Rae Spoon is a highly acclaimed singer-songwriter who just released their eighth album, Armour, the follow-up to the Polaris Prize-nominated My Prairie Home. Their cross-Canada tour lands in Toronto on June 23 at Tranzac. We caught up with Spoon this week.

SDTC: What spaces in Toronto do you find inspiring?

RS: I love spaces where people are trying to make them more accessible. The one that comes to mind is Unit 2, which is a performance space run by a band on my label. They prioritize QTBIPOC folks (Queer/Trans/Bisexual/Intersex/People of Color) in the space.

What aisle do you spend the most time in at the grocery store?

The produce aisle.

What would you do with one million bucks?

Make an accessible multi-disciplinary artist residency in Victoria.

The receipts in your wallet would indicate what?

That I’m in the United Kingdom and consuming a lot of fruit cups at train stations.

What was your high school yearbook pet peeve?

Probably homophobes.

What would you do with your time if you didn’t work in music?

Video game tester.

What makes you happy?

Playing music.

What makes you cringe?

Stand-up comedy.

What, in your opinion, is overrated?

Authenticity.

Person you’d most like to meet?

Dolly Parton.

What is the best thing you did all week?

I went to a vegan animal rescue farm in the UK. There were giant rabbits and mini horses!

Describe your perfect Saturday.

Waking up at home and having coffee, and visiting Beacon Hill Park and the beach.

Describe the funniest thing you’ve ever witnessed.

I don’t know why this is the only thing that comes to mind, but one time on tour I woke up in my van and when I looked out the window I locked eyes with a kid who was dancing by the side of the road in a sandwich board. Then he leaned over and threw up. Afterward he laughed at himself and kept dancing.

What word or phrase should we all use more?

The “they” pronoun.