'One of the best songs ever written' |url=https://www.today.com/popculture/music/coldplay-chris-martin-duets-swan-song-victoria-canal-rcna43874 |access-date=August 8, 2023 |website=TODAY.com}} before releasing in September of the same year her first EP under the label, titled Elegy.

In March 2023, it was announced that Canal would be opening for Hozier on a number of dates for his Unreal Unearth Tour across Europe and the United Kingdom. Shortly after, she was awarded the Amazon Music Ivors Academy Rising Star Award,{{Cite web |last=Brenning |first=Casey |date=May 19, 2023 |title=VICTORIA CANAL WINS RISING STAR AT 2023 IVOR NOVELLO AWARDS • Red Light Management |url=https://www.redlightmanagement.com/victoria-canal-wins-rising-star-at-2023-ivor-novello-awards/ |access-date=August 8, 2023 |website=Red Light Management}} which recognizes promising music-creator careers.{{Cite web |title=The Rising Star Award with Amazon Music |url=https://ivorsacademy.com/awards/the-ivors/rising-star/ |access-date=August 8, 2023 |website=Ivors Academy}} She was the fourth woman to receive the award since its inception in 2020.

In June, 2023, Canal released a dual single, "Shape/She Walks In", and was awarded the Attitude Pride Icon Award by Attitude shortly after. In November, she won the Rising Star Award at that year's Ivor Novello Awards.{{Cite news |last=Morris |first=Hugh |date=2023-11-02 |title=Victoria Canal Feels Seen |url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/persons-of-interest/victoria-canal-feels-seen |access-date=2024-02-13 |work=The New Yorker |language=en-US |issn=0028-792X}}

In 2024, her song "Black Swan" won her a second Ivor Novello Award, this time for Best Song Musically and Lyrically, receiving it alongside co-songwriters Jonny Lattimer and Eg White.{{Cite news |last=The Ivors |first= |date=2023-05-23 |title=Winners of The Ivors with Amazon Music announced |url=https://ivorsacademy.com/news/winners-of-the-ivors-with-amazon-music-announced/ |access-date=2025-01-18 |work=Ivors Academy |language=en-US}}

On June 29, 2024, Canal joined Coldplay on the piano and vocals for their performance of "Paradise" on their headlining appearance at the Glastonbury Festival.{{Cite web|url=https://www.thetimes.com/uk/arts/article/victoria-canal-glastonbury-coldplay-pianist-interview-fq23f7fdc|title=Victoria Canal: I was bullied for having one arm. Now I’m playing piano with Coldplay|first=Jonathan Dean|last=Glastonbury|date=June 29, 2024|website=www.thetimes.com}}

Tours

Canal has supported the tours of Emily King,{{Cite web |last=Herstand |first=Ari |date=February 24, 2020 |title='I Don't Want to be the One-Armed Singer.' Representation and Engagement in the Age of Instagram - Ari's Take |url=https://aristake.com/victoria-canal-instagram-engagement/ |access-date=August 8, 2023 |website=Ari's Take}} JP Saxe,{{Cite web |title=SOLD OUT! JP Saxe w/ Victoria Canal |url=https://www.thebasementnashville.com/event/11030485/sold-out-jp-saxe-w-victoria-canal/ |access-date=August 8, 2023 |website=The Basement Nashville}} Tall Heights,{{Cite web |date=March 11, 2020 |title=Tall Heights/Victoria Canal |url=https://www.concertarchives.org/concerts/tall-heights-victoria-canal |access-date=August 7, 2023 |website=Concert Archives}} Leslie Odom Jr.,{{Cite web |title=Leslie Odom Jr. "STRONGER MAGIC TOUR" |url=https://www.houseofblues.com/eventdetail/?tmeventid=17005754CF6634A0&offerid=114120 |access-date=August 8, 2023 |website=House of Blues}} Teddy Swims{{Cite web |date=June 3, 2022 |title=Teddy Swims/Victoria Canal |url=https://www.concertarchives.org/concerts/teddy-swims-victoria-canal |access-date=August 7, 2023 |website=Concert Archives}} and Michael Franti.

