Elisapie Isaac (also known simply as Elisapie; syllabics: ; born 1977) is a Canadian Inuk musician, broadcaster, documentary filmmaker, activist, and actress."Inuit pop, Algonquin rap, Innu reggae aim for mainstream". Agence France-Presse, October 8, 2009. She spent her childhood in Salluit, Nunavik, Quebec, and moved to Montreal in 1999 to pursue communication studies in order to become a journalist.
Biography Elisapie was born in Moose Factory, Ontario,"Hudson Bay(bies): An untold Canadian history" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kle34ob4-C4&t=681s, August 19, 2026. CBC Docs/Elisapie Isaac. Retrieved August 27, 2026. to an Inuk mother and a father from Newfoundland."Elisapie Isaac to play Iqaluit at month's end" . Nunatsiaq Online, March 8, 2010. She was adopted at birth and raised by Anglican parents in Salluit, QC who were distant relatives of her biological mother, Eva Audlaluk, a host at the local branch of a northern radio network.
She grew up listening to Christian hymns translated into Inuktitut. She performed at age 12 with the Salluit band Sugluk, one of whose members was her uncle George Kakayuk. Her music aspirations led her to move to Montreal in her early 20s, where she formed the musical duo Taima with the instrumentalist Alain Auger. The act's name is Inuktitut for "that's all" or "it is done". The band's sole album, Taima, won the Juno Award for Aboriginal Recording of the Year in 2005.
In 2010, Isaac's first solo album, There Will Be Stars, was released by Pheromone Recordings. On the album, she sings in English, French, and Inuktitut. Her second solo album, Travelling Love, was released in October 2012 under the name Elisapie. During the Juno Awards, she was mistakenly nominated as Breakthrough Artist of the Year, before it was revealed that she had been a Juno winner in 2005; the nomination was rescinded and given to Shawn Hook instead. She garnered a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Original Song at the 2nd Canadian Screen Awards for her song "Far Away", which appeared in the film The Legend of Sarila. At the Juno Awards of 2019, her album The Ballad of the Runaway Girl was nominated for the Indigenous Music Album of the Year. In July 2019, the album was shortlisted for the 2019 Polaris Music Prize."Dominique Fils-Aimé, Les Louanges et Elisapie nommés sur la courte liste du prix Polaris". Voir, July 16, 2019. This album again contained lyrics in English, French, and Inuktitut.
Isaac has an extensive background in media production as well. When asked about her work in this medium in relation to her music, she has stated "I really believe that communication and radio was really a place for me to express my inner creativity, and I love that medium. And it has helped me to be a little more aware, especially when I have to be doing interviews and have a larger vision of my work than just the artiste point of view".
In 2021, Isaac was announced to have landed her first onscreen acting role, in C.S. Roy's forthcoming augmented reality film, V F C.Elsa Keslassy, "Canadian Producers C.S. Roy, Stéphanie Morissette Unveil Horror-AR Experience 'V F C'". Variety, July 14, 2021. She also had a part in the television crime drama series Motel Paradis in 2022.
In 2023, she released the album Inuktitut, consisting of ten Inuktitut-language covers of classic pop and rock songs."How Elisapie gave new meaning to 10 pop and rock classics by translating them into Inuktitut". Q, September 21, 2023.She won the award for Contemporary Indigenous Artist of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2024,"Junos 2024: full list of winners". CBC Music, March 23, 2024. and Best Adult Alternative Album at the Juno Awards of 2025."Junos 2025: full list of winners" The album was a shortlisted finalist for the 2024 Polaris Music Prize.David Friend, "Calgary rock project Cindy Lee among acts shortlisted for Polaris Music Prize". Global News, July 12, 2024.
On June 13, 2024, Canada Post released a series of stamps titled "Indigenous Leaders". One of them is dedicated to Isaac, marking her cultural contributions.
Film Isaac's 2003 National Film Board of Canada documentary If the Weather Permits, filmed in Kangiqsujuaq, northern Quebec, looks at the changing lifestyles of Inuit in Nunavik. The film received several awards, including the Claude Jutra Award for best new director at the Rendez-vous du cinéma québécois, and the Rigoberta Menchú Prize at the First Peoples' Festival. It is included in the 2011 Inuit film anthology Unikkausivut: Sharing Our Stories.
In 2016, she had an acting role in Marc Séguin's film Stealing Alice. In 2026, Isaac and Séguin collaborated on the short animated film Piluk, which is slated to premiere at the 79th Locarno Film Festival.
Personal life Isaac dated actor Patrice Robitaille from 2003 to 2011. In 2006, she gave birth to a daughter. She also has a son, born in 2014. In February 2018, she revealed that she was pregnant with her third child, a boy.
Awards and nominations YearAwardCategoryNominee/WorkResultRef2005Juno AwardAboriginal Recording of the YearTaima2014Canadian Screen AwardBest Original Song"Far Away" (The Legend of Sarila)Jeremy Kay, "Canadian Academy unveils nominees". Screen Daily, January 13, 2014.2019Juno AwardIndigenous Music Album of the YearThe Ballad of the Runaway Girl2019Polaris Music PrizeLong List, Short ListThe Ballad of the Runaway Girl2019Félix AwardIndigenous Artist of the YearElisapie"Le Félix de Florent Vollant : une fierté partagée". Ici Radio-Canada Côte-Nord, October 28, 2019.2020Cédric Bélanger, "Gala de l'ADISQ: l'année des Cowboys Fringants". Le Journal de Québec, November 1, 2020.2023Juno AwardsContemporary Indigenous Artist of the YearInuktitut"Junos 2024: full list of winners". CBC Music, March 23, 2024.2024Polaris Music PrizeShortlistDavid Friend, "Calgary rock project Cindy Lee among acts shortlisted for Polaris Music Prize". Global News, July 12, 2024.
Discography with Taima Taima (2004)
Solo There Will Be Stars (2010) Travelling Love (2012) The Ballad of the Runaway Girl (2018) Eaux turbulentes (2020) – television soundtrack, with Frédéric Levac Inuktitut (2023)
Filmography Acting roles Year Title Role NotesRef.2008The Necessities of LifeInuit mother 2013 The Legend of Sarila Sedna Voice A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of a title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its credits or other reliable sources of information. 2020 Soul Miali Voice 2022 Motel Paradis Sabrina Bérubé-Caron 2023 V F C 2026North of NorthHerselfGuest appearance
Filmmaking roles YearTitleCredited asNotesRef.DirectorWriter 2003 If the Weather Permits Short documentary film
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