Based in Ottawa, Christophe Elie lives in the shadow of Parliament Hill. His new single aims straight at it, and at its American cousin, Capitol Hill, too. “Up On The Hill,” out now, is a stomping, sharp-tongued protest song about politicians “writing laws with the lobbyists” while everyone else struggles to buy groceries. It’s the second release from ‘UnAmerica,’ the third studio album from the Cleveland-born folk singer and songwriter, arriving early next year.
“I’m Canadian and American, so I’m an equal opportunity critic,” he says. “‘Up On The Hill’ points the finger at Capitol Hill and Parliament Hill at the same time. The spark for me always comes when I see injustice, and I keep seeing the same picture on both sides of the border: politicians breathing the cleaner air up on the hill, beholden to the almighty dollar, writing laws with the lobbyists that favour the corporations, while the people below struggle to pay for groceries.”
The song grew alongside the headlines it was chasing. “I started it at home with a scratch vocal in November 2024, and the lyrics kept moving as the headlines did,” Elie says. “‘Price of eggs keeps climbing’ went in when that was all anyone could talk about. By the time we finished, the song had a verse about billionaires playing with their rockets. I didn’t have to make any of it up. And when I sing it live, a line about corporations calling the shots becomes ‘now it’s a King who calls the shots.’”
At the heart of it all is a childhood game everyone remembers. “The image that ties the whole song together is from the lyric “When we were kids, playing king of the hill,” he says. “That’s what it looks like to me now. The song ends with a question: will we ever grow up, or will we keep playing king of the hill?”
Elie writes in a proud lineage. Protest songs have shaped North American music since Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger. They reached a peak in the 1960s with Bob Dylan, Phil Ochs and Joan Baez, and found new life in songs like Neil Young’s “Ohio.” Elie counts Dylan, Ochs, Marvin Gaye, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, The Clash, Elvis Costello, Steve Earle and the Chad Mitchell Trio among his biggest influences. Like the best of them, “Up On The Hill” names the issues, with lyrics about rising profits, thriving weapons sales, the cost of living and a climate in crisis.
For Elie, the cause is personal. “My mother was born in the US and was arrested during the civil rights movement in the ’60s. My father is from Haiti, and some of my earliest memories are of the poverty there, and the beauty and resilience of the people,” he says. “That’s the lens I write through. The verse about the family in the city, the second job and not knowing how we’re going to survive, is about the people who are always left at the bottom of the hill.”
He recorded the song at La La Studios with JUNO nominated producer Gareth Auden Hole, of Jack Pine, who co-produced with Elie. JUNO winner Matt Sobb of MonkeyJunk plays drums, Blair Michael Hogan plays guitar, Clayton O’Connell plays keys, Ryan Clare plays bass and Susan Murphy sings harmonies. The finishing touch came from a living legend in the mastering room.
“Yes, that’s a Wall Street bell you hear in the mix,” Elie says. “Then Rob Fraboni mastered it. Rob designed and built Shangri-La Studios for Bob Dylan and The Band, and he worked on Planet Waves and The Last Waltz. He’s worked with everyone from The Rolling Stones and Eric Clapton to The Beach Boys. Having those ears on a protest song out of Ottawa still amazes me.”
Fraboni, who mastered the track with his RealFeel technology, also worked on Elie’s 2024 single “Columbia.” That song was written in the spirit of Neil Young’s “Ohio” in support of student protesters at Columbia University, with proceeds going to UNICEF’s work in Gaza. Elie’s earlier albums, ‘Deepest Shade of Blue’ (2007) and ‘Bridging Borders’ (2016), explored culture, language, Indigenous relations and immigration. ‘Bridging Borders’ includes his Franco-Ontarian song “La Belle Province.”
His activism goes well beyond the studio. Elie hosts “Songs for the Revolution” on Ottawa’s CKCU radio and runs “Writers’ Bloc,” a monthly songwriters’ circle. He also founded and hosts ‘The People’s Music Festival,’ an online celebration of socially conscious music and speakers. In his own community, he’s sung for commuters alongside the volunteers working to protect Ottawa’s Hunt Club Forest, part of his ongoing work to protect the city’s green space. He’ll celebrate ‘UnAmerica’ with a CD release show in Ottawa early in the new year.
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