Victoria Duffield

Entertaining is not something Victoria has always wanted to do – it’s something that she has always done. The singer, dancer and actor from Abbotsford, British Columbia, is not afraid of being in the spotlight, as proven by her spirited debut single for Warner Music Canada, “Shut Up and Dance.” The track, co-written by Victoria and Ryan Stewart (Carly Rae Jepsen, Suzie McNeil), is a brazen dancefloor anthem introducing an exciting new artist. “I want people to listen to the song and get lost in it,” she says. “I want to share my love of dance through songs that people can connect with, through both the lyrics and the beats that can’t help but make you want to dance.” In the summer of 2010, Victoria caught the attention of Ron Lopata, Warner’s VP of A&R, after he heard some of her demos. “Not everyone has star quality but when you see someone who has it, it’s undeniable,” Lopata says. “Victoria has an unbelievable work ethic, mentality and love for music.” Victoria, though a stage veteran, had to face a venue with which she was not yet familiar – the board room. “I just remained confident and sure of myself,” she recalls of her first meeting with Warner executives – a meeting that included a performance. “I showed them how hard I have been working for all of these years.” The confidence is instilled through her experience. Victoria’s earliest performances included putting on shows for her family and friends, with a set list including the classic “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.” By age seven, she was singing and dancing to Broadway tunes in local competitions. Not long after that, Victoria, accompanied by backup dancers, started covering songs from some of her musical influences including Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue and Jennifer Lopez. Victoria was a Top 6 finalist on the third season of YTV’s The Next Star in 2010. “The stage has always been very comfortable for me,” Victoria says. “I love engaging the audience and feeding off of them.” Victoria is not just a musician, but an accomplished actor and dancer as well. Her resume includes more than 30 movie and television show acting credits, including roles in Smallville, Supernatural, Cold Squad and The Haunting Hour. She began dancing at age two, and as she got older, found herself training 18 hours a week and competing across Canada and the U.S. She is professionally trained in jazz, hip hop, tap, ballet, lyrical, contemporary and theatre. Before she gets tagged with the “triple threat” label, understand that her skills go even beyond singing, acting and dancing. Victoria, a classically-trained pianist, co-wrote many of the songs she performs, including the songs “Red” and “Unpredictable” with Rob Wells (Justin Bieber, Selena Gomez) and Jodi Marr (Mika, Jonas Brothers). And she’s smart – real smart. Duffield’s average in school is an astounding 99%, almost incomprehensible considering her typical day consists of school, dance practice, dance training, voice lessons and home work. “I set a very high standard for myself,” she says. “People don’t have to push me; I push myself even further.” She pushes herself, not worrying about how many songs she can sell, or how much money she can make. Spoken like a true performer, Victoria’s measure of success will be the size of her audience. “The amount of fans that come to see me will make me realize that I am doing something right.”