Blackout Podcast

Jessica Steele is a paper collage artist based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She holds a BFA in Fibres from Concordia University and a Diploma of Fine Arts from Dawson College.Working primarily with hand-cut vintage print materials such as books and magazines, Jessica explores how meaning shifts when familiar imagery is separated from its original context and recombined into new relationships. Though collage is often associated with spontaneity, her process is tactile and methodical, involving the careful sourcing, cutting, and arranging of printed fragments to create surreal compositions. She is particularly interested in how a single shift in scale or position can alter the reading of an image, inviting close looking and curiosity.Jessica’s work has been exhibited across Halifax and collected in Canada and the United States. She was selected as one of four emerging artists in the 2025–26 Visual Arts Nova Scotia Mentorship Program, a competitive 10-month initiative supporting the professional development of early-career artists.View her work at jessicasteele.ca or on Instagram @artbyjessicasteele

He’s a photographer, a videographer, a rugby player, and a die-hard Dallas Cowboys fan. Meet Tapiwa, the creative force behind Captured by Shumba.In this episode, Tapiwa explains how his journey behind the camera began in 2023, inspired by a photographer he met on a solo trip to see the Cowboys. But more importantly, we get into why his photos stand out. Tapiwa’s mission is to show his subjects a version of themselves they’ve never seen before, making every photoshoot an experience they’ll never forget.We discuss the meaning behind his brand name ("Shumba" means Lion in his native Shona language), how he prepares for the high-stakes world of wedding photography, and his thoughts on using AI as a creative tool.If you’ve ever wanted to turn a spark of inspiration into a full-blown creative career, you won’t want to miss this conversation.Find Tapiwa's Work: @CapturedByShumba

Tatiana is a mining engineer by training, a creative by instinct, and a question-asker by nature. She immigrated to Canada from South America as a teenager, carrying with her a spirit of curiosity, deep resilience, and a desire to understand not only herself but, by extension, the people around her.Along the way, she learned to bridge the worlds of logic and intuition, reconciling a highly analytical mind with spirituality, culture, and creative expression. What began in engineering soon expanded into something far greater: a journey into artistic, entrepreneurial, and community-centred spaces where ideas collide and new narratives are born.Her work flows from a deeper calling rooted in Spiritual Collective Healing, with a focus on community building, questioning inherited beliefs, and honouring the inherent worth of every human being.With a quirky, thoughtful, and unapologetically honest voice, Tatiana uses her own privilege to challenge societal expectations, explore shared ancestry, and celebrate African, Caribbean, and Indigenous cultures. Through her presence and practice, she invites others to think deeper, listen closer, and make space for unity, curiosity, and collective growth.Check her out @lead.tierra

Cathy Akinkunmi is a Halifax-based event producer and Creative Director of Beautiful Celebrations & Design, with over 15 years of experience designing elevated, culturally rich celebrations. She is known for blending tradition with modern elegance to create immersive and unforgettable experiences.In 2024, she produced Halifax's first African-Inspired Wedding Party, a sold-out signature event that spotlighted over 30 brands and generatedmore than 1.3 million online views. Her work bridges culture, community, and contemporary design in bold, intentional ways.Beyond events, Cathy is passionate about empowering entrepreneurs and amplifying diverse voices in Atlantic Canada. Through every production, she continues to redefine modern celebrations as inclusive, stylish, and deeply meaningful.More @halifaxweddingparty_

As someone who has always been drawn to explore a variety of interests, FollyHollyLynn’s creative path reflects a lifelong openness to change and growth. Growing up, she experienced both ends of the spectrum when it came to quality of life; nothing overly dramatic in the early years, but enough to evoke deep feelings at times. Later on, nothing excessively lavish, but enough to inspire genuine joy.At seventeen, she left home to pursue a dream of becoming a scientist at Dalhousie University, enrolling in Neuroscience with a minor in Philosophy. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 proved to be an unexpected turning point. Choosing to graduate with a degree in Psychology instead allowed her the space to take time off from academics and focus on her mental health. During this period, her connection to the arts deepened significantly.Even as she returned to the workforce, her creative practice continued to expand and evolve. Already a writer and musician, she gradually took up painting and later began modelling, with the aspiration of one day moving into performance art. As she puts it, that likely means it's time to start connecting with videographers too.Learn more @follyhollylynn

