Deanne Rose Moore didn't expect her debut single to top the Canadian R&B/ Soul chart on iTunes.
Moore, 30, is from Moosonee and currently lives in Wemindji Cree First Nation, Quebec.
Her debut single, Not Waiting Anymore, co-written with Jace Martin, was released Friday, Oct. 9.
By noon the next day, the song had climbed to No. 1 on Canada’s R&B/Soul iTunes chart. It also placed 24th on the overall Canadian iTunes chart on Oct. 10.
“The song is about not waiting for approval and not waiting for opportunities. It really represents boldness. It meant being sick and tired of being sick and tired, and walking around tired of living small and not living up to my potential,” she said. “And now it’s just really saying I can do this. My own power doesn’t belong in someone else’s hands but my own. I can determine what I can do and go for it.”
When the single rose from its position in the 100s to No.2 on the R&B/Soul chart on the day of its release, Moore said she was in shock and didn’t expect such a response.
“I had to walk around my house a bit, I need to breathe a little bit. And when it went No. 1 the next day, on Saturday, we decided to go for a hike with my two children and my husband just to get it out of the system,” she recalled. “I didn’t expect that, I just wanted to write music and put it out there and see what happens.”
Moore said she first started writing the song a few years ago but put it away as she was feeling “discouraged” and couldn’t connect to it at the time.
Growing up in Moosonee, Moore has been singing since she was three or four. She picked up a guitar when she was about 10, and her two cousins helped her learn how to play.
“We sang in church together. We learned songs through the church. I guess that kept us out of trouble as youth,” she said. “And then I learned to play in a small church band when I was 13.”
Music has always been there as her “resilience,” Moore said. She grew up listening to Etta James, Sam Cooke, Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston and Shania Twain, and her inspiration comes from gospel and soul music.
“During my childhood, I was in foster care system, so music was really an outlet and my safe haven during that time,” she said.
In 2018, she was selected for a Youth Music Mentorship Project in Moose Factory and Moosonee. The project also brought them to Perth, Australia, where Moore, along with other delegates, worked with Indigenous youth during the National and World Indigenous Suicide Prevention Conference.
“We got to network with a lot of youth and record a song and write one. It was an amazing experience that also validated a dream of wanting to pursue something more in music,” she said.
As a social worker, Moore said she would like to incorporate music into her practices.
Earlier this summer, Moore took part in the Next Top Indigenous Superstar contest, held by the Darren Ross Agency and Jukasa Studios. Moore sent a 30-second video of herself singing I’d Rather Go Blind by Etta James and about a week later, she received a call informing her she was the winner.
“They had put up this call out for Indigenous artists … and they had received over 100 submissions, from what I was told. I was encouraged to apply and I kind of did it last minute, a day before,” Moore said.
As a result of winning the contest, Moore signed a deal with the Darren Ross Agency, released the single and is now working on an album, which is expected to be released in 2021.
“I’m not sure what will happen next but I would love to pursue something in music mentoring,” she said.
