It’s a tale as old as time: a man, his guitar and a full heart.
Winnipeg musician Les Gillis is hitting the road Tuesday to embark on the second leg of his cross-country journey in hopes of making a change through music.
“Music just has a way of moving people,” Gillis told CityNews. “And I thought these people are in serious need of a change of an environment.”
Gillis has been a musician for 50 years. Last summer he spent five weeks on the road, travelling 11,000 kilometres – to the east coast and back – playing music for shelters, soup kitchens, encampments and recovery centres.
“What really heals people is that rhythm is an amazing thing, how it steers your soul,” the musician said. “And if you can engage people into your music and make them feel part of something, then people start to feel like they’re being seen.”