Jamie Fine has always had somewhere to go. Long before the streams, now well over 100 million globally, and before the sold-out rooms and the growing U.S. audience, there was a quieter instinct taking shape. As a kid in Ottawa, Fine found something that felt like her own: a way of translating emotion into something she could hold onto. Her heart still powers her work. Fine, an Ottawa-born queer singer-songwriter and four-time Juno nominee, has built a career on emotional access, pairing sharp songwriting with a disarming openness that’s drawn in a global audience of nearly 1.5 million followers. Her breakout single “If Anything’s Left” went Platinum in Canada and Double-Platinum in South Africa, but the scale of her reach only tells part of the story. What keeps listeners coming back is the sense that her music isn’t just expressive. It’s lived-in.
Her upcoming EP, Everything Led Me To You, arriving June 12, isn’t so much about the moment emotion hits as it is about what follows: the processing, the meaning-making, and the perspective that only arrives with time. What emerges across the EP isn’t a single narrative. It’s a collection of moments that feel distinct but are connected by a shared perspective. Nothing is wasted. Not the good parts, not the painful ones. That sensibility carries through even as the tone begins to shift. “good things come in twos,” her new single out May 12, moves somewhere different: more immediate, more physical, more playful. Positioned as an LGBTQIA+ anthem, the track captures the spark of lust at first sight, unfolding in the kind of space where inhibition falls away and instinct takes over. It draws from a vivid, specific world: a house party, a queer space, a night where people let their guard down and step into something more present. Earmilk chats with Fine all about her new music, touring, mental health and more!
How did music shape you growing up?
Every time I felt happy or sad or angry, whatever it was, I would turn to not just listening to music, but creating music in order to express it. It wasn’t just expression. It was structure, a way of making sense of things that didn’t yet make sense.
Can you tell us about the process of the upcoming EP Everything Led Me To You?
It just kind of clicked. The good, the bad, the ugly… knowing that it led to some of my favorite moments and some of my favorite lessons.
You describe feelings as impulsive and processing as the part we can actually shape?
Processing is what we do with them. That part, we’re in control of.
This philosophy you don't just talk about; it directly drives how she writes. Can you explain?
I can’t even write a song until I’ve entered the processing phase.
That patience shows up most clearly on “cups of coffee,” a track that revisits first love with a generosity that only comes from distance?
The relationship ended years ago, but it took time to fully metabolize what it meant. I didn’t always feel that way. The lessons are what allowed me to feel thankful for that relationship.
Can you describe the moment of trusting yourself and, by extension, trusting your audience?
It’s such a big part of who I am. I’m going to release a song that feels right to me right now, and the right people are going to find it.
You have been vocal about her commitment to mental health, LGBTQIA+ advocacy, and anti-bullying, and other themes that aren’t only embedded in your work but reinforced in how you show up publicly. Your openness is part of what draws fans in, but it’s also something you navigate carefully?
I’ll always hold a little bit back. I’m not somebody that believes you can heal very authentically online.
You recall a moment after a recent show when a young fan told you that your openness around gender had given them the confidence to come out as trans?
It’s the kind of interaction that expands the meaning of the work far beyond music. I want to be a safe space for people.
You have faced bullying and uncertainty at a young age, what advice can you give to young people?
Understanding who you are first, and not relying on other people around you to help you get there.
How was your latest tour?
I’ve never had my soul fed in the way that it was on that tour.
You have said that the idea that even a single connection carries weight?
What would have saved me as a kid is having just one person.
What do you hope the new music inspires?
I hope they can say, ‘I went through a hard thing, and I endured it.'
Connect with Jamie Fine: INSTAGRAM
