Skip to content

West Kelowna musician raising funds for cancer research through new single

Soul Forgotten’s single Lilies will be released on Aug. 22
26220791_web1_210826-KCN-song-fundraiser_1
West Kelowna musician Nathan Hutton is releasing a song he hopes will raise money for the Canadian Cancer Society. (Nathan Hutton)

A West Kelowna musician is honouring his mother after losing her to pancreatic cancer last year.

Nathan Hutton, who makes music under the name Soul Forgotten, said his whole EP coming out this fall explores feelings of loss and mourning after a loved one passes away.

The lead single, Lilies, is dedicated specifically to his mother, who he lost to pancreatic cancer last summer. Now, not only does he want to raise awareness about cancer, but he also wants the song to be a fundraiser for cancer research.

Hutton said when his mother was diagnosed, everything seemed to happen very fast.

“It came very, very quickly, and we just had enough time to see her and say our goodbyes in Ontario,” he said. To keep his family safe from COVID, they drove across the country and then camped outdoors.

“We were very blessed that I got to physically say goodbye to my mother. I know friends who, because of COVID, weren’t able to do that with their loved ones.

“But coming back, I ended up with the rough draft of what became the lyrics to Lilies, the lead single from the EP.”

Hutton said lilies were his mother’s favourite flowers, and it only made sense to name the song dedicated to her. The song was recorded and mixed at his home studio in West Kelowna.

“Out of everything that I was working on, that became the most important song that I had in the library at the time,” he said.

“Given that it’s connected to losing someone to cancer, I didn’t want to just put it out there. I wanted to fundraise however I can,” he said.

Lilies may not be a happy song, but Hutton said his goal is to let others know who may also be grieving that they are not alone.

“I’m not the only one to lose somebody and to lose somebody specifically to cancer. There are also those who lost loved ones to the pandemic,” he said.

“My hope is when someone listens to the song, that they can look at the lyrical content and feel some sort of connection to it. I believe that when you take the music away, the song is just a poem and a poem is a process of feeling connected to something and not just see it as words.”

Hutton said all the money raised through the song will be donated to the Canadian Cancer Society.

To stream the song and to donate, visit Soul Forgotten’s Bandcamp. The rest of the album will be available later in the fall.

READ MORE: ‘Bet on yourself, always’: Kelowna’s Jerome Blake reflects on Olympic bronze

READ MORE: Kelowna woman offers free food, supplies to wildfire evacuees


@twilamam
twila.amato@blackpress.ca

Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.



Twila Amato

About the Author: Twila Amato

Twila was a radio reporter based in northern Vancouver Island. She won the Jack Webster Student Journalism Award while at BCIT and received a degree in ancient and modern Greek history from McGill University.
Read more