Canada's Walk of Fame has been around for 13 years and it includes the names of many talented actors, athletes, musicians and other accomplished Canadians on a prominent stretch of Toronto sidewalk. A Foothills musician is now trying to make him mark on the walk.
The one thing Canada's Walk of Fame is missing is a theme song, but High River's renowned guitar virtuoso Calum Graham is looking to have a hand in rectifying the situation.
Graham, 19, is one of the 10 finalists in the A Song For Canada contest. His poem made it to the final group of contenders which was whittled down from the original crop of more than 600 submissions.
“ I was totally surprised,” Graham said of the success of his entry. “ I didn't expect anything of it and I kind of forgot about it. It was quite a while later that they contacted me. I was very happy. It made my day.”
The contest winner will be announced Aug. 30 and he or she will have a minimum of one line from their entry incorporated in a new walk of fame song. They will also get $25,000 cash, $10,000 in studio time, a trip to the upcoming Canada's Walk of Fame awards and a chance to work alongside singer Chantal Kreviazuk and other musical luminaries on the final song.
Predictability, Graham is thrilled at the prospect of collecting all those rewards.
He has a legitimate shot at being selected. He has a solid track record when his talents have been tested having already won the 2010 Canadian Guitar Competition, the 2009 Canadian Youth Talent Competition and the 2009 Calgary Stampede Talent Search.
Entrants in the A Song For Canada contest were required to describe the true essence of the Canadian identity and were asked to include things that make them proud to be Canadian.
The adept guitarist was pleased he was able to put his musicianship to work in his entry
“ What I did originally is write the poem,” he said. “ At the time I also had a song I didn't really have lyrics for. So I played the music track in the background then I did spoken word over it.”
Graham started playing guitar about six years ago and began writing songs shortly after. His first disc “ Sunny Side Up” came out two years ago and included among its 10 tracks five original compositions. The High River musician is about to depart to Los Angeles to record his second CD which this time will feature Graham's lyrics and vocals as well as his impressive guitar work.
“ Just over the last year I have been working with my voice and writing songs with lyrics and band arrangements,” he said. “ I have been truly diversifying myself and trying to find my style.”
Graham admitted he has career related plans for the prize money if he comes out on top of the A Song For Canada contest.
“ With the $25,000 I would definitely put it into the new album as much as I could,” he explained. “ I don't think that would take all of it. So the rest of it would be saved or I would put it into new equipment.”
The blossoming singer-songwriter is looking for all the help he can get in his efforts to win the poetry-based challenge. Directions on how one can vote for his submission can be found on his web site www.calumgraham.com
