Folk artist Jessica Rhaye to perform at Live Bait Theatre

After a music-making hiatus, East Coast musician Jessica Rhaye has returned to the music scene with a bang. The release of Good Things has infiltrated the folk industry with an organic compilation of acoustic instrumentation, rousing rave reviews for Rhaye.

To start off the year, Rhaye's Good Things received plenty of praise, including garnering a Canadian Folk Music Award nomination and 2010 East Coast Music Award nominations for Folk Recording of the Year and Solo Female Artist of the Year.

With the success of the album, Rhaye is now preparing to reveal her contemporary folk - not only to Canada, but the world. Rhaye just recently completed showcasing three nights at the International Folk Alliance Conference in Memphis, TN, followed by a performance at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, where over 2,000 people would line up nightly to catch the shows at Atlantic Canada House.

Soon after Rhaye's Olympic performance, she was on stage again, in front of fans, buyers and presenters while performing as part of the official concert series at the 2010 East Coast Music Awards in Sydney, N.S.

Over the years, Rhaye has been nominated for a total of 11 East Coast Music Awards, has received recognition from numerous songwriting awards and has performed all over Canada, in Africa, parts of the United States and has toured all over the United Kingdom.

Beyond Rhaye's extensive touring, her music has been featured on CBC's Heartland and CMT's Unstable. She has co-written with notable Canadian songwriters Ron Sexsmith and Ken Tobias. She has also been fortunate to have worked with Dave Gunning, Asif Illyais and Ed Woodsworth.

Rhaye (www.jessicarhaye.com) and her band will appear in concert Saturday, April 10 at 8 p.m. at Live Bait Theatre in Sackville, a show presented by Sandpiper Productions East and the Tantramar Regional High School dragon boat team 'Hakuna Matata.'

The TRHS dragon boat team will receive $4 from every ticket sold for this performance to go towards their fundraising efforts for the Lion's Sick Children's Fund, the main beneficiary of the Greater Moncton Dragon Boat Festival (www.gmdbf.ca) held in June. Opening the show at Live Bait will be talented East Coast singer/songwriter Virginia Tingley.

Tickets are $12 each and are available at Tidewater Books, Pugsley's Pharmacy and from TRHS dragon boat team members. For more information, call (506) 536-7006 or (506) 379-6243.