'I want to be an inspiration': Glace Bay singer Elyse Aeryn set to release debut album

The countdown is on for Glace Bay, N.S., singer Elyse Aeryn’s debut album “Joy State of Mind,” which is set to be released Friday.

The indie-rock performer began her singing career back in 2019.

“This wasn’t my first career path in life,” Aeryn tells CTV Atlantic. “I actually went to university for an engineering degree.”

But, after a few years, Aeryn said she began to feel less fulfilled by her work and decided it was time for a change.

“I knew I had another calling and I knew that it was music, and I just needed some time to get brave enough to dive in,” she said. “And when I did, there was absolutely no looking back.”

Aeryn describes her style as “rebellious and fiery rock and roll” with an “ageless sound.”

“I don’t think you could pinpoint a decade for it,” she said.

According to Aeryn, her debut album centres around the theme of working on yourself.

“I want to be able to be the person I want to be and do the things I want to do and not be held back by an old version of me or by things that’ve happened to me before,” said Aeryn. “I think joy is a journey, not a destination, and that’s where you get ‘Joy State of Mind.’”

The album’s first single, “Under My Skin,” was a natural song to kick off the album.

“It’s about seeing yourself in someone else or realizing someone else might see themselves in you,” she said.

Writing songs from personal experience, Aeryn hopes other people can find their story in hers.

“I want people to see what I’m doing and listen to my music and think, ‘Wow, I could chase my dreams too,’” she said. “I want to be an inspiration for people.”

Aeryn’s album release party is slated for April 15 at the Port of Sydney, with a slew of performances scheduled across the Maritimes this summer.