Amy Millan (born December 3, 1973) is a Canadian

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

singer and guitarist. She records and performs with the bands

Stars A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma held together by its gravity. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night, but their immense distances from Earth ma ...

and

Broken Social Scene Broken Social Scene is a Canadians, Canadian indie rock band, a musical collective including as few as six and as many as nineteen members, formed by Kevin Drew (vocals, guitar) and Brendan Canning (vocals, bass) in 1999. Alongside Drew and Cannin ...

as well as having a successful solo career. Her second solo album, '' Masters of the Burial'', was released by

Arts & Crafts Productions Arts & Crafts Productions is a music-focused media and artist services company that offers information as an independent record label, management firm, merchandiser, and publisher worldwide. It has earned 21 Juno Awards. Arts & Crafts has been ...

in September 2009.

Biography

Early life

Amy Millan grew up in the Cabbagetown neighbourhood of

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

. She attended high school at

Jarvis Collegiate Institute Jarvis Collegiate Institute is a high school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is named after Jarvis Street where it is located. It is a part of the Toronto District School Board (TDSB). Prior to 1998, it was within the Toronto Board of Education (T ...

, and later the

Etobicoke School of the Arts The Etobicoke School of the Arts (ESA) is a specialized public arts-academic high school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located in Etobicoke, it has been housed in the former Royal York Collegiate Institute facility since 1983. Founded on September ...

where she studied drama alongside future

bandmates

Kevin Drew Kevin Drew (born September 9, 1976) is a Canadian musician and songwriter who, together with Brendan Canning, founded the expansive Toronto baroque-pop collective Broken Social Scene. He was also part of the lesser-known KC Accidental, which con ...

and

Emily Haines Emily Savitri Haines (born 25 January 1974) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She is the lead singer, keyboardist and songwriter of the rock band Metric and a member of the musical collective Broken Social Scene. As a solo artist, she has pe ...

. Millan and Haines formed the band Edith's Mission. Although short-lived, Edith's Mission did play a sold-out show at the Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto.Berman, Stuart. '' This Book is Broken.'' 2009. After high school, Millan moved to

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

for three years to attend Concordia University and gained experience as a solo performer by playing in coffee shops. Upon returning to Toronto, she formed the roots-rock band 16 Tons and wrote many of the songs that she would use to launch her solo career several years later. After the breakup of 16 Tons, Millan moved to Los Angeles. While living there, her song with 16 Tons, "Bury Me," was added to the soundtrack of the film ''

Drowning Mona ''Drowning Mona'' is a 2000 American crime comedy film starring Danny DeVito as Wyatt Rash, a local police chief from Verplanck, New York, who investigates the mysterious death of Mona Dearly (Bette Midler), a spiteful, hard-drinking, loud-mou ...

''. However, Millan, missing a city where walking was encouraged over driving, returned to Toronto.

Stars

was formed by

Torquil Campbell Torquil Campbell (born 17 March 1972) is the co-lead singer and a songwriter for the Montreal-based indie rock band Stars. In addition to singing, he also plays the melodica, trumpet, synthesizer, and tambourine. Campbell is also an actor and ...

and Chris Seligman in New York City. The line-up subsequently grew to incorporate

Evan Cranley Evan Cranley is a Canadian musician based in Montreal, Quebec. He records with the bands Stars and Broken Social Scene, although he considered joining the band Metric before finally joining Stars. Musical career Early on, Cranley was in the band ...

, with whom Millan had played gigs while a member of 16 Tons. Feeling that Millan would be a good fit for the group, Cranley invited her to New York City to audition in December 1999. After receiving assurances that she would be actively involved in the songwriting process, Millan agreed to join the band. As much of their debut album had been recorded prior to her joining, Millan's involvement in 2001's '' Nightsongs'' was limited, although she did sing lead vocals on "Toxic Holiday". Desiring to return to Canada, but not wanting to move to Toronto, the band relocated to Montreal. Drummer Pat McGee was recruited as their fifth member prior to the release of their second album, ''

Heart The heart is a muscular organ in most animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrients to the body, while carrying metabolic waste such as carbon dioxide t ...

'', in 2003. Millan's influence was more evident on this album, and a number of the tracks were performed as duets between her and Torquil Campbell, establishing a style for which the band would become well known. Stars' commercial breakthrough came with their 2004 album ''

Set Yourself on Fire ''Set Yourself on Fire'' is the third studio album by Canadian indie rock band Stars. It was released on September 14, 2004 on the Arts & Crafts International record label in Canada and the United Kingdom, and on March 8, 2005 in the United Stat ...

'' and the accompanying single "

Ageless Beauty "Ageless Beauty" was the fifth single (music), single released by the Canadians, Canadian indie pop group Stars (Canadian band), Stars. It was the second single from the critically acclaimed album ''Set Yourself on Fire''. It was featured in a p ...

