Jessica Harrington
Arts Writer

On Oct. 16 five babes with a cause and a whole lot of soul lined the stage at Amigos Cantina to raise funds and awareness for the battle against breast cancer.

The cross-national group of artists came together for the Saskatchewan date of Babes for Breasts, a national fundraising tour featuring regional female artists using their skills to promote and assist charities helping women and men living with breast cancer. Saskatoon was one of 13 cities chosen for a 14-show run from St. John’s to Yellowknife.

The Saskatoon line-up featured the varied talents of Winnipeg artists Sheena Grobb and Jaylene Johnson, Toronto singer Amy Campbell, Ottawa musician and Babes for Breasts co-founder Amanda Rheaume and local favourite Jen Lane. Sporting guitars, a keyboard and warm and powerful voices, the “babes” put on a two and a half hour show of folk for a relaxed and ready audience.

“It was a fun night,” said a smiling Jen Lane after the show.

The Babes For Breasts national project started in 2003, when Ottawa singer-songwriter Ana Miura witnessed the loss of a friend’s mother to breast cancer and organized a single show in Ottawa. 

“Ana just felt compelled to do something. It came mostly out of humanity, the desire to help other people. And when Ana and I met, it was sort of the same thing for me,” said Rheaume.

“I’m personally tied to the cause because my godmother died of breast cancer when I was 11 and my great aunt died of it two years ago. It’s such a wide-ranging issue. So that’s how it got started, just being a human being and wanting to use the gift of music to help others.”

Since the original show in 2003, Babes for Breasts has expanded under the direction of Miura and Rheaume and is now on its second national tour. Hopes for further growth are high.

“We’re grassroots,” explained Rheaume. “But it would be ideal to be sponsored and have all expenses covered so we can just put the girls on the road and then pay them a little each for the shows. We’re working towards that. Still, some fundraising events take years to get right and this is a huge project.”

Despite the difficulty of organizing national tours, though, Jen Lane feels that the work is easier if the cause is worthy.

“It’s funny; when it’s your own stuff it seems like work. But when you’re doing it for a charitable organization, you just stop worrying about your stuff at all and you just say, ”˜Okay, I want to do this.’ ”

As well, Rheaume draws encouragement for growth from the positive reception, saying response has been amazing.

“Of course, I always wish there was a bazillion more people at every show, just because it’s such an amazing concept. But because the show is so warm and intimate, that’s been the response. People make sure to tell us that they’re very appreciative that we’re doing this.”

Such response isn’t surprising. Playing to an audience of about 40 at Amigos, the performers were completely engaging as they chatted with the audience from on stage, made jokes and talked candidly about their experiences with breast cancer and related issues. Grobb memorably exhorted the importance of breast examination for both women and men, asking everyone to “just check a boob, any boob, and do the world a favour.”

There were also raffle prizes and a 50/50 draw, which could only be claimed if the winner went into a suitably impressive “frenzy.”

And the “babes” were clearly intimate, too. Although most of the artists met only a day or less before the show, their mutual support was obvious as they danced to each other’s music and praised each other.

“It’s like you forget that you’re playing,” said Lane.  “You’re watching the other girls, and then it gets to be your turn and you’re like, ”˜Oh yeah, I have to sing a song now.’ So it’s kind of cool, it was really chill.”

To date, Babes for Breasts has raised approximately $30,000 for various charities that address many issues of breast cancer, from diagnosis to remission and assisting affected families. Most of the proceeds go to the regional chapters of the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation. Donations from Saskatoon will go toward the Prairies/Northwest Territories Chapter of the CBCF. 

Of course, anyone interested in making their own donations or in hearing the talent doesn’t need to wait for the next tour. In the meantime, you can go to babesforbreasts.com for all things Babes, including online donation, volunteer opportunities, tickets and links to the artists’ websites and the CBCF.  You can also follow them on Facebook, Twitter and MySpace. 

Just don’t forget to come out for the shows. The babes are sure to thrill and you just might help someone you know.