Shanti Abbott, a Canadian musician who performs on many instruments and sings under the stage name Puma June, is based in the city of Toronto, Ontario.
June’s music is characterised by a dreamy, lush, experimental chamber-pop sound that is accented with R&B. Her contemplative songwriting evokes an optimistic melancholy in her listeners.
There is no way to fully pinpoint Puma June’s sound since she draws inspiration from artists as diverse as Feist, Frank Ocean, and Stevie Wonder; nevertheless, one possible comparison might be unhinged versions of Lana Del Rey and Charlotte Day Wilson.
In her hometown of Barrie, in the Canadian province of Ontario, June spent her formative years penning songs and participating in musical initiatives. She is a self-taught singer, pianist, and guitarist, and she received her violin training from Suzuki.
The most notable accomplishment of June’s musical career was the formation of the folk duet “Shanti and Vale,” afterwards renamed “Concordia,” with her identical twin sister. Both a live album that the two recorded in 2012 and a single that they recorded in 2019 titled “Love Is Blind” were uploaded on Bandcamp.
Despite the fact that Concordia performed around Southern Ontario for many years, the band never broke out of the small-town scene. With the release of their single in 2019, the members of the band made the decision to redirect their attention to their own projects.
During the formative years of her life, June was a member of a number of different orchestras in addition to being a backing vocalist and violinist for the band “House Art,” which was an indie-rock band based in Barrie. She was also a member of the folk-rock band “Hungry Lake,” which was based in Toronto. Additionally, she was a violinist in the Huronia Symphony Orchestra.
Ultimately, in the year 2020, “Puma June” was given its formal start. This was a project that combined all of June’s favourite musical styles from her childhood and provided June with the opportunity to create her own unique voice.
During her first year working as a certified nurse, which corresponded with the early days of the epidemic, she penned the song “Lost Years.” She also worked at this time. June had always had the dream of pursuing a career in music, but like many other musicians, she was counselled to follow the “safe” road that would lead her along routes that were more likely to lead to “success.”
This yearning ballad represents June’s moment of reflection and realisation: feeling the weight of ageing and losing time to pursue her artistic dreams, but finding the motivation and strength to reach higher and create a future that she can be proud of. [This yearning ballad] was written by June. [This yearning ballad] was performed by June. [This yearning ballad] was written by
It’s never too late to start living the life you’ve always dreamed of leading, despite the mistakes and decisions that drag us all down. Puma June wants her audience to understand that they have the ability to change the direction that their lives are headed.