", which featured a lead vocal by Millan. Their fourth album, ''

In Our Bedroom After the War ''In Our Bedroom After the War'' is the fourth studio album by Stars, released digitally on July 10, 2007 and physically on September 25 on the Arts & Crafts record label. It was released to digital retailers in an attempt to battle the album's ...

'', was released in 2007 and was followed by the EP '' Sad Robots'' the following year. In June 2010, they released their fifth full-length album, '' The Five Ghosts''.

Broken Social Scene

Although she did not officially contribute to

's first two albums, due to scheduling conflicts for BSS members Emily Haines and

Leslie Feist Leslie Feist (born 13 February 1976), known mononymously as Feist, is a Canadian indie pop singer-songwriter and guitarist, performing both as a solo artist and as a member of the indie rock group Broken Social Scene. Feist launched her solo mu ...

, she was asked by former classmate Kevin Drew to "be the girl" and sing with the band for the release concert of the band's second album, ''

You Forgot It in People ''You Forgot It in People'' is the second studio album by Canadian indie rock band Broken Social Scene, released on October 15, 2002. It was the band's commercial breakthrough. ''You Forgot It in People'' features intricate, experimental productio ...

''. From 2002 onward, Millan has often performed in BSS alongside fellow Stars members Evan Cranley, Chris Seligman and Torquil Campbell. She appeared on their 2005 self-titled album and also contributed vocals and writing to Kevin Drew's 2007 solo album ''Spirit If...'' as well as to Brendan Canning's 2008 solo album ''Something For All of Us''. As in Stars, Amy usually sings with BSS but also plays guitar and percussion during live shows.

''Honey from the Tombs''

Amy Millan released her debut solo album, '' Honey from the Tombs'', in 2006. It consisted of songs largely written before 2000, from when Millan was a member of 16 Tons. The album title was inspired by a

Tom Waits Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on the underbelly of society and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He worked primarily in jazz during ...

interview where he compared the release of older songs to the discovery of sweet honey buried in Egyptian tombs. The album was produced by

Ian Blurton Ian Blurton (born 1965) is a Canadian musician and record producer. Early life He was born in Champaign, Illinois in 1965, and moved to Toronto in 1973. Musical career He has been a part of Toronto's indie music scene since the early 1980s. He ...

and musical contributors included

Brendan Canning Brendan may refer to: People * Saint Brendan the Navigator (c. 484 – c. 577) was an Irish monastic saint. * Saint Brendan of Birr (died 573), Abbot of Birr in Co. Offaly, contemporaneous with the above * Brendan (given name), a masculine given na ...

and

and Dan and

Jenny Whiteley Jenny Whiteley is a Canadian country and folk singer-songwriter. She was a member of the band Heartbreak Hill, and released several solo albums of folk music. She has won two Juno Awards for her music. Early life and family Whiteley grew up ...

from Crazy Strings. In contrast to her work with Stars, Millan's solo work is strongly influenced by country and folk music. Thematically, many of the songs deal with loss and loneliness, and taking solace in alcohol is sung about numerous times. Millan's upbringing in Toronto provided the inspiration for the song "Wayward and Parliament", which is based on her time working in the coffee shop "Jet Fuel" on Parliament Street. Two videos were shot to promote ''Honey from the Tombs'': "Skinny Boy" was directed by George Vale, and "Baby I" was directed by Anthony Seck. The songs "Losin' You" and "Baby I", were released as 7" singles in Europe. Millan also toured extensively to support the album, playing dates in North America, Japan and Europe.

''Masters of the Burial''

Millan released her second album, ''Masters of the Burial'', on September 8, 2009. The album is produced by Martin Kinack and musicians appearing include Evan Cranley, Dan and Jenny Whiteley, Leslie Feist and Liam O'Neil. The album features several cover songs, including some written by Death Cab for Cutie and Sarah Harmer.

Personal life

Millan is married to Stars bandmate

. Their daughter, Delphine Rita Jane Cranley, was born on March 21, 2011. Millan gave birth to a son in 2017.Amy Millan on Instagram
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Discography

Albums

EPs

Singles

Compilations

Collaborations

For Amy Millan's work with Stars, see Stars discography.

Footnotes

External links

Amy Millan
official website
2009 Amy Millan Interview at Bandega.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Millan, Amy 1973 births Living people Canadian pop guitarists Canadian women guitarists Canadian indie pop musicians Canadian indie rock musicians Canadian women rock singers Musicians from Toronto Arts & Crafts Productions artists Stars (Canadian band) members Broken Social Scene members Canadian women pop singers 20th-century Canadian guitarists 21st-century Canadian guitarists 20th-century Canadian pianists 21st-century Canadian pianists Canadian rock pianists Canadian women pianists 20th-century Canadian women singers 21st-century Canadian women singers 20th-century women guitarists 21st-century women guitarists 20th-century women pianists 21st-century women pianists