Meadow Lake singer brings four languages to Roughriders anthem performance

What began as a unique graduation performance has since grown into something bigger. After high school, MacFarlane took an American Sign Language course at university and added signing to the anthem when she performed at the Saskatchewan Winter Games earlier this year.

“Honestly, the hardest part of it all was signing over top of it. I’m signing in English, but then I would be singing in French or Michif and it was hard to get them to line up, but eventually it became a habit and it just flowed really easily after a lot of practice,” she said.

That practice paid off at Saskatoon’s Griffiths Stadium, where MacFarlane performed in front of more than 7,500 fans – easily the largest crowd she has faced.

“In that moment, it was very like, ‘okay, I’m going to perform again.’ It didn’t really register until I got out onto the field. I thought, ‘this place is massive and there’s a billion people here, it feels like.’”

The opportunity still feels unexpected for the Meadow Lake singer, who described the journey as a giant game of telephone, with one performance leading to another.

“It was just an amazing opportunity, and it feels really special. I’m a girl from a small town in northern Saskatchewan; sometimes it feels like you’re really isolated out here and people might not know you,” MacFarlane said. “Now I am like, ‘they said my name and where I came from before I sang… maybe Meadow Lake will get on the map.’”

MacFarlane said she hopes her performances can inspire others to embrace language, culture and creativity in their own way.

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Alyssa.rudolph@pattisonmedia.com

by Alyssa Rudolph

Meadow Lake singer brings four languages to Roughriders anthem performance

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