There are so many stars in the music world that shine only for a moment. And there are stars that rise and fall, but the heat of some stars can’t be contained and must rise again. Toronto based singer-songwriter Julian Taylor is one of those phoenix-like stars.

His first moment in the sky started and ended with the hit-making band Staggered Crossing. After their breakup, Julian could have walked away, satisfied with that bright, brief moment. Instead, he went back to work, starting at the bottom, playing in cover bands, working bars, running an open stage as a solo artist. There were moments of impact when he formed the Julian Taylor Band and released two albums. But those were mere steps in the process. When he decided to strip his songs to the basics and go solo with his soul-folk 2020 album, The Ridge, his career rose over the horizon again and sparkled brighter than the first time. Mostly acoustic and sung in Julian’s distinctive warm baritone, The Ridge earned him two JUNO Award nominations, one Canadian Folk Music Award for Solo Artist, five Native American Music Award nominations, plus a nomination for the Polaris Music Prize.

In 2022, Taylor released his follow up album Beyond the Reservoir. It received a nomination from the Country Music Association of Ontario Awards in the Roots Artist of the Year category, a nomination for a JUNO Award in the Contemporary Indigenous Artist of the Year category, and two Ontario Folk Music Award nominations for Song of the Year and Performing Artist of the Year. “Julian Taylor’s music is a beacon of hope in troubled times. His lyrics are thoughtful and inspiring, and his voice is both powerful and tender. This is music that will lift your spirits.” (Canadian Beats) - Wayne Arthurson

Julian's latest album, Pathways, released September 27, 2024, candidly captures his approach to handling his own lingering burdens. Its eight concise tracks find Taylor looking further inward than ever before. "When you feel heavy, you’ve got to get things off your chest," says Taylor. "Pathways reflects the way I was feeling while I was writing it and making it... I’m trying to work through a lot of the pain I’ve caused myself and others."

The band parted ways with their label after the release of their first album. Julian founded Bent Penny Records to release Staggered Crossing’s next album — flexing his DIY, entrepreneurial muscles that have carried him throughout his career ever since. “I didn't really know what to do, so I started to learn how to operate throughout the business and became not only a musician, but a business person and a label guy,” he says.

For Julian, that meant stepping back completely from commercial music and working a bunch of bar gigs. At one bar, Dora Keogh, in Toronto’s Danforth neighborhood, Julian started an open stage night that fostered a close-knit music community in the city. It became a regular drop-in spot for well-known Canadian artists like Kim Mitchell, Big Sugar, Ron Hynes, and even international bands coming through the city on tour. “I think that, for me, it did save my life, and it gave me a newfound perspective and love for music later on,” Julian says of these years away from the music industry.

Julian Taylor's Jukebox is a radio show that plays on radio stations all over Canada and the USA. About the Jukebox, Julian says, "On my show, listeners can expect to hear what I would play them if we were hanging out at my place. It’s all-inclusive, and I always spin stuff that I love to listen to."