GIRL NEXT DOOR

Poised to hit the road with a nostalgic new album, Jann Arden talks friendship, country living and her undying love of Canada

- SARAH TRUMBLEY

With 16 studio albums and countless tours under her belt, there’s no denying that Jann Arden loves making music. But at 63, she also has no problem admitting it’s not the centre of her world.

“It’s a really, really cool way to make a living, but music is something that I do – it’s not who I am,” the singer-songwriter tells Hello! Canada, adding that there are “a lot of other things” that bring value to her life, including close-knit friendships and her adoring dog, Poppy.

“Maybe it’s an age thing,” she ponders. “But I’ve done it for such a long time now, I think if someone said to me, ‘You’re never going to perform again,’ it wouldn’t be the end of me.”

Still, as the Alberta native gets ready to hit the road for her latest Canadian tour, she couldn’t be more excited. “It’s going to be a blast!” she promises of her upcoming shows, which will see Jann perform songs from her new '90s cover album, Mixtape (think nostalgic hits like “Waterfalls” by TLC, “Crazy” by Seal and Don Henley’s “The Boys of Summer”). “It’s going to remind people of how freaking great the '90s were.”

CANADIAN ROOTS

When she’s not busy travelling for work, the multi-talented artist who starred in her own sitcom (Jann) for three seasons and has written six books (including her 2012 memoir, Falling Backwards) – enjoys the fruits of her labour at her peaceful country oasis just outside of Calgary. “I’ve always been kind of a homebody, but I think as you get older, you get more rooted in home,” she tells us, before listing off a few of the things she misses when she’s away – like feeding the birds and deer and sleeping in her own bed.