Literally stumbling into music by escorting a friend to a studio session and jumping on the mic out of curiosity, S.Kae has never looked back. What started as a random moment quickly turned into a serious craft and a movement he is now fully committed to embodying. But being a creative artist was not something new to him.Born in Zimbabwe, he was involved in a High School drama club and some dance competitions in Ukraine. This diverse exposure to artistry made him spend time and build relationships with artists. This later led him to finding his creative footing in Halifax, Canada.S.Kae moves with intention. Backed by a tight team and a clear plan, his sound sits at the intersection of Afro rap, afroswing, street energy, and soul, grounded in African identity and shaped by life in the diaspora.Check him out @savannahking.1

India Gailey is a cellist, composer, vocalist, and improviser who appears most often in the realms of classical and experimental music. Named by CBC as one of “30 hot Canadian classical musicians under 30,” India moves fluidly as a soloist, chamber musician, and interdisciplinary collaborator, performing across the western hemisphere. She has written music for concerts, films, dance, and theatre, often exploring environmentalism and magical realism in her work. In 2022, she composed music for Symphony Nova Scotia to illustrate Mi’kmaw poet Rebecca Thomas’s children’s book I’m Finding My Talk, followed by her own cello concerto Butterfly Lightning Shakes the Earth (Redshift Records), the recording of which received an East Coast Music for Composition of the Year and a 2025 Juno nomination for Classical Album of the Year. India is the recipient of numerous honours, including awards from Arts Nova Scotia, the Nova Scotia Talent Trust, the Canada Council for the Arts, Upstream Music, and Acadia & McGill Universities.Learn more @india.yeshe

Nahom Assefa is a multidisciplinary artist, curator, and writer whose practice explores cross-cultural storytelling, belongingness, and identity through visual and community-based work. Being a self-taught artist and Business Administration graduate from NSCC, Nahom challenges the “starving artist” stereotype by combining art with entrepreneurship. His studio, Cultured Creative Studio, celebrates the beauty in cultural diversity, collaborating with organisations such as Atlantic Flamenco, Latispánica, and Lululemon, among others.Originally from Ethiopia and now based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Nahom's work has gained recognition provincially, including as a Nocturne Festival’s 2025 NOISEmaker, 2025 Ambassador for Atlantic International Film Festival, designer for Halifax Public Libraries’ 40th Anniversary African Heritage Month, logo for “The Breakfast Club” across all 14 NSCC campuses, and recipient of the 2025 NSCC Immigrant and International Student Experience - Student IMPACT Award Winner. He is currently an intern at the Dalhousie Art Gallery, preparing an exhibition exploring Black Life on Treaty Land.Check him out @cest_nahom

Kvng Nova, born Abraham Adebayo, is a Nigerian artist carving out a distinctive sound that bridges cultures and emotions. Blending Afrobeats, Hip-Hop, R&B, and Afrofusion, his music reflects both his roots and a global outlook, delivering vibrant, dynamic tracks that resonate widely.Despite being new to the scene, Kvng Nova shows notable maturity and versatility, placing Afrobeats at the core while weaving in hip-hop grit, R&B smoothness, and experimental elements. His sound is driven by storytelling, rhythm, and emotion, allowing his music to connect with listeners across different moods and experiences.As an emerging voice in today’s evolving music scene, Kvng Nova isn’t just releasing songs; he’s building a sound shaped by identity, passion, and a clear vision for the future.Check him out @kvngnova

DJ Utshab is one of the most renowned DJs in Bangladesh, celebrated for his electrifying performances. He began his DJ career in 2010, and with years of dedication and hard work, DJ Utshab became one of the most sought-after DJs in the country.He has been living in Halifax since 2022, where he performs at the city’s top clubs and events, consistently delivering high-energy sets that leave fans wanting more.For the image, you can use our selfie or any thumbnail from the clip — whichever works best for you.More @djutshab007

