Victoria Banks’ sophomore EMI/On Ramp album "Never Be The Same" is about strength, empowerment, healing and hope. “Since my debut album came out, I’ve held trophies in my hands on national TV and mourned the loss of one of the most important people in my life,” Victoria says. “Music has always been my medicine, my way of connecting with other people and sharing the human experience. At its best, music lifts our spirits, shows us that we’re not alone and reminds us of what’s important in life. That’s my goal with this record.” As a child in rural Muskoka, Ontario, no one would have guessed Victoria would grow up to be named the Canadian Country Music Association’s (CCMA) 2010 Female Artist of the Year. “I listened to nothing but antique phonograph records from my Dad’s collection when I was a kid. We spent a lot of time chopping wood to survive the winters in our old wood-heated cottage, and then we’d sing Bach in 4-part harmony around the dinner table at night.” It wasn’t until adolescence that Victoria discovered rock n’ roll in a high school band. With an inextinguishable passion for music and songwriting, not quelled by a Zoology degree from the University of Toronto, Victoria worked an array of odd jobs from waiting tables to painting houses to save up enough money to pursue her dream of a career as a professional songwriter in Nashville, Tennessee. “I’ve paid my dues. I spent years living in roach-infested apartments and driving rust-bucket cars. But it was all worth it the first time I heard one of my songs on the radio.” Victoria scored her first major hit with Sara Evans’ ASCAP and SOCAN-award-winning “Saints & Angels.” Labeled “one of the best songwriters in the business” by Nashville’s Music Row Magazine, Victoria’s impressive catalogue of hits now includes Jessica Simpson’s Billboard record-breaking country debut “Come On Over,” One More Girl’s breakout hit “When It Ain’t Raining,” Doc Walker’s chart-topping “I’m Gonna Make You Love Me” and Johnny Reid’s smash “Dance With Me,” for which Victoria was named 2010 CCMA Songwriter of the Year. Victoria’s self-produced, self-penned debut record When You Can Fly made her 2009’s most nominated female artist in Canadian country music. To support the critically acclaimed album, Victoria toured with superstars Reba McEntire, Randy Travis and Johnny Reid. “Suddenly, I was alone with my guitar in front of 10,000 people. I just sang my songs from the heart, the same way I do when I write them, the same way I do in my own living room. And all of those people – they went there with me emotionally. It’s amazing to feel a room that big hush to complete silence. It was magic and I was hooked.” With “Never Be The Same,” Victoria creates a collection of songs that dig deeply into life, articulating joy and pain in a way that is distinctly her own. In a world where authenticity often takes a backseat to marketability, Victoria’s music is unique, a breath of fresh air that has earned her a place as one of the most respected singer-songwriters in the Canadian music industry.