CC Trubiak had one reaction when he saw he made the final 10 acts in this year’s CBC Searchlight music competition; “Holy goodness!”
The Flin Flon-based musician and songwriter, a mental health worker by trade, is one of the final musicians left standing in the competition and the only artist remaining from Manitoba.
More than 2,000 artists entered the competition. Trubiak finished in the top five in the competition’s public vote, buoyed by engagement from friends near and far.
Perhaps the person most surprised at the results was Trubiak himself – when he first entered the track in the competition, he didn’t have aspirations of winning.
“I’m still kind of in shock and I’m trying to soak in all of the… excitement! It just came as a huge surprise, honestly. Then it dawned on me that it actually isn’t all that surprising – look at how supportive everyone is. It didn’t surprise me, but it surprised me,” he said.
“I was getting messages from people saying, ‘Oh, it’s part of my morning routine! Every morning, I go and vote!’ That’s so cool. For a little while, people were part of the same movement.”
The song entered by Trubiak, “Raven,” comes from his 2017 album McBain, a country/folk album with a deeply personal touch. The album is titled after a nickname given to Trubiak by his late father.
Trubiak’s bio on the CBC Searchlight website lists him as “A hardworking country-folk star in the making, who rediscovered himself and his music when he returned to his remote hometown in northern Manitoba.”
“It stood out to me that they used the word ‘hardworking’- I sure didn’t write that. That was really kind of neat to see. And ‘a star in the making?’ For a guy like me who grew up in the ‘80s, who loved records and loved my stars of the day, having someone remotely kind of refer to you as a star in the making… I feel like a kid! It’s a huge vote of confidence. Win or lose, I’m going to keep going with this, that’s for sure.”
It wasn’t always like that. When he was young, Trubiak struggled with selfesteem issues and anxiety, avoiding music programs as a teen because of deepseated internal fears.
“Those are the very things that held me back in my youth, preventing me from doing things like joining band or choir. I opted to be much more introverted back then,” he said.
“For me, part of the introvertedness in this experience is that I’m still kind of learning how to tame those voices that I think are in all of us – that say, ‘Ugh, this isn’t possible. You can’t do this. You’re not worthy.’”
As one of the final 10 artists, Trubiak’s tune will be judged by three movers and shakers in the Canadian music industry. Universal Music Canada executive vice president, indigenous producer and DJ Ian Campeau and Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, Juno Awards and Canadian Music Hall of Fame president and CEO Allan Reid will judge the remaining tracks.
The contest winner will earn a placement in the Allan Slaight Juno Master Class, a top Canadian artist development program and a one week residency at the National Music Centre, as well as chances to perform at industry showcases in Toronto, a trip to the 2019 Juno Awards, performance slots at the JunoFest and CBC music festivals and a chance to perform at the 2019 Juno Awards.
The final prize winner will be announced on Mar. 19.
As far as his future plans go, Trubiak has no ambition of uprooting himself and hitting the road as a professional musician, but he hopes to perform more songs from McBain in the future, both in Flin Flon and outside the community.
Trubiak hopes his success will help other people discover the strength to pursue their passions.
“It reminds me of how far I’ve come. I never used to be this way. There’s something to be said for facing your fears and putting yourself out there. You’re learning how to be a stronger person. That’s what I think has been most crazy about this – it’s got me thinking about things much deeper than just a contest.”
