A local singer is making waves across the prairies and into BC.
Singer Judah Wardrope is originally from Carlyle, Saskatchewan, and is growing his music career across western Canada.
“I started singing and playing guitar when I was probably about 13,” Wardrope explained. “Growing up in Carlyle, there weren’t a ton of places to play. I’d play the odd open mic if I could find one, but I really started going for it about a year and a half ago. I was living in Saskatoon and was like ‘man, I’ve had this thing on my heart for a while, so I’m going to give it a go,’ and it just started rolling.”
At the time, he signed on with Prairie Country Music Association and then joined the BC Country Music Association when he moved out there.
“Since then, we’ve released the first single, that’s been doing really well. It got picked up on seven stations in Canada and one down in the States, so I feel really blessed. We’ve been playing all over the place, BC, Alberta, and now we’re coming back through Saskatchewan. I just played my hometown festival of Carlyle Fun Days, which was a dream come true. This will always be home, this area, for me. No matter where I go. It’s funny, I was actually born in BC, but we moved out to Carlyle when I was a little, little kid, so it’s like 90 percent of my life. I’m always very proud to tell people that I’m a Saskatchewan kid, a prairie kid, that is something that made me who I am. I’ve had some of the best times of my life and some of the hardest times in my life out here where I grew up and that ultimately is what makes you who you are and it affects my songwriting, my singing, my influences, everything about me is not just an artist but as a person. So Carlyle and the area, like here in Weyburn, this is all home for me and always will be.”
While Judah has been promoting his current single, If I Die Tomorrow, he is also working on new projects.
“I’ve been in the studio back in Vancouver working on the next single. We don’t have a date for it yet, but we’re shooting a music video when I fly back next week,” he said. “The song is going to be called Sundown. It’s a song that was actually pitched to me by a writer in Saskatoon, and it’s basically a fun kind of summertime song that you crank with your friends with the windows down, driving on the backroads. My team and I’ve also been talking about a four-song EP for the fall, again, no dates, but that’s what is kind of in the near future.”
He added that you can follow along with everything he has going on, including his new lineup of merch, by following him on Instagram (judahwardropemusic).
“All that is a huge help for myself,” he noted. “It goes towards new music, touring, expenses, all that stuff. I’ve had a few conversations with labels here and there, but right now I am still an independent artist, so it’s anyone’s wanting to support, that’s merch and streaming songs. It’s a huge, huge help that’s much appreciated.”