Elise LeGrow is a Canadian recording artist and songwriter. Elise was offered a publishing deal from Sony Music following a live performance at the 2009 NXNE music festival in Toronto. Elise’s first release, “No Good Woman,” was the most added single on adult comtempoary radio in Canada the week of April 7, 2012. The single peaked at number six on the Nielsen BDS Adult Contemporary chart, and remained in the top 10 for 13 weeks.
In 2016, Elise signed with Awesome Music in Canada, which brought on S-Curve/BMG as her label in the US. Later in 2016, she recorded a full-length concept album of Chess Records covers entitled Playing Chess. The album was produced by Steve Greenberg, \michael Mangini and Betty Wright. Questlove and Captain Kirk Douglas as well as The Dap Kings made contributions to the record.
In June 2016, she released “Who Do You Love?”, which debuted at #15 on the CBC Radio 2 chart and eventually hit Top 10 on the CBC Radio 2 chart. Rather than faithfully recreate such revered material, her interpretations of the Chess classics strip the tracks of their previous identities, transporting them to a world where past & present intertwine; showcasing LeGrow’s stunning voice & inventive arrangements.
Elise released “You Never Can Tell,” by Chuck Berry as her first single from the record on May 19, 2017.
Elise LeGrow finally released her debut album Playing Chess in February 2018. Her latest single Evan was release in July 2020. It’s a tribute to her friend, shot and killed more than a decade ago, far too young and full of life. When she hits that line about OutKast’s The Love Below, she recalls 17-year-old Evan singing in the driver’s seat of his souped-up VW. “This song was by far the hardest to write,” she says. “About five years ago, I was alone on a lake playing guitar, and started singing about Evan. It’s been percolating for a really long time.”
