Okan is a Toronto-based Cuban band led by violinist, vocalist, and composer Elizabeth Rodriguez, and percussionist, vocalist, and composer Magdelys Savigne.

Elizabeth Rodriguez was born in Havana and is a classically trained violinist who once served as the concertmaster for Havana’s Youth Orchestra. Magdelys Savigne was born on the other side of the island, in Santiago de Cuba, and graduated with honours in orchestral percussion. Both Rodriguez and Savigne attended Havana’s University of the Arts, but did not meet until moving to Toronto.

The duo met through Latin-jazz bandleader Jane Bunnett. Rodriguez first arrived in Canada in 2013 to perform at a classical festival in Hamilton, prior to meeting Bunnett and joining her band Manqueque. Savigne had met Bunnett in Cuba and came to Canada to join the band in 2014. Both were a part of Manqueque’s second Grammy-nominated album, Oddara.

Rodriguez and Savigne left Manqueque to form Okan in 2017, and married each other that same year. “Okan” means heart or soul in the Afro-Cuban dialect and the religion of Santeria. Their music is largely shaped by the West-African rhythms inherent in Santeria, rhythms scarcely played in Cuba anymore. After releasing a few singles; “Laberinto” (2018), “Luz” (2018), and “Mas Que Nada” (2019), they released their first full length album, Sombras (2019), which secured them a nomination for the 2020 Juno Award for World Music Album of the Year, as well as an Independent Music Award. Their second album, Espiral (2020) earned them a Juno Award in the same category in 2021.

Okan released their third record, Okantomi, in 2023, which earned them another Juno nomination, and are currently on a Canada-wide tour. They have collaborated with Cuban and Canadian heavyweights such as vocalist Daymé Arocena, guitarist Elmer Ferrer, pianist Miguel de Armas, bassist Roberto Riveron, and pianist Jeremy Ledbetter.

Okan is a charismatic ensemble who effortlessly intertwine Afro-Cuban and Santeria rhythmic traditions with a cross-cultural blend of folk, jazz, and classical music.

Awards

• Juno for World Music Album of the Year (2021)
• Independent Music Award (2020)