Anyone who’s ever had a fake friend knows that loyalty in a friendship is an important quality that is worth its weight in gold. JUNO-nominated Canadian pop group Girl Pow-R captures the unique agony of knowing a backstabber with their new single “Slam.”
The fifth single from Girl Pow-R’s sophomore album, “Slam” begins with funky flute and ominous beats, and then dissolves into a head-bopping groove as the group sets their boundaries with a “friend”:
You snuck around my back
And I will not take that
I thought that you were real
Yo, what’s the deal?
Of course, there was lying involved in the dissolution of this friendship, and it took a little detective work and interrogation to sniff out the treachery: “The squad told me diff/ You think you’re perfect, you’re not worth it,” the narrator sings, after drawing a line in the proverbial sand.
“Advice I would give other girls my age when choosing friends is to keep your circle small and meaningful, instead of worrying about being popular,” says Carina Bianchini, one member of the Girl Pow-R group. “The number of friends that you have doesn’t matter, but the quality of friends that you have does.”
Member Emma Bown concurs. “Some things that break a friendship are hiding things from each other, not talking enough, and negativity,” she says. “Some things that make a friendship stronger are being trustworthy to each other, making time for each other, and honesty.”
Cindy Kofman, the third member of the group, chimes in with, “When someone breaks your trust or your loyalty, that can ruin a friendship. But to make it stronger, it’s just a matter of how well you guys can get along and stick up for one another.”
The Toronto-based, JUNO-nominated girl group – including Emma from Hamilton, Cindy from Richmond Hill, and Carina from Markham — have been inspiring audiences and motivating young people since bursting on the scene in 2017. The pop/alternative/dance outfit found one another on International Women’s Day and have been leaving their indelible mark on the music community ever since.
The music and the messaging are appropriate for all ages, as Girl Pow-R continues to provide family-friendly music that’s both exciting to dance to and it provides uplifting messages with clean lyrics. “We collaborate on the songwriting, but sometimes we will break off into groups,” Carina explains. “Our producer Jovan gives us ideas for the style of our song, and we produce different concepts and experiment with lyrics; typically, the music comes before the lyrics.
“I believe our music stands out because of the messages we promote that stand behind anti-bullying and self-confidence.”
Girl Pow-R has earned legions of fans the world over, boasting hundreds of thousands of streams and spins online. Beyond the music, the group provides a visual component to their tracks, and hits the road performing at hundreds of appearances per year. Their music earns steady rotation in radio and has become internationally recognized both by the sheer number of fans and equally impressive accolades.
