Danielle Allard has the rare ability to make you feel as if you are talking to one of your oldest friends—but then you suddenly realize that her life is the unicorn we all chase throughout our professional lives.
Dan Matthews Photography
When I finish my interview with Ottawa-born artist and communications professor Danielle Allard on a cold November afternoon, I realize she has reminded me of why I feel compelled to write something new every day. Grateful, I compliment her on her song Shipwreck—which I had been listening to before our interview—and the release this past May of the album from which it comes, Chameleon. She takes both pleasure and amusement from compliments. As she says, “On both my first and current albums, people’s favourite songs are the most depressing and heart wrenching.”
Over the course of our forty-minute interview, I forget at moments that I am talking to a woman who has done in her life what most people only dream of—to work authentically and prosperously in a field she feels passionate about. When this former strange art kid remembers her childhood struggles with bullying, I can relate to her; when she explains how she gets audiences to get creative with craft paper and crayons, I laugh along with her; when she expresses her dual passions for music and teaching and how they complement each other, I am all ears.
After the call is finished, I look out the window and watch the snow fall over downtown Toronto. Her music is playing softly in the background. All is calm, but looking over my notes, I am jolted by a fresh appreciation of the person I’ve just been speaking with. “Oh my god,” I tell myself. “Danielle Allard is a true artist and someone to be envied.”
Allard has the rare ability to make you feel as if you are talking to one of your oldest friends—but then you suddenly realize that her life is the unicorn we all chase throughout our professional lives. She might mention one of the students in her communications course, or share her successes and disappointments within the music industry, or allude to a recent charitable organization she is performing at. There are good moments and less good moments, and Allard never glosses over the hard work and perseverance needed to find fulfillment in the arts. What sets her apart is the joy she reliably finds. She loves the moments of honest and raw self-expression, loves seeing art and creative expression bring people together.
“I cannot live my life that way”
Justin Van Leeuwen, JVL Photo
She is part of the growing number of young professionals who are unwilling to accept a life which does not stimulate them. “I cannot live my life that way,” she says. “I just cannot do something for forty hours a week I do not enjoy.”
She believes success is about being happy. “And what makes me happy is helping people,” she says.
She helps through making beautiful music and through teaching: “I love them both equally, whether in the classroom or on stage.”
What particularly makes Danielle Allard special is her complete disregard for the fame game that so many young artists and creative types are accused of playing. She doesn’t believe that fame and wealth breed happiness. If she could perform more, she’s not sure she would. “I’m happy in my life and like a certain amount of anonymity,” she says. The balance she now has between performing and teaching gives her great personal satisfaction.
Allard has the kind of experience most artists can only dream of. In May 2015, she released her second feature-length album with money she had raised through crowdfunding; she did much of the advertising, marketing and promotion herself.
When we touched on the government grants that help fledgling artists fund their work, Allard said any artist should apply, even if they are not sure they qualify. “If you can get the money, and you qualify, then absolutely get the money.”
Allard on personal brand and the effort it takes
Many people do not understand that being an independent artist “without the aid of 40 to 60 people behind them” requires that one create one’s own personal brand around their business. For many artists, this is difficult, even though, through social media, the current moment is potentially one of the most creative and innovative in human history. “But not many artists are great business people,” she says. Many artists, particularly the younger ones, achieve temporary notoriety on the internet, whether through antics on Snapchat, a viral YouTube video or a hilariously sardonic tweet on Twitter—but to remain relevant and to keep one’s brand going requires astonishing creativity and work.
Allard is a superb example of an artist who seamlessly bridges the gap between different careers. Her music-making and her teaching are not naturally connected but she notes that both are sparked by a common factor—her love of helping people. Music puts something right in the spirit, and teaching conveys skills that students need to flourish in the world. Allard is also heavily involved in the Ottawa community and offers her services and time to many local charities. In some sense, this is a matter of giving back, for she feels she has received a great deal from “family,” a term she defines fluidly.
Are millennials lazy and self-indulgent?
screenshot © Crown Music
Allard disproves the generational belief that millennials are lazy and self-indulgent. Through hard work, she has become the quintessential businesswoman and young professional who connects with people through two distinct career paths.
As a society, we spend too much time celebrating famous artists and living vicariously through what the media reveals about their lives. After speaking with Danielle Allard, I realized her success is more personal. She is the artist I strived to be when I was a child. Her goals are not wealth or renown but the opportunity to use her gifts to bring people together.
To be both a true artist and a servant of others is an attainment. We can envy the life Danielle Allard has made, but she would rather you forgo envy and put the energy into allowing her to help you achieve your dreams. In her classroom, she helps by giving you her attention; at her concerts, she gives her music and energy—and maybe some craft paper and crayons so you can turn creator yourself.
