Jay Semko

Jay was born and raised in Saskatchewan, spending much of his first 11 years living on a farm. After moving to Saskatoon in Grade 7,  Jay began honing his skills as a guitarist and bassist, and played in numerous rock bands through his high school years. After a year at the University of Saskatchewan, and after stints in a number of bands in and around Saskatoon, Jay formed the Northern Pikes, releasing a total of seven albums on the label and touring across North America. 

As a member of the Northern Pikes, Jay was awarded four Gold records and one Platinum, with sales of over 1 million units worldwide. The band received 8 Juno Award nominations, and Jay received two Canadian Music Publishers Association Awards, for Teenland and Girl with a Problem. During the course of their career, the Northern Pikes have released twelve albums. In 2012 the iconic Canadian band was inducted into the Western Canadian Music Hall of Fame.

When the Northern Pikes began a six year hiatus in 1993, Jay released nine solo albums, firmly establishing him as one of Canada's premiere songwriters. Jay is an accomplished voiceover artist, and has also instructed songwriting courses and hosted songwriting workshops and seminars through the University of Saskatchewan, Songwriters Association of Canada, SOCAN and private clients. 

Jay's latest album, "Never Sent", released on Inner Expression Records, is a rootsy musical road trip through love, loss, and spirituality, and has resulted in Jay being nominated in the Western Canadian Music Awards for 2020 Spiritual Artist of the Year -  Jay continues to tour, and his solo acoustic concerts are legendary for their laughter, tears, and sheer love of music and life.