Owen Sound is a hotbed for talented artists looking to take refuge from the hustle, bustle, and heightened blood pressure of city life.
Over the years, the area has become a sometimes temporary, sometimes permanent home for numerous musicians. From acclaimed producers like Lisa Conway Büler who tucked a studio into the hills of Grey County to of members of Broken Social scene who have tended bar at Heartwood Concert Hall while taking breaks from the road.
On that list of talented musicians who choose to call the area home are Josi and Rob Elder. Early on, after what they thought might be a permanent move to the big city, they were pulled back to this area by family, community, and music.
Local to Grey County, the two grew up finding their people, and ultimately each other, because of music. Now, as much as ever, music is a driving force in their creative lives, their joie de vivre, and their relationship.
Recently, we caught up to chat about love, the next generation, healthy challenges and the art of the jam night.
From an early age, both were drawn to the rich network of musicians and performance opportunities in Grey, Bruce Simcoe.
Josi’s first band experience was with local jazz-blues band called Jive On Rye, consisting of Nick Barkley, Tyler Wagler, and Marty Sinclair. She befriended the band members and soon became their lead vocalist.
“Often, the band would play the back room at Joe Tomato’s. The original owners used the space for emerging artists in the area,” says Josi, describing an amazing rotating feature of up-and-coming local talent. She was 16 at the time, a chamber choir singer and a proud self-proclaimed “music nerd.”
Rob Elder grew up on a farm in rural Grey County and, like Josi, was always drawn to music. Answering the kind of call that can’t be ignored, he joined his first band at twelve years old.
“My first band, Seven Day Sergeant, formed in grade eight or nine and played mostly coffee houses and Battle of the Bands,” says Rob. Seven Day Sargent was Rob’s introduction to the community circles and nights of live music that would carve his path.
Playing music with friends was a simple choice for Rob; he had fun doing it. Whether he realized it or not at the time, he was sowing the oats of a lifelong community.
It was inevitable that Josi and Rob would meet. It happened one evening at a coffee house at the Rainbow Room in Owen Sound, introduced by mutual friend, Tyler Wagler.
When high school ended, the two moved to Barrie, then Toronto – both attempts to advance Rob’s music career and Josi’s graphic design career in bigger centres.
During their time in Toronto, Rob hosted a Thursday night jam where he met some of their closest friends. On nights when the city was too ‘city-like’ for them, they’d hop in the car and drive until the roads got quiet, often not stopping until they reached Meaford, and the open arms of the Ted’s Range Road diner jams that carry on to this day.
“I will always play music no matter where, what context, or how old I am,” says Rob. “I am growing old with music.”
“Rob’s superpower is hosting jams,” adds Josi.
At this remark, I realized something: Yes, the two love music dearly, but more than that, they love people.
They claim their decision to return to Grey Bruce Simcoe was logistical, but I can’t help but feel like it was more than that. While they both admit there was anxiety surrounding the decision to recalibrate and move back, Josi and Rob found themselves warmly welcomed by the scene they’d always known.
“I sometimes take for granted living in such an amazing area,” says Josi. “I feel fortunate for the lives and relationships we have built here.”
The two are well-known in this region for their involvement in acts like The Honey Hammers, The Shed Shakers, The Krueger Band and The Shoeshoopers, but also for their work with Summerfolk Music Festival, The City of Owen Sound’s Midweek Music and of course for Rob’s career as a singer-songwriter.
Since their return in 2012, Rob has released multiple projects including his 2018 LP Changer, a record he describes as “an effort to make the dream a priority after years of letting music take a back seat.”
I first heard Rob at one of The Bleeding Carrot’s Friday afternoon open-mics, when a sharp-looking songwriter in a suit took the stage. Rob had quiet confidence, and as he started, the crowd went silent. It was the kind of moment that communicates “this is somebody you need to shut up and listen to.”
Since then, I’ve seen Rob entertain small rooms in Toronto, festival audiences, concert halls and sunset crowds over Georgian Bay with The Rob Elder Trio; he’s looped his way through every inch of Grey Bruce Simcoe. During many of these performances, Josi has been at his side, expertly belting thoughtful harmonies and energetic lead parts: a testament to those early choir days.
Josie says “I’m not a songwriter…that’s all Rob,” but moments later I learn that she is responsible for a great deal of Rob’s writing.
Rob admits that it isn’t unusual for him “to spend hours in the car without so much as the radio on.” By contrast, “Josi is the consumer,” he says, “she has a passion for an endless intake of art.”
Not only does she possess an encyclopedic knowledge of all things music, but she is responsible for challenging many of Rob’s lyrics, melodies and musical choices. “Her input makes my music stronger,” he adds.
It makes sense that music led Josi and Rob to each other. Like their relationship, music involves collaboration, mutual respect, healthy challenges and a great network of loved ones.
They want to see the local music community do for their children’s generation what it did for them. These days they give back to their music community where they can and support local efforts like Summerfolk and Midweek Music.
In 2026, Josi and Rob own a business together, Engaged Financial; they play shows, record and release music, ride motorcycles and most of all, they spend time raising their beautiful family – a period they affectionately refer to as “the squeeze of life.”
Together, they are content to play one or two shows a year, while Rob averages about 25 and makes it to open jams whenever he can. Touchingly, he mentions a recent visit to Jazzmyns, where he saw the current cohort of late-night jammers holding space for each other.
As they gave him the nod of approval, he was transported back to his 20s, when his local hero Larry Jensen would stop by his jam nights to pick up the guitar for a song or two.
Perhaps more than they realize, their decision to return to the area and to honour their passion for live music has had an impact that reaches far beyond themselves.
Written by Marshall Veroni
Photos by Ashley Winters
