Nora Toutain is a Moroccan-French singer-songwriter. Her brand of synth-driven r&b seamlessly moves across genres like neo-soul, funk and jazz with hints of afro rhythms — a direct reference to her diverse cultural experiences and musical upbringing. Her love for these traditional genres and contemporary sounds elevates her music offering a fresh and unique experience on stage. Wherever she performs, her ease and energy on stage charms crowds.
Nora got her start performing with Kalmunity, Canada’s largest music improv collective, with whom she performed at the Montreal International Jazz Festival in 2018. Her current collaborators include her producer Chris Vincent a member of Busty and the Bass and musicians that play with artists such as Les Louanges, Common Holly, Nomadic Massive, Dominique Fils-Aime, Sara Diamond, KALLITCHENIS and more.
Her debut album Grounding Place Vol. I came out in October, 2020 with Vol. II being released summer 2021!
Name: Nora Toutain
Genre: Alt-R&B, Soul-pop
# of albums: 2
Latest Release: Women (single and video)
Latest Music Video:
Favourite local Restaurant:
Eduardo, Montreal & Momofuku Noodle Bar, Toronto.
Favourite band as a teenager:
Black Eyed Peas and The Beatles!
Favourite band now:
Can’t really think of a band per say, but an artist that keeps blowing my mind with how much she is able to re-invent and stay true to herself is Alicia Keys!
Guilty Pleasure Song:
Enjoy Ya Life by Jared Brady
Live Show Ritual:
A quick band powow and a two min solo meditation & gratitude prayer before I hit the stage.
Favourite local artist:
Men I Trust (Montreal) Daniel Caesar (Toronto)
Sneaky Dees nachos, pasta from Terroni or a superfood salad from Fresh?
Terroni! I love pasta.
Queen or College St?
Queen! It’s one of the first places I noticed when I traveled to Toronto for the first time. I fell in love with the charm of the street, with all its vintage stores and the streetcar.
Trinity Bellwoods or High Park, Riverdale or Kew Gardens?
Trinity Bellwoods.
EP or LP?
LP
Early bird or night owl?
I was an early bird but music definitely turned me into the biggest night owl (my peak recording time for vocals while making my album was midnight!)
Road or studio?
That’s a hard one. For where I am right now, I’d say studio!
Swiss Chalet or Roti?
Roti, yum.
Where can we follow you?
Instagram, Facebook and find me on Spotify and all the music platforms.
Any shows or albums coming up?
My album Grounding Place Vol. I. came out in October of last year and Vol. II will be coming out later this year in the summer!
