Ariana Fig: Fruitful fusion

The Hamilton singer-songwriter has taken her classical violin training and applied it to creating eclectic original songs that blend pop, folk, alternative and jazz.  

By Stephen Metelsky and Jenna Yeomans

“The world is so big, you’re just one person telling your story. Everybody has a story,” says Ariana Fig, a singer-songwriter from Hamilton, who has transformed her classical violin training into eclectic and original songs, blending pop, folk, alternative and jazz. 

At just three years old, Fig picked up a violin, hardly imagining that 20 years later, she’d be carving out a career as a Canadian musician.

It all began with a hint of jealousy toward her older brother, and an unlikely inspiration from a children’s TV show. 

“My brother had a guitar he got when he was five and had gone to a few lessons,” she says. “And on the show Timothy Goes to School there is a cat, Yoko, and she plays violin. The whole basis of why I became a musician was because of her,” she laughingly recalls the origin story of yearning to play the violin. 

Over the years, Fig took the violin seriously, taking private lessons, joining quartets, and eventually becoming a member of the Hamilton Youth Philharmonic (HYP) when she entered high school.

That experience with the HYP left a lasting impression. She described it as “the best musical experience” she’s ever had and says it’s what solidified her desire to pursue music in post-secondary education.

However, Fig ultimately knew that classical music wasn’t her future. Keen to share her own stories through songwriting, she began exploring other instruments. With her background in violin as a foundation, she also attempted to teach herself piano and guitar. 

“I picked up my dad’s guitar from the 1980s that was so broken it hurt my hands to play, and taught myself chords so I’d have something to put words to,” she says. “My dad is my biggest fan.” 

She credits her parents for being a musical influence on her, recalling her childhood memories of hearing ABBA, Kiss, Triumph and Billy Joel songs playing in the house on her parents’ turntable. Fig remembers the first album her parents gave her as a gift – Shania Twain’s greatest hits. She listened to it incessantly.  

Her full birth name is Ariana Figueiredo. Her mother’s side is from Italy and her dad’s family is from Portugal. 

“My grandparents on both sides are immigrants. They came to Canada with nothing. I am so grateful to them, and I hope I’m making them proud,” Fig says, with a hint of emotion in her voice. “I’m so thankful they came here. Now, as an artist, I get to perform and tell my inspired stories.” 

Fig’s next chapter began at Western University, where she pursued a degree in popular music and English language and literature. It was there she performed live, landed her first paid gig, and opened for several bands. Venues like The Spoke café on campus and Rum Runners music hall in downtown London became key parts of her musical coming-of-age.

“Going to Western and being in London gave me some great opportunities early on and introduced me to some of my earliest fans,” she says. “You’re always worried people aren’t going to come.” 

But they did and in droves. 

In 2020, Fig released her debut single, “I’ll Call You Later,” a leap of faith driven by the anonymity of lockdown-era uncertainty. “Nobody can see me anyway, so what’s the worst that could happen?” she recalls thinking about recording the music alone in her bedroom. 

During her fourth year, she released her second EP and hosted a release party at TAP Centre for Creativity, an art gallery in London. The event sold out, and the emotional impact was immediate. 

“So many people on campus cared and showed up for me and I cried about it on the way home, because you get it in your head about who is going to show up,” Fig says. “London is where it all started for me.” 

While London may have been the starting line for her career as a singer-songwriter, Fig is Hamilton through and through. Born and raised in the city, she draws inspiration from local artists and the supportive nature of its music scene.

She credits Hamilton band The Arkells as an influence and motivation to continue to make original music. The Redhill Valleys drummer Matt Soliveri has also helped her believe success is possible in a city that isn’t traditionally known as a music industry hotspot. 

“He (Soliveri) has shown me it is possible to come from a place that isn’t so focused on the arts like Los Angeles or Toronto and that you can make a living for yourself,” she says. “He had the same respect for me as I did for him, and I thought I must be doing something right if the people I look up to are saying ‘good job.’ Sometimes validation is important,” says Fig.

Soliveri says it’s amazing to see Fig grow into a talented artist. 

“Her music has always resonated with me. She’s easily one of my favourite, current Hamilton singer-songwriters.” 

Fig has an incredibly optimistic outlook about the competitive music industry and the barriers she faces as a one-woman independent musician. 

“You’re going to hear a million nos before you hear a yes. Sometimes the nos feel like a yes,” said Fig. “Rejection is redirection. If it wasn’t meant to be now, maybe it’s due to something better that will come along.” 

