Corey Payette Finds Healing through The Music from Starwalker

A vibrant fusion of Indigi-Pop, drag, and Two-Spirit storytelling from the acclaimed composer and performer.

By Cam Delisle

Published on November 10, 2025

Corey Payette’s The Music from Starwalker is a celebration in every sense: a pulse-pounding fusion of Indigi-Pop, drag-infused theatricality, and the heartbeat of Two-Spirit storytelling. The album, companion to his feature film Starwalker, moves between moments of vulnerability and full-blown euphoria, blending Indigenous drumming, cinematic pop, and a fearless embrace of chosen family and joy. It’s music as resistance, music as celebration, and music that insists on visibility and pride.

On November 14, Payette brings the world of Starwalker to life at The Starwalker Experience in Vancouver, a live show merging a full band, film clips, and performances from local drag stars. Below, Corey opens up about crafting the album, centering joy and beauty in queer Indigenous communities, and the transformative power of seeing yourself—and your chosen family—reflected on stage and in song.

You’ve called The Music From Starwalker a celebration of Two-Spirit identity and drag—what did it mean to you, personally, to center joy and beauty in those communities, especially through music?

For me, creating The Music From Starwalker was about reclaiming joy as an act of resistance. Too often, stories about Indigenous and queer people are framed around trauma, and while those truths are important, they don’t tell the whole story. I wanted to center the beauty, laughter, and community that have always existed in Two-Spirit and drag spaces.

Music became the way to express that joy. The album celebrates the families we choose, the houses we build, and the ways we lift each other up. In a world that continues to challenge our right to exist authentically, Starwalker insists on joy. It’s a reminder that we’ve always been here, that our stories are sacred, and that our music, our laughter and our light will keep leading us forward.

Starwalker blends Indigi-Pop with club sounds and theatrical storytelling. How did you approach building that soundscape—and what did you want the listener to feel as they moved through the album?

I wanted the Starwalker soundscape to feel like stepping into a world where the club, the stage, and the spirit could all coexist. The album moves between moments of raw vulnerability and total euphoria.

Musically, I was blending Indigenous drumming songs with 80s pop synths, and cinematic theatricality. The drum connects us to the heartbeat of the land; the pop elements speak to self-expression and empowerment; and the storytelling carries the emotional arc of the musical. I wanted listeners to feel that transformation from starting in a place of searching to an end in celebration.

Forgiveness plays a powerful role in the film’s finale. Can you speak to how that theme shaped both the story and the music?

I wouldn’t say the finale is about forgiveness so much as it is about stepping aside from your own fears; confronting the inner voices that tell you you’re not enough so you can finally live the life you were always meant to live. It’s about learning to accept yourself fully, and allowing the love that’s already around you to reach you.

When I imagined the ending, I thought about all the generations of queer people who never got to be celebrated; those who passed without family, without community, or who carried shame that wasn’t theirs to bear. My hope is that Starwalker offers, in some small way, a tribute to them and a celebration of queer existence that should have always been theirs, and that now, finally, can be shared with joy, pride, and a connection to Indigeneity that has always existed on this land.

You’ve often created work that lives at the intersection of Indigenous worldviews and Western forms—how do you navigate that space artistically, especially in a genre like pop that’s so globalized?

For me, creating while holding all parts of who I am is where the joy of songwriting really lives. I grew up listening to pop music, but I also grew up surrounded by drumming songs and traditional music; and bringing those worlds together feels like the most natural thing I can do. It’s not something I calculate or plan strategically; it’s simply how I hear and express story.

When I create, I don’t think about the global reach or how the work might resonate internationally. I follow instinct; what feels right in my gut for a song, a moment, a character, or a story. My hope is that by creating from a place of truth, it will resonate with others. And because I’m drawing from the language of pop, a form that connects people across cultures, I hope that it invites a broad audience into these stories while remaining deeply rooted in who I am.

The idea of ‘chosen family’ runs throughout the Starwalker project. How has that idea shown up in your own artistic journey, and how did it influence the creation of the House of Borealis?

Chosen family is at the heart of why I wanted to create Starwalker, and the fictional House of Borealis became the vessel through which I could create that. The name “Borealis” actually began as a personal nickname; my husband used to call me “Corey Borealis” as a term of endearment; head in the clouds, something like that. That love, that warmth, became the foundation from which the story’s sense of joy and belonging could grow.

I’ve always created from a personal place, drawing on my own experiences and relationships to shape the worlds and characters I write. So while the House of Borealis was imagined for the story, it’s rooted in something very real: the love, laughter, and kinship that sustain us. What began as a simple nickname evolved into a constellation of characters; a chosen family that reflects the beauty of finding home in one another.

What does bringing this project to the stage unlock for you that the film or album alone couldn’t?

I’ve always imagined creating an event that brings together the music, the film, and the artistry of drag into one unified experience; and that’s really where The Starwalker Experience began. I wanted to blur the lines between the fictional world of Starwalker and the real drag community that inspired it by inviting professional drag artists to step directly into that universe.

Now, I finally get to bring that vision to life on November 14th at the Vancouver Playhouse. It’s a chance for all these elements; the live band, the film, and incredible Canada’s Drag Race performers like Ilona Verley, Synthia Kiss, HAZEL, and Beth to share the stage and merge their extraordinary drag artistry with the world of the House of Borealis.

With Starwalker out in the world and being embraced by audiences, what impact are you most hoping it leaves—especially for queer Indigenous youth?

My greatest hope is that Starwalker shows queer Indigenous youth that their stories, their love, and their gifts already belong in this world exactly as they are. When I was growing up, I didn’t see myself reflected on screen or on stage, and I think that absence can make you feel invisible. Starwalker was my way of filling that space with joy, with beauty, and with truth.

I hope that when young people see this film, or hear the music, they recognize themselves in it. I want them to know that their voices, their art, their way of being can change the future. And beyond representation, I want them to feel celebrated.

Corey Payette’s The Starwalker Experience takes over the Vancouver Playhouse on Nov. 14, 2025. Tickets here.