Prince Albert singer qualifies for regional round of CBC music competition

When Erika Rybinski was young her mother enrolled her in piano lessons, and while the future music St. Mary High School music teacher was frustrated and wanted to quit, she says now, in retrospect, she’s glad she stuck with it.

“I’m thankful that she kept me in there because music means everything to me,” Rybinski said.

“Music is very emotive. It’s a way for me to express myself, it’s a way for me to tell stories, it’s a way for me to connect with others and especially through songwriting because you can share your experiences.”

This month Rybinski is hoping to connect with her biggest audience yet. A couple weeks ago she was scrolling through Facebook when she noticed a post about the national CBC talent competition, Searchlight. The online contest allows listeners to vote on their favourite performers. Those with the most votes advance from the regional rounds to the national rounds until a winner is chosen.

“I thought, ‘Hey, I have a music video and I have an audio recording, I might as well enter,” she said.

The first round of CBC Searchlight voting runs from Feb. 14 to 27. Rybinski’s page, which includes her music video, can be found here.

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