Fig’s resilience and drive to promote her music and get it out there has resulted in her music being played on CBC, Sirius XM and 102.1 The Edge. She even started her own record label – Fig Tree Records. 

Now, five years into her journey as an independent musician, the Hamilton-born singer-songwriter is carving out a space entirely her own, one shaped by creativity, resilience, and a deep connection to her roots. Fig has never recorded in a traditional studio. Instead, her music comes together across a patchwork of intimate, makeshift spaces – from spare bedrooms to basement studios. 

Her humble beginnings have evolved into a thoughtful, highly visual approach to music-making that goes beyond the sound itself. From shooting her first professional music video for “I Said My Thanks to Jesus” to planning her releases like multimedia art projects, Fig leans into the aesthetic of each song. “I’ve always been into the visuals of music,” she says. 

“They say don’t judge a book by its cover, but I do. I take the visuals as seriously as the sound.”

Hamilton – both as a place and a community – has had a profound influence on her process. Though the city may not be as loud as Toronto or Montreal about its arts scene, Fig sees that as a strength. “Hamilton artists are the humblest people you’ll meet,” she says. “If I ever need advice on a song or release, people offer help without ego or attitude.” 

She’s outspoken about the importance of protecting the city’s small venues, noting the recent closure of The Casbah as a blow to the local music ecosystem. “We’re a big city, but we’re still a tight-knit community.”

Her love for Hamilton surfaces again and again in her lyrics, her venue choices, and her desire to stay true to where the music comes from. “That’s why I’ve done shows in art galleries and recording studios,” she says. “It tells the audience something about how the music is meant to be experienced. It didn’t come from a bar where people are talking over it. It started in my bedroom.”

A finalist in the 2024 American Songwriter competition – chosen from over 25,000 submissions – Fig is gaining momentum beyond her hometown. “Just being selected meant so much. It was a song I wrote years ago, ‘Guilty Pleasure’ and it still resonates,” she says.

Fig recently participated in Departure Festival, the artist showcase formerly known as Canadian Music Week, an event attended by music executives and supervisors and where there are TV and film licensing opportunities. “I’m trying to get my songs into other mediums. That’s a goal of mine.”

Despite the accolades, Fig remains refreshingly honest about the realities of being an independent artist – especially the emotional toll. Imposter syndrome, financial stress, and the anxiety leading up to shows are all part of the process. 

“Three days before a show I feel like I’m going to die,” she admits. “But once I’m on stage, it all goes away.” Her ability to be vulnerable, both on stage and in interviews, is part of what draws listeners in. “Music and food are the two art forms that unlock memories,” she says. “A sound or a lyric can bring you right back to a moment in your life.”

Her academic background has also shaped her artistry. Fig wrote songs as part of her undergraduate coursework at Western. During the pandemic, she studied under celebrated author and storyteller Ivan Coyote, whose encouragement led her to connect with Sarah MacDougall, a veteran musician and engineer with a gear-packed basement studio. 

“It’s a small but mighty studio,” says Fig. “I’ve recorded most of my recent music there with Sarah, an incredible collaborator and my mentor. We need to shine a light on all women in the music industry.”

Fig has now completed a master’s degree in new media and communications at McMaster, producing a musical thesis project about environmental anxiety and the female experience in the climate crisis. One of the songs from that EP was featured in a local art gallery. “That project made me think more deeply about what I want to say in my music,” she explains. 

A career highlight for Fig was appearing this summer at Burlington’s Sound of Music Festival within an all-Canadian musical lineup. It was a surreal full-circle experience for the musician who has been attending the annual festival since she was a child. 

“The Burlington pier is where I used to busk and play violin during the pandemic in 2020. I’d play there for hours, so to go from busking there five years ago to playing the Sound of Music Festival stage feet away from that pier is surreal,” says Fig. “Canada has so much to offer when it comes to our music scene.” 

Looking ahead, Fig is preparing to release her first full-length album in early 2026. Two more singles and music videos are on the way, and she’s planning a unique live show experience to support the album, though she admits the touring dream comes with financial challenges. “I just want to connect with people in a new way,” she says. “Not sure what it will look like yet, but I’m working on it.”

And her sights are already set on something even bigger: the 2026 Juno Awards, which will take place in Hamilton.

“They always showcase local artists. Last time the Junos were here in Hamilton I was a kid, but next year, I’m hoping I get to be part of it. I want to be on that stage, in my hometown, doing what I love.”