Canadian singer-songwriter Tafari Anthony (pronounced ta-far-eye) got his career kickstarted as a singer for Jarvis Church, who was famously in Canadian R&B group the Philosopher Kings. (And yes, Tafari is his real name. It means “He who inspires awe” and it originates from Haile Selassie, who was the last Emperor of Ethiopia.)

As a solo artist, Anthony — who plays piano and guitar (“when I’m feeling brave”) — has been recognized as one of CBC Searchlight’s Top 25 performers in the country. His recently released EP Die for You was a product of pure perseverance, he said. “I had spent years not really putting out much because life had taken over. I finally made a decision that I needed to make this happen no matter what. So I jumped in full force. I didn’t have all the money upfront to get it done, I didn’t know what it was going to be or how it would get done, but I knew I was gonna do whatever I needed to complete it.” It may be the reason that the Toronto Star described his voice as one that “captures the right mixture of power and pathos”.

Hometown: Pickering, Ontario, Canada

Homebase: Toronto, Canada

Describe your music to people who haven't heard it before.

Soul/pop with a bit of rock and funk influence. My music tends to have more of a dark tone to it. Even the more happy and optimistic songs still have a dark realism to them. Most of the music that really moves me tends to be shaped this way with dark tones, some hard hitting aggression that somehow inspires in the light of some darkness.

How did you discover that you wanted to be a singer-songwriter? Were you raised in a musical family?

Both of my parents are musicians, so growing up music was a big part of my life. I’d tag along to studio sessions and performances. I was a pretty quiet child, and music was one of the few things that excited me. Growing up I may have taken for granted being so close to the resources to create, but by the time I was 13 or 14 I knew I wanted to write and sing as a career more than anything else.

Why is your EP called Die For You?

When I was working on the project, it had gone though many incarnations. In fact, nothing that I intended to be the first EP actually ended up on this project for various reasons. There seemed to be many things standing in the way of getting it done, and I had to just roll with what I could gain control of.

By the time we were getting to the end of mixing the songs I had to start thinking of what to call it. The original title I had for the EP didn’t seem to have the same sentiment with these batch of songs. Apart from “Die for You” being a track on the EP, it seemed to sum up the year of making the EP pretty well.

What's your songwriting process?

My writing process definitely varies. For the most part it starts off as a vocal or lyrical idea. They often come at random moments so I just log it into my phone and save it for a rainy day. Then i’ll take that idea and try to build some music around it and flesh out the song.

Other times I’ll sit down at the piano (on my own or with a co-writer) or with a beat/loop sent to me and certain chords, progressions, and rhythms essentially spark some kind of idea and the song/story gets built from there.

Who are your musical heroes?

I’m definitely inspired by artists like Prince, Amy Winehouse, John Legend, Brandy and CeeLo Green. Their music doesn’t necessarily conform to what is considered “Pop” but they manage to take current trends and sounds and infuse them into what they do organically.

For me it always comes down to the music at the end of the day, but the cultural impact Prince has had on the world I can’t deny. Not only was he an amazing musician and music contributor, he was also so active with giving back to people. And it was so humbling to see how his peers and those who only knew him from a far revere him as such a nice and genuine person.

What's the craziest thing a fan has ever done for you?

I don’t have a story of a singular fan… But when I was about 17 or 18, my first ever single "If You Leave" had been playing on the radio over the summer. I was doing a performance at a high school in Whitby, ON as part of an after school program called SASS Canada. I started singing my song and when the first chorus hit basically every student in that auditorium was singing it along with me. I actually could not believe they all knew it. I don’t even think at the time I recognized fully how powerful that was. But to this day it’s something I’ll never forget.

If you were a hashtag, what would you be?

#LiveYourTruth — I try to live this motto daily. It’s not always easy, but I feel it’s really important to live for yourself and be as true to yourself as you possibly can.

Alternatively, #ChocolateBelly — …I love chocolate, I’m not ashamed. [laughs]

What’s your big 2017 goal?

I’m looking forward to finishing up the second EP and continuing work on the full length. I’d also really love to get some music placed in TV and film and do some more performing and touring.

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