Village Chanteuse Writing Her Own Success Story
Cayla Brooke first found her voice as a teenager growing up in Vancouver, while singing at church. After secretly practicing in her room, singing along to Barbra Streisand and Nat King Cole, she surprised her family (who had taken seats in the back, just in case) and wowed the congregation with her voice.
By the time she was 19, Cayla had performed on several continents, before Prime Ministers and Presidents and even had a chance to sing at Carnegie Hall.
But after taking a break to get married and have kids, life got in the way of her singing career. "After I hadn't performed in public for a while, I started to feel like I was too old, that there was no space for me any more." When she admitted as much aloud, her daughter scoffed. "She said, 'Would you want that for me, Mom?' and I had to admit that I wouldn't."
When her oldest sister died, her final words to Cayla were "Don't let fear stop you." And she says the advice from these two important women in her life ended up turning Cayla back toward music again. She joined a gospel choir, and then moved on to portray both her musical heroes Peggy Lee and Eva Cassidy on stage. She's performed sold-out concerts with blues and jazz greats including Michael Creber and Bill Sample.
Cayla and her family have lived in Lions Bay for more than twenty years. When the pandemic put an end to public performances, she headed out onto the deck of her Brunswick Beach home and sang to the neighbours. Her Friday night performances were a highlight during a time when everyone was feeling isolated.
These days, she's still busy making music. Cayla released her debut album at the age of 55, and has a brand new album of original material and cover songs in the works. And later this month, Cayla Brooke will be performing live in concert right here in the village.
Broughton Hall, Lions Bay
Sunday, April 16, 2023, 3-5:00 pm
Tickets are available HERE
You can find Cayla Brooke on Spotify and Instagram. And as a special treat, The Watershed is offering lucky readers two free tickets to see Cayla Brooke live in concert at the village hall, along with a CD of her debut album. To get your name in the draw, just share this article on Facebook or Twitter, along with the hashtag #lionsbaywatershed. We'll announce the winner on April 10, right here on the site. Good luck!
This is the first in The Watershed's new series featuring Lions Bay artists. Know a local talent you'd like to see us profile? Drop a note to editor@lionsbaywatershed.ca
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