Julien Baker "Sprained Ankle" / "Rejoice" on Exclaim! TV

Published Jul 05, 2016

Memphis-born singer-songwriter Julien Baker has gained a lot of traction online from her emotionally honest tracks, which detail near-death experiences, substance abuse and spirituality. Though the 20-year-old artist originally self-released her heart-wrenching debut Sprained Ankle on Bandcamp while studying at college, she later signed to indie label 6131 Records for an official release last year.For this episode of Exclaim! TV, we filmed two of Baker's performances at The Drake Hotel in Toronto back in April. "Sprained Ankle" begins with gentle pin drop-like guitar plucking and it's lent additional weight by her burning lyrics ("Wish I could write songs about anything other than death"), rather than additional instrumentation. "Rejoice" picks up on a more bittersweet note; it's a lament of life's tragedies and acknowledgement that faith still keeps her strong, laid bare on a bed of passionate vocals and raw playing.Grab a tissue (or a whole box) and check out the performances in the player below. You can also catch Julien Baker live on tour at a few select Canadian shows later this year. Find those dates after the clip.Tour dates:07/09 Milwaukee, WI - Henry Maier Festival Park (Summerfest)07/22 Portland, ME - Port City Music Hall*07/24 Newport, RI - Fort Adams State Park (Newport Folk Festival)07/25 Millvale, PA - Mr. Small's Theatre**07/26 Detroit, MI - Majestic Theatre**08/06 San Francisco, CA - Golden Gate Park (Outside Lands)08/08 Portland, OR - Mississippi Studios08/09 Vancouver, BC - The Cobalt08/10 Seattle, WA - The Vera Project08/12 Ogden, CO - Alleged Rooftop08/14 Denver, CO - Bluebird Theater08/15 Colorado Springs, CO - Black Sheep08/19 Tucson AZ - 191 Toole08/20 Phoenix, AZ - Valley Bar08/28 Los Angeles, CA - Exposition Park (FYF Fest)09/09 Raleigh, NC - Nash Hall (Hopscotch Music Festival)09/17 Toronto, ON - Fort York Garrison Common (Toronto Urban Roots Fest)09/18 Ottawa, ON - The Great Lawn at Lansdowne Park (CityFolk Festival)09/30 Austin, TX - Zilker Park (Austin City Limits Music Festival)* supporting Frightened Rabbit** supporting DaughterFilmed and edited by Katherine KwanAudio by Kyle LaurinFilmed at The Drake Hotel (1150 Queen St. West) in Toronto, ON