After picking up a guitar a decade ago in an attempt to look “bad ass,” an Okotoks musician is now exposing their vulnerable side in their first EP.
“My writing is very honest, as silly as some of it is,” said 24-year-old Lanice Chep. “I write about three things: love, being sad and being gay. It’s being vulnerable and being myself. I put my heart on my sleeve.”
Chep, who is non-binary (doesn’t identify exclusively as either masculine or feminine), picked up their first guitar at 14 in junior high band class.
“The people you see with guitars are freaking bad ass and I wanted to look like that,” said Chep. “Something about it is so empowering.”
Using YouTube videos and a lot of practice, Chep taught themself how to play.
“I used to watch people play and I would follow along with their hands,” Chep said. “I’m more of a visual learner. I felt really bad for my family the first two to three years of playing.”
At age 17, Chep worked up the courage to step on a public stage at a queer brunch following a pride event in Calgary.
Although a sound check was conducted, Chep’s guitar wouldn’t hook up properly and the sound was awful. The sound person had already left so Chep went on singing.
“Nothing was working and it was the worst experience,” recalls Chep. “I cried for two hours and I didn’t pick up my guitar for months.”
After some encouragement from friends, Chep began going to open mics playing cover tunes.
Everything changed for Chep almost a year ago after learning about Freestyle Fridays at Tribal Connection Market, a venue that invites artists of various genres to perform on stage whether it’s reading poetry, acting or singing.
It was this experience that got Chep feeling comfortable and confident in front of others, with some encouragement from musician Richard Moment.
“When I met Richard I only had one original song,” Chep said. “He’s a lyrical genius and I’m very inspired by him. He said, ‘Just write and just pour it out.’”
Chep took Moment’s advice and began putting words together.
“Writing your own music is like an extension of yourself,” Chep said. “You just have to be true to yourself. Now I’ve come a long way. I’m at a place where I’m comfortable to share that with people.”
Moment took it a step further and encouraged Chep to record their music.
This resulted in the five-song EP Ridiculous that Chep recorded at home with help from friends after testing the songs out for months at Freestyle Fridays.
“I started writing because I went through a couple of rough patches,” Chep said. “Some aspects of life were falling apart and others were falling together. You just have to keep pushing forward and keep going.”
Chep describes the title track Ridiculous as a sappy love song while the song Good Enough revels Chep’s more vulnerable side and Let’s Get One Thing Straight is Chep’s response to being hit on by men at work.
“It just shows my personality,” said Chep of the EP. “I didn’t want to come out with anything too heavy. This is to break the ice.”
Chep’s genre is more coffee-shop folk, with the lighter songs bringing out Chep’s love to play with words and create puns, while the sad songs are more serious.
“I’m just very punny and I love making people laugh,” Chep said. “I love playing with words.”
With the EP getting great responses from friends and family, Chep said the next step is to record some singles with the hope of getting more gigs.
“It’s hard to promote yourself or share your music if you don’t have anything to show for it,” Chep said. “I don’t do this for the money. Most of my gigs aren’t paid or I donate most of it back to a cause I believe in. I just do it for the fun and to make people smile.”
For Chep, it’s about touching people with words.
“You know those songs that just click with you and make your day?” asked Chep. “I want to give that to someone.”
It was while performing at Freestyle Fridays that Chep realized they had a talent for captivating an audience.
“One of my favourite things is being able to quiet down a room,” Chep said. “That’s when I realized this is something I can do. Hopefully I can get more gigs and share more of myself with people. “We have a lot of talent in this town and I’ve been lucky to be able to grow within it.”
In addition to performing at Tribal Connection Market, Chep plays at The Royal Duke Restaurant and Bar and various Calgary venues and pride events.
Chep will perform in the Scotiabank Backbeat program that showcases local artists at Studio Bell Oct. 19 at 1 p.m. and can be seen performing at almost every Freestyle Friday event.
“I’m still learning how to network,” Chep said. “I’m still new at this whole getting paid for playing music.”
Ridiculous is available on all streaming platforms.
