I got to know Christina Martin (www.christinamartin.net) through my radio show, Tell the Band to Go Home, because of her powerful and memorable songs. I was hooked immediately, and I just knew that I was going to have to do everything I could to bring her to Winnipeg to perform someday. Not long after, we made plans for her to come and her show was the second show ever at my house concert venue, The Sunset Saloon. She last performed here alongside her husband/guitar player/producer/best friend, Dale Murray (dalemurray.ca), in November of 2019. It was our last house concert before the pandemic shut everything down.
She’s one of the most driven and intelligent business people we’ve run across. I consider her a role model and among the performers that I know, because she seems to have been one of the most successful at finding a new way of keeping herself busy and keeping some money coming in to help pay the bills, and it’s largely been through an online platform called Patreon, where performers create exclusive content and exclusive opportunities for fans who are willing to make a financial contribution monthly or annually. She’s done an amazing job with her Patreon community, which you can check out at patreon.com/ChristinaMartin.
Christina is also one of the most strikingly honest and open performers that I’ve encountered. At one of her shows, you get to know her and what she’s all about rather quickly. She talks a lot about how mental illness has affected her and her family. She’s also acted as a bit of a spokesperson, spreading awareness of an organization called CAMH (www.camh.ca), The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. It is Canada’s largest mental health teaching hospital and one of the world’s leading research centres in its field.
Music credits:
“The Last Time I Saw You,” is from the album Wonderful Lie, by Christina Martin & Dale Murray.
“Lungs Are Burning” and “Where the Dark Meets the Light” are from the album Impossible to Hold, by Christina Martin.
Not featured, but also recommended:
and the album that made me an instant fan: