Canadian rock music icon Bif Naked is a positive person, with her upbeat nature permeating various facets of her personal and professional lives.
It’s a positivity she wants everyone who attends her upcoming acoustic set during Pride in the Woods at the Fox Haven Campground in Lavigne on Aug. 24 to be left feeling.
“Everyone has to leave chanting, ‘I love myself today,’” she told Sudbury.com, making reference to her hit song of the same name.
“It’s going to be a magical night.”
Bif Naked broke into the Canadian music scene in the ’90s when she established herself as a hard rock icon whose music remains a radio mainstay.
Her first album in 15 years, “Champion,” came out earlier this year, and maintains her hard rock/punk sensibilities alongside the catchy pop melodies that helped make her music a hit.
Bif Naked’s upcoming set at Pride in the Woods (at Fox Haven Campground) will be an acoustic performance.
The LBGTQ+ event is in her wheelhouse, and Bif said she’s looking forward to an intimate performance in front of like-minded, supportive people.
Plus, she added, who doesn’t love camping?
“Everyone loves camping and roasting marshmallows,” she said. “We’re there for the whole shebang, baby!”
Although political advocacy always surrounds Pride events due to a political climate in which LGBTQ+ rights are constantly at risk, Bif Naked said she tries to focus on the positives.
“Whether it’s the rock show or acoustic show, I’m pretty chatty, so they’re definitely pretty positive, for sure, but almost like very huggy, they’re happy and very effusive,” she said, adding, “I’m a gushy, effusive performer, much to my band’s chagrin.”
Pride crowds are particularly positive and supportive, she said, with like-minded people typically in attendance because they really want to be there.
“They want to rub shoulders with everyone else in the community and say, ‘I’m happy to be here, and I’m happy you’re here!’”
Positivity can even permeate the negative, she said, pointing to whatever rage finds its way into her songs as a reflection of her emotions, adding that sometimes she’ll reflect on a song and realize, “Oh shoot, oh darn, I guess I was heartbroken.”
“Like the optimist I always am, I tend to fall in love again and again,” she said, calling herself the “punk rock LIz Taylor.”
“I love weddings, especially my own,” she added with a chuckle.
Bif Naked received an honorary doctorate from the University of the Fraser Valley in 2013, "in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the performing arts, her courage in dealing with a number of personal challenges, and especially for her dedicated, inspirational, and life-changing work with young women."
Bif Naked's memoir, “I, Bificus,” was published by HarperCollins in 2016
For more information on the Pride in the Woods festival, click here. Ticket information is available by clicking here.
The organizing group What the Fox Trot is a non-profit organization which a media release said strives to keep the event affordable at $10 for a day pass. Major events are held in accessible buildings, and the festival strives to prioritize the safety and comfort of attendees.
Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.
