Shy-Anne Hovorka
Alumni Profile: Shy-Anne Hovorka BED '03, HBMUS '05
Award winning Lakehead graduate, Shy-Anne Hovorka, is well on her way as a singing sensation. She is a double graduate holding an Honors Music Performance degree (2000) as well as a Bachelors of Education degree (2003). Her passion to work both with children as well as take the stage has led to a very interesting string of events after her graduation.
Prior to Shy-Anne attending Lakehead University, she had a very tough start to life. Being in and out of the foster care system from the start of her life, she was finally adopted by the Hovorka family in her early school years. She was bullied throughout her teen years, but found solace in writing music. It was her way to see past the follies of the bullies, and develop a sense of pride in herself.
Shy-Anne joined the high school band, and her professional music training started. She began vocal and piano lessons as a teen. Her goal was to have a career in music. At age 16, she found out what would be needed to gain entrance to a university to study music. After researching many different university music programs, Shy-Anne found that Lakehead had all
the things she needed; It had a small, yet well founded music program. This offered more one-on-one with student-teacher communication and education. It also was near her home of Red Lake, Ontario, had the amenities of a city, while still having the outdoor connection to nature that Shy-Anne had grown up in. On top of that, Lakehead also had a strong Aboriginal community that was very welcoming and inclusive. All of this made Lakehead the perfect choice for her to study music, and embark on her life as a young adult.
In 2000, Shy-Anne graduated from the music program with her honors, and decided to travel and work overseas. This took her to Seoul, South Korea, where she taught ESL through music to children ranging in ages 3-18. She then realized
that she had a passion for education as well as performance. She came home after 2 years of work overseas, and re-appliedto university for her education degree. She had applied to 3 universities, was accepted in all three, and was thrilled that Lakehead, her first choice, was one of those 3. In 2003, she graduated yet again from Lakehead, this time as an educator.
Shy-Anne applied for teaching jobs across Canada and was offered many teaching positions. She accepted a job in her home town district teaching music, Ojibwe, Reading Recovery, Early Literacy and Oral Language for the next five years. Her degrees at Lakehead had indeed opened many
opportunities, and have never left her jobless.
After teaching Shy-Anne decided to try her hand at her other passion, singing and song-writing. She took a leave of absence from the Keewatin Patricia District School Board, and wrote and recorded her first album named after her Aboriginal spirit name, “Black ThunderBird”, 2007. She quickly gained national recognition in the Aboriginal community for her album, on radio and through her performances. She gained 7 music award nominations from this album, and played in venues that musicians dream of playing, as well as opened for internationally known artists like Thomson Highway and Crystal Shawanda.
Seeing her first album gain such quick momentum, Shy-Anne decided to write and record her second album. This time she collaborated with two other Lakehead graduates, Rob Benvegnu and Jordan Elcheson. Rob helped Shy-Anne produce the album, Jordan became her guitarist, and both helped co-write 3 of the 15 songs on her second album entitled “Pseudo”, 2010.
Her second album gained twice as much momentum as the first album. Her single Pseudo (co-write with Rob Benvegnu) hit #1 on Canada Myspace for 6 weeks straight, and her other single Can't Change the World (co-write with Jordan Elcheson) hit #5 on National Aboriginal Countdown, and was requested to open both the 2010 G-8 Interfaith Summit and the 2010 Winnipeg Folk Festival. Her video for the song gained quick momentum on Youtube as well. She then went on to win Best Produced Album and the coveted Female Aboriginal Entertainer of the Year in November 2010 at North America's Aboriginal People's Choice Music Awards with her new album, Pseudo.
Shy-Anne attributes much of her success to her education at Lakehead University. The welcoming Northern environment, the warmth of the faculty, the great natural environment of Northern Ontario, the wonderful inclusion of the Aboriginal culture are just a few things that made Lakehead a perfect choice for Shy-Anne. “Without the education, and the warm atmosphere of Lakehead University, I doubt I would be as successful as I am today. I owe Lakehead more than thanks for the stellar education, but also a special thanks for creating a welcoming, inviting environment.”
If you would like to check out Shy-Anne and her music, you can check her out at www.youtube.com/shysmusic, www.shy-anne.com, and on Facebook at Shy-Anne Hovorka.
