« Her vocals make you feel like you can read her soul like a book. […] Claire Hayek has a way of appeasing everybody’s musical interest. […] Claire has truly showed how dedicated she is to connecting to the rest of the world through her music. » — Thea Brown, Target Audience Magazine « This woman has a voice that will bowl you. […] a pretty good album by an incredible artist. […] Claire Hayek should be around for a long time to come. Talent like this never stays hidden. » — Wildy's World « Her lyrics are intelligent, inspired, socially aware, and she sings with purpose. […] Fans of pop rock and great female singer/songwriters should pick this one up. » — Chris & the RadioIndy.com BIOGRAPHY Before her parents fled Beirut with their children, Claire Hayek escaped the unbearable realities of the civil war in Lebanon with music. As a young child, she sang and played the flute for her school choir. At that point she already knew that music would be her lifeblood. Location: Quebec. Although Claire earns herself an engineering degree in metallurgy, she never forgets her love of music. She is determined to break through as a singer-songwriter. Pushing herself to the limit, she takes on ear training, piano and singing lessons, works constantly and participates in many competitions. At the same time, she writes songs, which she has been doing for years, hoping to one day share them with the world. Is she looking for fame? Not really. Singing and songwriting being her favorite form of expression, she simply wants to share her life and worldviews with as many people as possible. However her career in engineering takes over her life, leaving little time to pursue her true passion. A series of events lead her one day to put her professional career on hold, giving her time to focus on her first love, music; its soothing sounds and melodies that envelop you. Opportunities soon come knocking. She plays small venues across Quebec, accompanying folk, R&B and rock bands, co-founds two original bands, DareDream and Butterfly. She is also awarded grants from the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec in Development and Research & Creation, and aid from the Young Volunteers program. The future looks bright. But after four years with her duo band Butterfly, their adventure comes to a sudden halt. A shock for the singer-songwriter who was working on many promising projects. Lucky coincidence? Perfect timing? Claire is invited shortly after to join a classic rock band, created to perform a series of shows in Morocco. During the two-month tour, the band plays six nights a week. The schedule proves to be beneficial for her and convinces her to produce her own album. Struggling between jobs that finally convince her to reconnect with her engineering career, she throws herself entirely in her writing project. She pours her life experiences and her own reflections into her music and lyrics. Three years later, her self-produced album Intention is born, a collection of her original songs. She works with an excellent team of musicians and technicians, including renowned guitarist Rob MacDonald; the musician-songwriter-producer acts as a guitarist, bassist and sound engineer. The album is completed in summer 2008. Upon the album’s release, Claire experiences overwhelming recognition. In September 2008, she is among the top five most requested ‘Indie’ artists on Women of Substance radio, based in California. Many of her songs have also captured audiences of OutboundMusic.com and Plattsburgh Pipeline Radio. The song Peace of mind can even be heard on Radio-aria.net in France, Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany. The following month Toronto Exclusive Magazine grants her two awards for ‘Best Female Provincial Pop Artist’ and ‘Best Provincial Pop Album’ of the year while the song If Only I is chosen to be part of the second volume of Violet Femmes (RPW Records) to be released in March 2009. At the end of 2008, Claire and DJ Yovan sign Analemma (I Will Follow You) with Kult Records. She also performs at the Festival du monde arabe de Montréal and at Club Balattou. In the beginning of 2009, she has four music videos from her album; Charmer and its French version Charmeur, and the song Gotta Go in English and international versions (interpreted in five languages). She is also a member of L’Esprit des Vents, a group of female voices and mother drum paying tribute to the rich native Indian culture with an undeniable success in Quebec and the US. Between her engineering career and her passion for singing and songwriting, Claire Hayek remains a citizen of the world. Aware of the challenges humanity is faced with, the artist and environmentalist, whose album cover is entirely created from recycled materials, personally supports a number of charities dear to her heart, including Équiterre, the S.O.S Water Coalition, the Canadian Cancer Society, the Canadian Wildlife Federation and the Lebanese association of SOS Children’s Villages who help provide a home for orphans. It’s her way of giving back to others what life offered her. At the end of 2008, beginning of 2009, she decides to give to these charities $1 per copy of her album sold during presale. Claire Hayek. A heart as big as the world. An overwhelming energy. An undeniable talent. A love for the stage. A true connection to her audience. A blend of mixed emotions and melodies that penetrate the soul and stimulate the mind and human conscience. A vibrant and original artist definitely worth a listen.