Neil is an award winning Canadian Country singer / songwriter.
A songwriter since 1959 when in high school, Neil has been a member of various garage bands through the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s as well as a member of 'Downtown Jam' - a Toronto, Ontario based group of musicians. Neil has 5 albums and 13 singles released as well as more already in the works and planned - all available on his web site neilwyoung.com, and worldwide at Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, Google Play, Deezer and other digital streaming sites. He is planning to release a 45 rpm vinyl record in late 2023.
Neil was honoured to be named on the front cover of the July 2007 CASHBOX Magazine as “one of the awesome indies gracing our Independent Charts every week”.
Twice nominated for a Hamilton Music Award, a JUNO contender several times for Songwriter of the Year, as well as Alternative Album of the Year and Music Video of the Year, and five-time winner of the IAIA (International Academy of Independent Artists) Golden Kayak Award for Country Song of the Year, Classic and Progressive Rock Song of the Year, World Song of the Year and Miscellaneous Song of the Year, Neil has had numerous songs reach #1 on various indie music charts, as well as two songs reaching #1 on the CASHBOX Magazine Country chart.
In addition to having had a successful 35-year entrepreneurial career in real estate development, investment, and management, Neil founded and served as Executive Director, general manager and tour / team manager of Rhapsody On Ice - an international touring troupe of precision / synchro ice dancers that he took around the world for seven years - in his 'spare time'. The troupe was cited by the Sport Tourism Coordinator, City of Brantford, as “Truly an incredible history of greatness and accomplishment.”
Neil also received a credit as Special Consultant in the film 'Piaf … Her Story … Her Songs' - a documentary of the French chanteuse Edith Piaf distributed by Lionsgate Films. Neil's involvement in the Piaf documentary took him to George Lucas' Skywalker Ranch Film Studio near Nicasio, California, where he was involved in the editing session for the film.
Twenty years ago, Neil came to a fork in the road that led to him becoming an author and a professional singer-songwriter-recording artist, fulfilling a life-long dream from his high school days as a budding songwriter in the 1950s.
He spells his name 'Neil w Young' purposely using his middle initial "w" in the lower case with no period.
Neil is a Western Ontario Secondary School Honor Athlete and graduate (1964) of Waterloo Lutheran University / Waterloo University College Faculty of Arts - now known as Wilfred Laurier University.
Neil is also a published author as N. W. Young.