Nicolae is an alternative R&B singer, rapper, drummer, and producer based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. His music blends soulful R&B, hip-hop honesty, and rock-leaning energy, with rhythm always at the centre. His latest release, Honey Blooded, explores desire and addiction through metaphor, pairing cinematic textures with an electric edge and deeply personal storytelling.Before stepping fully into his solo work, Nicolae built his reputation as a drummer, performing across Atlantic Canada and beyond. Alongside many other projects, he was a founding member and drummer for Lindsay Misiner & the 7th Mystic, a project that earned two Music Nova Scotia Award nominations and an East Coast Music Award nomination. In November 2025, he performed his first solo showcase at Nova Scotia Music Week, delivering a live-producing set as a singing and rapping solo drummer, building full arrangements in real time using live drums, vocals, and electronics.Outside of music, Nicolae is also a professional Dungeon Master, running hundreds of paid tabletop role-playing games for players around the world. Storytelling connects everything he does — from world-building at the game table to songwriting and live performance. Whether he’s on stage, in the studio, or guiding players through an imagined world, Nicolae’s work is rooted in creativity, connection, and inviting people fully into the story.Nicolae is based out of Kjipuktuk (Halifax), on the unceded territory of Mi’kma’ki.Check him out @musicbynicolaeNicolae Otieno Orengowww.musicbynico.com @israeliekanem

Stacey Moser is a fiercely independent creative who believes reinvention is a choice, not a phase. A SCUBA diver, model, artist, and postmenopausal ADHD woman with relentless curiosity, Stacey has been forging her own path since the 1970s, questioning norms, following instinct, and refusing to live quietly at any age.After retiring from a corporate, career-driven life, she chose freedom over hustle and joy over obligation. Today, Stacey prioritises staying fit, healthy, and fully engaged with life, freelancing in modelling and acting, creating art, and connecting people and projects, but only when it aligns with her values and doesn’t interfere with fun, adventures, or time underwater.Her work and presence challenge outdated narratives around ageing, productivity, and worth. Grounded in lived experience, Stacey’s story is one of resilience, vitality, and conscious self-reinvention. She embodies what it looks like to design a life entirely on your own terms, curious, capable, and unapologetically alive.Find out more @ staceym_model

Born in Ukraine, Margarita Fainshtein earned a BFA from the University of Haifa, Israel and MFA from School of the Art Institute of Chicago.Exhibitions include: Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art, Chicago; Chicago Art Department, Chicago; Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, Halifax; The Artist House, Jerusalem (forthcoming), The ArtCake Gallery, New York, USA (forthcoming), Katzman Art Projects, Halifax; and venues in North America and Europe.Fainshtein’s work can be found in the permanent collections of Acadia University, Canada; Art Bank Nova Scotia, Canada; Art Institute of Chicago, USA.Fainshtein’s work reflects the complexity of multi-cultural citizenship and immigrant status as it intersects with personal, political, and cultural relations. What relation do political movements have with individual histories? Is there a global citizen? She is Nova Scotian; however, she has other cultural identities which intersect and define who she is.Fainshtein lives and works in Halifax, NS.More of her work @margaritafainshtein

At fifteen, her first song emerged from an English class assignment, built on three chords and sung with friends. That simple moment with a guitar quietly began a path she could never leave. Born in Santiago, Chile, she was raised among films, music, and poetry, where art persistently called to her. Through mentors and fellow artists, she found stages, collaborators, and the understanding that art was a way to inhabit the world.By nineteen, she began recording and performing with bands. She rebuilt her project, co-founded the independent label Caída Libre, and adopted the name Mueres en el Mar, embracing a sound that merges technology and nature, emotion and instinct. Inspired by artists like Björk and Aurora, she chose to create freely, allowing contradiction, tenderness, rage, and silence to coexist.Under that name, she released the EP La timidez de los eucaliptus and the album Ikigai (2023), supported by Chile’s Ministry of Culture. She performed at major festivals and earned national recognition. After a period in Toronto, she is now based in Nova Scotia, rebuilding her project, writing in English, and performing with renewed clarity. Alongside her own work, she studies and supports other artists through creative management. Her story continues to unfold.More @maca.mnm@wearemueres@sellocaidalibre

Dana Elborno is a Palestinian-Canadian social advocate based in Halifax. She is diving into her long-awaited art career. Dana holds a Child and Youth degree with a minor in Psychology from MSVU and currently works as a mental health and youth worker.Dana started her activist career in 2021 and has continued to showcase her advocacy on social media, rallies, events, and fundraisers. She has been inspired by art in every aspect of her life such as her love for fashion, drawing, and poetry. Dana has always had big dreams and is planning to show more of who she is—unapologetically—in 2026.Art has always been embedded in her spirit, especially as she comes from a lineage and family of Palestinians who create. She believes that to be Palestinian, is to be art in itself. Her heritage is rich with artistic traditions that have surrounded her since birth, from Palestinian poetry and traditional hand embroidery, to music, cultural dances, paintings, and all things beautiful. Art is who she is, because she is Palestinian and to exist is to resist the occupation.@danaelborno