Coast 2 Coast Closeup – Stirling John

Stirling John is a 34 year old indigenous Ojibwe country singer/song writer currently residing in Spruce Grove, Alberta.  A police officer for the past 14 years, he also serves as a Helicopter Tactical Flight Officer as well as Musician at Heart.  Stirling was raised in a musical family in Ontario; however, work and life took a step ahead and music didn’t revisit his life until a traumatic call in 2014. Since then, he has been pursuing music on the side which has proven to be a healing place for him during his RCMP career. Writing and recording songs inspired by some of the traumatic scenes he attended – from Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women to uplifting, soulful music with the message to always be there for others has been fulfilling for him even through the struggles of single parenthood in raising his two children.

​2020 has really been Stirling’s breakout year. Even through working fulltime during the pandemic as a front line essential worker, he remained proactive with writing and recording.  “The Distance”, “For You”, “Never Meant to Be”, and “Record Time” are four singles he professionally recorded and digitally released in 2020. “The Distance” was written and released for his children in March 2020 and voices that no distance should come between those you truly love.   “For You” was released in April 2020 and brings a message to be a light for others. He was inspired to write it in December 2019 after attending a shift call for a family domestic situation. “Never Meant To Be” is a song about lessons learned in love.  “Record Time”, an edgy country rock song with a kick about a failed relationship, is his fourth and latest single. It was a pitch from Nashville written by Aaron Goodvin, Craig Campbell, and Bart Butler and will be released to Canadian Country radio on November 9th, 2020.

​Not just a solo artist, Stirling also performs with the band Hometown Stereo. Through them, he wrote and released a song in February 2020 called “Angel in Disguise”, shedding light on a person’s struggle with addiction, which ultimately affects their family that loves them.  It is also a song which brings light to the whole MMIW issue.  Stirling has also had the great opportunity to work with ACMA and CCMA award-winning session musicians who have performed in the Roadhammers and Gord Bamford Band. He has also been mentored by top shelf music and video producers Rob Hewes and Johnny Gasparic from MCC Studios in Calgary, AB.  Through these connections, he has taken on new music from singer/songwriters Aaron Goodvin and Buddy Owens in Nashville, TN which he plans to release in 2021.

​A hardworking emerging artist, one of Stirling’s influences early in life was Garth Brooks. With the range of Vince Gill combined with Rascal Flatts and Keith Urban, Stirling’s powerful voice is also very soothing and captivating within his songs and has thus created a loyal fan base. His long term plan is to leave the RCMP by 2024 and pursue a professional music career.

The future looks very bright for Stirling who is dedicated to honing his craft.  He would like to continue to write about real issues as well as perform his heartfelt songs that have meaning in his life and others’.  He strives to continually focus on his musical future and also hopes musicians receive the support they need to release songs independently without a major label record deal. Overall, this has been a very exciting year.  Being nominated as 2020 “Songwriter of the Year” through Country Music Alberta has been a highlight in Stirling’s career so far and he hopes to continue this successful music-making streak.

Listen to the interview