In 2022, she launched her debut headline tour in support of her EP Elegy, including stops in Los Angeles, New York, London and Amsterdam. In the summer of 2023, Canal opened for Hozier on his Unreal Unearth Tour across Europe and the UK.{{Cite web |date=July 23, 2023 |title=Hozier with Far From Saints and Victoria Canal |url=https://whatsonreading.com/venues/heritage-live/whats-on/hozier-far-saints-and-victoria-canal |access-date=August 8, 2023 |website=What's On Reading}}

Acting

Canal made her acting debut in December 2022, playing the leading role of Ciela in episode 8 of season 2 of Little America on Apple TV+. The show was written by Lee Eisenberg, Kumail Nanjiani, and Emily V. Gordon.{{Cite web |title=Little America - Episodes & Images |url=https://www.apple.com/tv-pr/originals/little-america/episodes-images/ |access-date=August 8, 2023 |website=Apple TV+}}

Representation

Canal identifies as a bisexual woman with a disability, and sees her position as one of strength, resilience, determination, and hope. She told HuffPost, "I've always seen [my identity] as a unique opportunity, really. I used to shy away from the word ['disabled'] and all the things it implied. But as I've grown up and lived a few more years, I've met a community of people who embody strength. 'Disabled,' to me, actually has a totally different connotation."

Brand partnerships

In collaboration with her single "Drama", Canal partnered with Nike on the Jordan FlyEase, a sneaker designed for athletes with disabilities.

Discography

class="wikitable"

!Year

!Title

!Type

!Label

!Primary/feature

2015

|"Unclear"

|Single

|Self-released

|Primary

2016

|Into the Pull

|EP

|Self-released

|Primary

rowspan="3" |2018

|"City Shoes"

|Single

|Self-released

|Primary

"Ebony"

|Single

|Self-released

|Primary

"He Won't Know"

|Single

|Self-released

|Primary

rowspan="2" |2019

|The Flower (Michael Franti feat. Victoria Canal)

|Album

|Boo Boo Wax

|Feature

"Drama"

|Single

|Self-released

|Primary

rowspan="5" |2020

|"Second"

|Single

|Self-released

|Primary

"Second (Ferris Pier Remix)"

|Single

|Self-released

|Primary

"Drama (Dreux Remix)"

|Single

|Self-released

|Primary

"Will Call" (Brasstracks feat. Elliott Skinner and Victoria Canal)

|Single

|UMG/Capitol Records

|Feature

Victoria

|EP

|Self-released

|Primary

|"Low Light" (Victoria Canal, Josh Jacobson, Lorelai, Colin Cook, Terence F. Clark)

|Single

|InGrooves Distribution

|Feature

2021

|victoria (without the drama)

|EP

|Self-released

|Primary

rowspan="5" |2022

|"own me"

|Single

|Parlophone

|Primary

"pity season"

|Single

|Parlophone

|Primary

"Best Foot Forward" (Little America - Apple TV+ Original Series Soundtrack)

|Single

|Parlophone

|Primary

"swan song"

|Single

|Parlophone

|Primary

Elegy

|EP

|Parlophone

|Primary

rowspan="3" |2023

|"BBC Piano Sessions"{{Cite web |date=2022-10-23 |title=BBC Radio 1 - Radio 1's Piano Sessions, Victoria Canal |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0d1zsh8 |access-date=2023-08-08 |website=BBC |language=en-GB}}

|Single

|Parlophone

|Primary

"Shape/She Walks In"

|Single

|Parlophone

|Primary

"Company"

|Single

|Parlophone

|Primary

2025

|Slowly, It Dawns

|LP

| Parlophone

|Primary

Victoria Canal

Early life and education

Career

= Beginnings, 2013–2014 =

= 2015–2016 =

= 2017–2020 =

= 2021–present =

Tours

Acting

Representation

Brand partnerships

Discography

References

Further reading