With a population of about 1,200, Langenburg in Saskatchewan is as laid-back as it gets: a one-school highway town where everyone knows everyone’s business, and any attempted secrets are doomed to become public knowledge.
It was in that oh-so-rural setting that Jess Moskaluke was born and raised and, not unlike many young girls in the mid-to-late 1990s and beyond, idolized another small-town girl by the name of Shania Twain.
Fast forward to 2014 and the release of Moskaluke’s debut studio album Light Up The Night and her subsequent release of the single “Cheap Wine and Cigarettes.” That song would later be certified platinum for sales, making Moskaluke the first Canadian country artist to achieve that lofty status since Twain attained likewise in 1995 with her breakthrough album The Woman In Me.
Small town and big dream later and here we are, as Moskaluke readies to take the Del Crary Park stage on Wednesday (July 30) at Peterborough Musicfest. Admission to her 8 p.m. concert is free as always, thanks to the ongoing support of several longtime sponsors, kawarthaNOW among them.
Moskaluke’s journey began in earnest in 2011 when she won The Next Big Thing contest joint sponsored by Regina-based Big Dog 92.7 FM and SaskMusic. Just a few months later, more heads were turned when Moskaluke was presented with the New Artist Showcase Award at the Canadian Country Music Awards.
Buoyed by that success, Moskaluke released her debut single “Catch Me If You Can” in June 2012, followed by the release of an EP by the same name. A second single from that EP, “Hit N Run,” cracked the Top 40 on the Billboard Canada Country Chart in 2013, bringing Moskaluke the 2013 Female Vocalist of the Year award from the Saskatchewan Country Music Association. You can bet she was the talk of her town.
VIDEO: “Cheap Wine and Cigarettes” – Jess Moskaluke
With momentum wholly in the corner, in October 2013 Moskaluke released “Good Lovin,” the first single from her upcoming debut album and her first single to reach the top 20 on the Billboard Canada Country chart. Her platinum-certified single “Cheap Wine and Cigarettes” along with the single “Used” were released after the album dropped the following April.
In September 2015, Moskaluke released her second EP Kiss Me Quiet with the singles “Kiss Me Quiet,” “Take Me Home,” and “Elevator,” earning her the 2017 Juno Award for Country Album of the Year. She also won Female Artist of the Year at the Canadian Country Music Awards (CCMA) for three consecutive years from 2014 to 2016.
Intending to record and release her second studio album, Moskaluke saw that plan changed by the onset of the pandemic in 2020. Unable to travel from her Saskatchewan home to Nashville to record new music, she opted to dip into her back catalogue of songs not yet recorded. Working with her producer, she transformed those demos into a fully produced album.
In February 2021, The Demos was released, giving Moskaluke her first number-one hit in the form of “Country Girls,” and the additional well-received singles “Halfway Home,” “Leave Each Other Alone,” and “Mapdot” — the latter a tribute to Langenburg, which Moskaluke continues to call home.
The video for “Mapdot,” which peaked at number 15 on the Billboard Canada Country Music chart, was filmed in Rocanville, 58 kilometres distant from Langenburg. Whether Langenburgers were impressed with that choice, who knows, but there was no denying their girl’s pride in her small-town upbringing.
Since then, Moskaluke has enjoyed chart success with the singles “Knock Off” and “Heartbreaker” and, as 2025 dawned, “Life For Me” and “I Ain’t Country.”
VIDEO: “Mapdot” – Jess Moskaluke
In a May 2025 interview with Aileen Goos of Atwood Magazine following the release of “I Ain’t Country,” Moskaluke addressed the idea she’s not “country enough” — the same criticism levelled against her musical hero Shania Twain back in the day.
“It’s a more honest representation of where I am right now,” Moskaluke said. “For me, it’s about pushing the genre and challenging what people expect from country music.”
“People used to say I needed to add a banjo or a fiddle to be country. They didn’t think I was country enough. I think we’re pushing the genre. Shania Twain did that, and I think it’s up to us to create music that feels good.”
Any comparisons to her childhood idol, added Moskaluke, are fine by her.
“It’s such a full-circle moment being compared to her,” she said, adding “It’s the ultimate compliment. I’m just trying to do what feels right for me. You just have to be yourself. And if you think you’re country, then you are.”
“It sometimes scares me that something I do or say might not be the perfect role model thing. But it’s also really cool to see these little girls looking at me the way I looked at my role models.”
Ahead for Moskaluke is her cross-Canada Life For Me tour that begins September 11 in Kelowna, BC, and includes an October 16 concert in Langenburg. In fact, her Musicfest appearance is her last scheduled show before that stretch of near-daily performances that concludes in Halifax on November 8.
VIDEO: “I Ain’t Country” – Jess Moskaluke
“There are massive hurdles all the time,” reflected Moskaluke. “Being a woman in this industry wasn’t always easy. It’s something we could work on, but it’s getting better.”
That said, she has no regrets whatsoever over the path she chose.
“Whether it was a success or a failure, everything got me to where I am now. If I could say anything to my 14-year-old self, I’d just tell her to enjoy the ride — maybe slow down a bit.”
Wednesday’s Moskaluke concert will be preceded at 6:30 p.m. by Cobourg-based country music artist Ryan Scott performing under the Cogeco tent near the George Street entrance to Del Crary Park. He is appearing as part of Musicfest’s new Future Sound Series featuring the talents of local performers this summer.
Peterborough Musicfest is presenting 16 free-admission concerts during its 38th season, each staged on Wednesday and Saturday nights until Saturday, August 16th.
Overseen by executive director Tracey Randall and staff, a board of directors, and numerous volunteers, Peterborough Musicfest’s stated mission remains “to provide diverse, affordable live music to enrich cultural and economic prosperity in our community.”
For more information on this concert or the 2025 season, visit www.ptbomusicfest.ca or phone the Peterborough Musicfest office at 705-755-1111.
kawarthaNOW is proud to be a headline sponsor of Peterborough Musicfest’s 2025 season.
