Summer Serenade
This summer you may want a taste of something sweet, or rather the sound of something sweet—in which case, Becca Griffin has just the treat for you.
Griffin has started a local business in serenading others with messages of love. How it works: you choose a song from her catalogue—examples range from Happy Birthday, to What a Day by Fred Penner—book a time slot, work out a location, and Griffin takes care of the rest.
While Griffin hails from St. John, New Brunswick, she’s a self-proclaimed Islander. She moved here six years ago to attend the Holland College theatre program. “I don’t plan on going anywhere else to set my roots. I love this community so much, and I’m devoted to sharing my light with its members through this business.”
She says this business is a great option for all occasions – wishing a loved one good health, congratulations, proclamations of love, friendship, or even just a friendly greeting. Griffin says purchasing a serenading session for a loved one is a special gift. “It is an open-hearted message of love, and we could all use a little more of that considering the times we live in.”
Previously, she’s offered her singing services on Valentine’s day, and for the occasional birthday. “February fourteenth is always booked solid. It’s usually a wonderfully emotional and loving day for me. The love is overwhelming.” In 2016, Culture PEI contracted Griffin as an artist for the Hive program—a program which offers local emerging artists a three-month term to pursue artistic business endeavours. Griffin says, “It was a wonderful program [for me], and this business was born in 2016 while I was with them.”
Becca Griffin of Charlottetown, PE offers surprise serenade services, also known as Song-o-grams. Photo submitted by Becca Griffin © 2018.
When asked what inspired Griffin to start this endeavour, she revealed that there is a personal story behind the idea. “My father is this big, beautiful, bumbling romantic; and, he has devoted his life to keeping his Girls happy.” Of course, Griffin is referring to her mother, herself and her sister.
When Griffin was in the seventh grade, she says she’d received a wonderful, and slightly embarrassing, Valentine’s Day gift. Four well-dressed men showed up at the door of her classroom and proceeded to serenade her with a barbershop love song. “Needless to say, I was a beet-red, thirteen-year old girl.”
She’d been waiting patiently after school to tell her family what happened. As it turns out, both her mother and sister received the same gift that day. “My older sister, who was fifteen at the time, was fuming,” she laughs. “Next came my mother – she was giddy.” After the three of them recounted their stories, Griffin’s father arrived home. “He bounded in our back porch with hands full of pizza and treats, and he gleefully shouted, ‘Who’s your Daddy now?’ We’d all laughed, with the exception of my sister, who’d rolled her eyes.” Griffin says they all agreed it was a wonderful surprise to have received. “We felt really special. And it’s that feeling that inspired me to try this service out myself. Nothing makes me happier than making someone else feel special and loved.”
While Griffin is a trained triple-threat, who spends much of her time on the stage acting as Diana Barry in 2018 production of Anne and Gilbert, she dreams of becoming the next great Canadian Children’s Entertainer. She welcomes parents who wish to purchase a surprise for their children to contact her for services.
To book a surprise serenade, please contact Becca Griffin at surpriseserenadespei@gmail.com or feel free to look her up on Instagram @BeccaTheWitch