Crystal Shawanda Biography

Crystal Shawanda (born 1983) is a Canadian country music artist. CMT documented her rise to fame in the six-part series Crystal: Living the Dream, which was broadcast in February 2008. Signed to RCA Nashville in 2007, she released her first single, "You Can Let Go", in Canada in January 2008. It was the fastest climbing single on the Canadian Country Singles Chart since Carolyn Dawn Johnson's "Georgia" in 2000, reaching the Top 10 in 5 weeks. It was released in the United States on March 17, 2008.

Music career

Shawanda's first album, Dawn of a New Day, was released in Canada on June 24, 2008, and in the United States on August 19. The album entered the Canadian Country Albums chart at number 2, and the Billboard Top Country Albums chart at number 16. It became the highest charted album by a full-blooded Canadian First Nations country artist in the SoundScan era.

Shawanda is Ojibwe from Wikwemikong Unceded Indian Reserve located on Manitoulin Island on Lake Huron. Her surname translates to "Dawn of a New Day".

Shawanda toured with various artists across Canada and the northern United States in 2008. In 2009, she toured Canada and the United States with Brad Paisley and Dierks Bentley as a special guest on the Paisley Party 2009 tour. Her first single, "You Can Let Go", peaked at number 21 on the Hot Country Songs charts. In mid-2009, Shawanda left RCA Nashville and, through her own record label, New Sun Records, and a distribution deal with EMI/On Ramp Records, released a Christmas album titled I'll Be Home for Christmas.

In 2010, Shawanda released a single, "Beautiful Day", via her own label, New Sun Records. Shawanda also performed at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 2010, performing "Let's Come Together" and "This Is My Land". She then released another single, "Love Enough", on August 15, 2011 in both Canada and the United States. Shawanda's second studio album, Just Like You, was released by New Sun on April 24, 2012.

Discography

Studio albums

Title	Album details	Peak chart positions
		US Country	US
Dawn of a New Day	Release date: June 24, 2008 Label: RCA Nashville	16	81
I'll Be Home for Christmas	Release date: December 1, 2009 Label: New Sun/EMI/On Ramp Records	"?	"?
Just Like You	Release date: April 24, 2012 Label: New Sun Records/Fontana North	"?	"?
The Whole World's Got the Blues	Release date: September 30, 2014 Label: New Sun Records	"?	"?
""?" denotes releases that did not chart

Singles

Year	Single	Peak chart positions		Album
		CAN	US Country
2008	"You Can Let Go"[a]	60	21	Dawn of a New Day
	"What Do I Have to Do"	79	"?
	"My Roots Are Showing"	87	57
2009	"Dawn of a New Day"	90	"?
	"Try"	"?	"?
2010	"Beautiful Day"	"?	"?	Just Like You
	"Fight for Me"	"?	"?
2011	"This Fever"	"?	"?
	"Love Enough"	"?	"?
2012	"Closer"	"?	"?
	"Down on Broadway"	"?	"?
	"Chains"	"?	"?
2013	"Someone Who Loves You"	"?	"?
	"I'm Gonna Love You Anyway"	"?	"?
""?" denotes releases that did not chart

Notes

• a^ "You Can Let Go" also reached number nine on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart.

Guest singles

Year	Single	Artist	Album
2009	"In Your Arms Again"	George Canyon	What I Do

Music videos

Year	Video	Director
2008	"You Can Let Go"	Margaret Malandruccolo
2009	"I'll Be Home for Christmas"
2010	"Beautiful Day"	Stephano Barberis
2012	"Down on Broadway"

Awards and nominations

Year	Organization	Category	Result
2008	Aboriginal Peoples Choice Awards	Best New Artist of the Year
		Best Country Album of the Year - Dawn of a New Day
		Best Single of the Year - "You Can Let Go"
	Canadian Aboriginal Music Awards	Best Artist of the Year
		Best Album of the Year - Dawn of a New Day
		Best Country Album of the Year
		Best Music Video of the Year - "You Can Let Go"
		Best Single of the Year - "You Can Let Go"
	Canadian Country Music Association	Single of the Year - "You Can Let Go"
		Female Artist of the Year
		Program/Special of the Year
2009		Album of the Year - Dawn of a New Day
		Female Artist of the Year
	Canadian Radio Music Awards	Best New Country Artist
	Juno Awards	Best New Artist
		Country Recording of the Year
2010	Canadian Country Music Association	Female Artist of the Year
2013	Juno Awards	Aboriginal Album of the Year