Kiesza Lyrics

Kiesa Rae Ellestad[5][6] (born 16 January 1989),[2][3] better known as Kiesza,[7] (KYE-zə, /ˈkaɪzə/) is a Canadian musician from Calgary[8] who has most recently worked in New York City[9][10][11] and London

Kiesza was born and raised in Calgary. Her last name Ellestad is Norwegian from her paternal side and her grandfather is from Fagernes in Norway.[10][14][15][16][17] When she was 16 she took part in the Sail and Life Training Society (SALTS) program[8] and a year later she joined the reserves[4] of the Royal Canadian Navy along with her brother,[18] becoming a NavCom (Naval Communicator).[8][18][19] It was whilst she was at crew singalongs at the Navy that she taught herself to play guitar.[20] Meanwhile,[8] she also entered the Miss Universe Canada pageant.[11][18] She stated that her time in the Navy motivated her to give away 4,500 CDs to Canadian troops serving in Afghanistan in 2008.[7][8]

Kiesza took part in the Young Canadians, performing tap and jazz dancing, as well as theatre.[7] She also trained as a ballerina,[11] however, a knee injury at age 15 ended her ballet career.[6][21] When Kiesza was 18, she says that her parents' divorce caused her to write her first song, as a way of expressing her feelings.[8] The same year, she heard a song of hers played on the radio.[18]

In an interview with the Metro, Kiesza claimed that she can trace her lineage to someone who fought alongside Robert the Bruce at the Battle of Bannockburn, elaborating "There's a lot of Scottish people in Canada. Tons. My grandpa was of Scottish heritage - he was of the black Douglases"