Nicole Simone
# Nicole Simone

Nicole Simone, (born March 18, 1985) is a Canadian-American charity executive and musician.

She is the CEO of the Toronto dog rescue charity Redemption Paws, and a singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer, and actress based out of Los Angeles, California. Her music has been described as indie pop and orchestral pop. She was previously known by the stage name Late July.

## Early life and education

Nicole Simone was born March 18, 1985, in Toronto, Ontario. Her father is an immigrant from Sicily, Italy and her mother is of Irish descent. Simone began writing songs and singing after a childhood accident that led to her suffering a crushed vocal box. In high school, she became a self-taught musician and worked at a local record store. She took vocal lessons as part of her recovery and eventually taught herself how to play the piano and guitar.

## Redemption Paws

Simone is the founder and CEO of foster-based dog charity Redemption Paws. Started as a means to help dogs impacted by Hurricane Harvey, Redemption Paws eventually became a Canadian-registered nonprofit organization. Previous to founding the charity, Simone had been volunteering with homeless dogs since 2006 and founded the photography series Redemption Dogs, which raises awareness for shelter dogs. Her work with Redemption Paws has been highlighted by CBC News and CBS News. In 2020, when the Canadian border was closed to the US, Simone successfully had dog charities deemed essential service workers so dogs could be safely imported into Canada.

## Artistic career

As a musician, Simone's first EP, Side Swept, was released under the name Late July. Two songs from the EP were featured on the series Out With Dad. In 2013, she debuted her electro-pop side project Dreamgirl Whatever, which she formed with German music producer Nico Vetter. Simone released her second EP, Marathon, in 2017. After releasing Marathon, Simone released the single "Confetti" in 2019. She went on to release singles "Calling to the Moon" in 2020 and "Passcode" in 2021. The single "Sober" was released in summer of 2022, which tackled the topic of supporting loved ones with addiction.

In September 2022, she changed her artist name from Late July to Nicole Simone. She also released covers of "Heart-Shaped Box" by Nirvana and "Name" by the Goo Goo Dolls in 2022.

Simone's music has been described as orchestral synth pop. Her musical influences include Tom Waits, Elliot Smith, The National, and Jeff Buckley. Simone's new EP Green Eyes was released in early 2023.

In 2020, Simone wrote and starred in the short content web series On a List. The series won a number of awards including the Outstanding Achievement Award at the Indie Short Fest, Best Web Series at the 4th Dimension Film Fest, and the Silver Award for Web/TV series at the Hollywood Gold Awards. Simone was also awarded an Honorable Mention for Best Actress at the New York Movie Awards for her work in On a List. Simone starred in the 2020 documentary Rescuing Rex, which documented her work with her charity Redemption Paws, along with other animal rescue organizations.

### Discography

EPs :

| Title | Released | Label |
| - | - | - |
| Side Swept | 2010 | Lady Hill Music |
| Marathon | 2017 | Lady Hill Music |
| Green Eyes | 2023 | Soulspazm |

### Filmography

| Title | Type | Year | Producer | Actor | Writer | Ref |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| On a List | Web series | 2020 | Yes | Yes | Yes | |
| Rescuing Rex | Documentary film | 2020 | No | Yes | No | |

## Selected awards

| Year | Award Show | Category | Work | Result |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| 2021 | New York Movie Awards | Best Actress | On a List | Honorable Mention |
| 2021 | Indie Short Fest | Outstanding Achievement Award - Web/TV Series | On a List | Won |
| 2021 | Indie Short Fest | Outstanding Achievement Award - Web and New Media | On a List | Won |
| 2021 | Lonely Wolf Film Festival | Best Streaming Series or Pilot Episode | On a List | Nominated |
