ABOUT SABRINA

With the recent launch of her debut country music album, That’s Me, Sabrina Whyatt is gearing up for an exciting 2012. After a sold out cd release concert, Sabrina is ready to take the new year by storm.

 She'll be well-equipped to handle that, for weathering storms is a key part of Sabrina’s other career, as a crab fisherman. Yes, the Newfoundland and Labrador-based singer/songwriter heads her own crab fishing fleet, a tough but lucrative occupation she is passionately in love with.

"That started back in 1999," she recalls. After years of working as a journalist, Sabrina started her own newspaper and was trying to make some extra money to keep it going. “Dad offered me a job crab fishing when a crew member left. I loved it. I bought him out a couple of years later and eventually bought a total of four fishing enterprises." All this, while she still managed to build a successful career in television news. Sabrina is officially a Sea Captain, recently earning her Class 4 Fishing Masters, although she's quick to point out that onboard her vessels, she prefers to be a deckhand.

“My crew forgot more than I will ever know. There’s much to be said for experience and I have the utmost respect for their experience and wisdom,” says a modest Sabrina. “I may be the boss, but I’m not above being told what to do and they certainly don’t mind telling me,” she laughs.

The first two singles off Sabrina’s new record (All Over Again and Whiskey Woman) have been heard on Canadian and American radio stations. All Over Again landed on the U.S. main Top 40 A/C Charts.

To bring All Over Again to life, Sabrina shot a music video, which was featured on CMT Canada and Newfoundland and Labrador hit station NTV, along with a profile on her fishing career. Sabrina independently produced her debut music video through her production company Rain Productions Inc. And in true Sabrina fashion, she gave it her all, opting to shoot it in 35mm motion picture film. That’s the standard in Hollywood. “My good friend and local director John Bonnell directed the video and I couldn’t be more proud of it.”

Citizens of Newfoundland and Labrador have long been exposed to both Sabrina's photogenic charm and her abilities as a print and TV journalist. After studying journalism, she worked at various newspapers across the country before starting her own for expatriate Newfoundlanders and Labradorians called Off the Rock.

When she started fishing, she attracted the attention of CBC television, and became the subject of a documentary, Sabrina of St. Carol's. A similarly intrigued CMT recently shot a segment about her, which aired on ‘The Show’. The CBC film also caught the eye of local media magnate, Geoff Stirling, owner of the province's television station, NTV. The station hired her as a video journalist and she soon became the official fisheries reporter and part-time anchor, though Sabrina insisted on one condition: "I was not willing to give up fishing. They were kind enough to let me take an unpaid leave in the summer to go crab fishing. I was blessed to be able to do both. I’ve always appreciated what they did for me.”

Sabrina also graced the cover of the province’s magazine The Newfoundland Herald three times. They deemed her “the voice of rural Newfoundland.”

Sabrina shone in her TV news roles, but the intense work schedule took its toll. "I found it was affecting my creativity in other areas," she says. "There was a period where I couldn't write anything." She resigned from news in 2005, and then turned her hand to producing and hosting a TV health and fitness show, another ratings success.

Sabrina also sits on the board of the Canadian Centre for Fisheries Innovation (CCFI), an appointment by the Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador Board of Regents. The CCFI is a non-profit organization owned by Memorial University that provides the tools of scientific research and technology to the fishing industry.

Sabrina’s debut record is the sound of someone with stories to tell, and it reflects her fascinating and colorful life journey. Bet you can't name any other country singer/songwriters who have had successful careers in journalism, TV, and the fishing industry prior to making their first album!
 
Sabrina's vocal and musical talent was evident early on. In fact, as a teenager she was playing in bands, appearing on television shows, and writing and performing songs at community events. She made a cassette of her own songs, selling 1,000 copies by, in her words, "literally knocking door to door on the Northern Peninsula." Other career options then presented themselves, but she is now set to announce her musical arrival.

A perfectionist in everything she does, Sabrina was not about to rush on her first major recording experience. A first step was to find a musically compatible producer. "I was a little intimidated in finding a producer," Whyatt recalls. She made a superb choice in the form of Michael Borkosky, a Toronto-based producer who has played a crucial role in helping Rex Goudie find real commercial success.  He has produced the last two albums from Alannah Myles and has worked with Sass Jordan, so he clearly knows his way around female singers with strong voices and personalities. To that list, you can now add the name of Sabrina Whyatt.
 
"I met with Mike when he was here in Newfoundland working with Rex Goudie, and I just connected with him personally," recalls Sabrina. The pair worked long and hard on the songs on the album over a period of years, and their efforts have paid off handsomely. "I've reached the point where I am absolutely proud of every single track," says Sabrina. "Mike has been so great at taking my songs and adding to them musically to create my vision. That's pretty cool." Borkosky observes that "producing is a bit like alchemy, where you try to get inside someone's head and then put together all the elements available to you to try to realize their (and of course your own) vision. It didn't take too long before we were on the same page."  

Assisting the dynamic duo is a group of some of Canada's very best instrumentalists, including Melanie Doane on fiddle, and Charlie Cooley on drums. Rex Goudie contributes guest vocals on one track, while Canadian jazz star Emilie-Claire Barlow and noted singer/songwriter Kathryn Rose (Sarah McLachlan) add compelling vocal harmonies. An accomplished multi-instrumentalist, Borkosky played all the guitar and bass, and contributed keyboard parts.  

Borkosky was quickly impressed with Sabrina's creativity. "Musically, she has a very natural talent for writing catchy tunes and melodies and she was very open to putting them under a microscope to see if we could improve them. Also, she has a lot of energy and a fearless entrepreneurial spirit that makes her fun to work with."

Sabrina describes her new album as "a perfect mixture of my best songs and the songs that mean the most to me. They are the result of a lot of processing feeling. My songs are very emotionally honest. They come from a very authentic place.” Writing about what and who she knows ensures that Sabrina’s songs are all sincere, with never a trace of artifice to be found.

Sabrina’s style seamlessly mixes country and rock elements.  The variety in her sound "reflects my personality. I go with whatever I am inspired by in the moment,” she says.

Back in the recording studio, Michael Borkosky sees real commercial potential in Sabrina's material. "They're very catchy, strong, singable tunes and I think listeners will be delighted. There are some heartfelt ballads that are quite personal to her and it's great that she's so willing to open up and share these thoughts and feelings.

“I’m putting myself out there in a very vulnerable way with some of these songs. It’s both an exciting and scary venture. I love it.”