music
Justin Hines
In talking about his music, singer-songwriter Justin Hines says, “Honestly, I don’t remember wanting to do anything else, period.” That sense of it being something as essential as breathing emanates from every track on his soul-searching debut album, Sides.
Justin absorbed his musical gifts from his family – “My dad plays a mean folk guitar,” he says, “and my mom has a great voice.” Justin’s been told that as a baby, he was carrying a tune before he was talking, and remembers that, “My grandmother Margaret always had this thing that I was going to be a singer. She had me singing in church and for relatives, so any stage fright left me early.”
There was also the influence of an inanimate – but equally musical – fixture of the household, a jukebox of his dad’s, loaded with old 45s. He’d sit in front of it for hours, listening to every song, note for note. It’s still in his basement, and it still inspires Hines with classic recordings by artists including James Taylor, Willie Nelson, Cat Stevens, Jim Croce and Harry Chapin.
Competing against hundreds of entrants, 14-year-old Justin won a radio contest to sing the Canadian national anthem at a Toronto Raptors game. His first gig was in front of 17,000 people.
Possessed of an unflagging spirit that’s remarkable under any circumstances, Justin copes with a rare genetic joint condition called Larsen Syndrome, that keeps him wheelchair bound. “Sometimes people find it hard to understand why I would be so positive,” he explains. “I was born into my situation, I don’t know any different, and I feel very fortunate for my family and all the support that I have. I know my physical situation is a bit of an attention grabber, but as an artist and performer, it is my job to hold the audience’s attention, and let the music speak for itself.”
From a very early age, his creative mind was emanating poetry about universal love, the soul and other such global topics. His charitable works are so numerous it’s hard to even begin to list his performances at fundraising events that began at the age of 10. His love and concern for humanity, not just the disadvantaged gradually became his focus of attention. To learn more about his fundraising endeavours please visit www.JustinHines.org.