Rachel Bobbitt is beautifully honest, in song, and in person. I had the honor of chatting with her in November, just before her tour with Tim Baker.
A girl from Annapolis Valley in Nova Scotia, she has a generational knack for music.
“The first time I ever sang in front of anyone was at a school talent show when I was in grade one,” she said. “I just remember rehearsing with [my mom], and she played the piano for me, and it was the first time that I had rehearsed a song to sing, and she was the one who led me through all of that.”
In October 2025, Bobbitt released her first album “Swimming Towards the Sand.”
“I knew that I wanted these songs to feel cohesive,” she said. “Not like a collection, but like a very intentional sort of journey through different songs.”
It’s a touching series of motifs surrounding memories, the ocean, and a sense of home. Bobbitt told me that she actually found some of her inspiration for the album from the film “The Lighthouse.”
“When I was watching it, I was thinking, this looks so familiar to me,” she said. “And it was actually shot in Nova Scotia.”
She mentioned the black and white shots and how they felt timeless to her. It’s safe to say she’s doing the same with her first album.
Rachel Bobbitt is a truly down-to-earth individual. She talks like you’re chatting over coffee, and leaves room for conversation. It was a pleasure to hear about her producer, collaborators, and her teaching. Bobbitt hosts music lessons for children and adults and gushed about her experience.
“Kids are so uninhibited, and they are just exploring, trying things out,” she said. “And they don’t care about sounding good or polished. And then with adults, so much about a singing lesson is just taking down walls and getting through mental blocks.”
Along with that, she beautifully explained what it means to her to be pursuing music as a career.
“[Music] will always be here, which is very reassuring,” she said. “I think things can feel out of your control in so many ways, but at the end of the day, I will never lose the ability to create.”
Of course, I had to pick her brain about some of my favorite songs of hers. First, is the one that introduced me to her, “More.” It is so inspiring to see and hear someone be so open about a topic that can feel so hard to discuss. Then, I mentioned her cover with Justice Der of “Forrest Gump” by Frank Ocean. Bobbitt reflected on the cover published in 2018.
“I’m just thinking about us as our 18/19 year old selves,” she said. “And being so awkward around each other, and people still request it at our concerts.”
When we first spoke, Bobbitt was coming up on opening sets for Tim Baker. Later this month, she’ll be performing at JunoFest in Ontario. While she enjoys interacting with fans online, she loves an in-person experience.
“You are getting a one-of-one performance, which is really exciting,” she said. “And talking to people afterward just feels so tangible and real in a discipline that I think can feel very nebulous.”
Listen to “Swimming Towards the Sand” on Spotify and Apple Music. Sending many thanks to Bobbitt and her team for this opportunity to hear from someone so talented and humble!
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