‘Have You Heard of Judi Singh?’: A slice of Canadiana and rich musical heritage 

Baljit Sangra discovered Judi Singh while reading an article one night about Singh’s forgotten legacy. Now, she’s made a documentary to try to help others rediscover Singh.

Sangra noted the spelling of Singh’s last name when she saw the article. Singh is a very common Punjabi name. Looking further, Sangra saw photos of Singh’s parents — a Black woman and a Punjabi man. 

“The pictures, that history kind of intrigued me,” Sangra said. “I just felt a connection to the story. It’s one of those kind of untold stories.”

Singh was a Black-South Asian jazz musician from Edmonton, with her career spanning from the 1950’s to her last performance in 2007. She was a local star, and a Canadian star, but has been forgotten over the years.

Sangra said she herself is a granddaughter of a Sikh pioneer, and “imaging what that time in space was like, and then how [Judi’s father] met his partner, Judi’s mom, and these two immigrant communities that intersectionality came together … I just loved all that.”

So Sangra began building a documentary about Singh’s life, now called Have You Heard of Judi Singh?

Bringing Judi Singh into the present

Sangra never got to meet Singh, as she had passed during the COVID-19 pandemic. But she wanted to tell a story that honoured Singh without turning her into a symbol or erasing her complexity.

She reached out to Singh’s daughter, people she had collaborated with musically, friends, and other family. Through those connections she started piecing together the story of Singh’s life, from her parents’ history to her music career and her own family. 

“We brought her into the present with some re-enactments, as well as her voice on vinyl, some beautiful archival gems that I found,” Sangra said. “Also other archives, historical archives, and thinking of a way to creatively piece things together.”

The documentary also follows Singh’s daughter, Emily, as she unpacks the physical and emotional remnants of Singh’s life. 

“She’s literally going through some boxes that her mom left her and then sharing stories, and also sharing about their relationship,” Sangra explained. “It’s not a total bio[graphy], I just chose to focus on the artist mostly, and three main chapters of her career, and then sort of add context.”

A slice of Canadiana and rich musical heritage

And as an Edmonton artist, Singh’s story is intertwined with Edmonton and Alberta’s music scene.

Sangra was particularly intrigued by the highlights of her music career in the 1950s, 60s, and 70s. The film features local Edmonton musicians who knew Singh, as well as the Yardbird Suite, which Singh performed at.

Sangra said the history of the Yardbird dates back to the 50s. “It’s moved around, but it’s still standing, probably the oldest independent, still-standing jazz club run by the Jazz Society in Canada.”

One of the chapters of Singh’s career was her collaboration with Tommy Banks, a “musical icon of Alberta [and] Canada.”

“He had TV shows, he was a record producer, [he had] big bands, he had a club,” Sangra said. “He had his fingers in everything, which is a real slice of Alberta, for sure.”

Sangra hopes this documentary can be a rediscovery of Singh’s story and her music.

“She’s a woman of colour who came up in the 60s and 70s, and I think she can contribute to the cultural landscape,” Sangra said.

“It’s sort of a love letter to a generation … two communities and intersectionality, her trials and tribulations,” she explained. “It’s a slice of Canadiana, it’s nostalgic.”

But it also serves as inspiration for folks like Sierra Jamerson, a vocalist featured in the film who was inspired by and got to sing with Singh. 

“She speaks to that connection and the rich musical heritage that’s come before her, and then building on that,” Sangra said. “I think it’s important.”

You can catch Have You Heard of Judi Singh? at the Edmonton International Film Festival on October 4 at Landmark Cinemas. A question and answer with Sangara and some folks from the film will take place after the screening.