In the last year, Montreal-born, Nashville-based singer-songwriter Allison Russell has hit a staggering number of career milestones. In September 2023, she released her sophomore solo album The Returner, a cathartic and funky roots album that finds joy and collective power amidst pain. In February, she won her first Grammy for best American Roots Performance, honouring her rousing anti-racist anthem “Eve Was Black.” And in April, she notched her first Hot 100 debut with the warm Hozier duet “Wildflower and Barley.”

Those are just a few highlights from a year when Russell also won acclaim from the Junos and the Polaris Music Prize and played with Canadian legends like Sarah McLachlan and Joni Mitchell, the latter during her powerful comeback which included an emotional Grammys performance.

The accomplished singer-songwriter has arrived at this moment by lifting up those around her, building a collaborative network of Black, racialized and queer musicians called the Rainbow Coalition. When Tennessee passed anti-LGBTQ laws in 2023, Russell helped organize the Love Rising benefit, which raised more than $500,000 for LGBTQ+ causes. Her musical success is entwined with her activism and community-building – a holistic practice that’s led her to major heights, all on her own terms.