Bif Naked, unfiltered
Anais Loeppky, Staff Writer
If resilience were a person, it would be Beth Nicole Torbert, known on stage as Bif Naked.
The Canadian punk artist has built a career on an unapologetic refusal to back down. Her story is one of survival and turning pain into power. Now, that story is reaching audiences in a new way.
Her documentary, Bif Naked, premiered at the Calgary International Film Festival in September 2025, further cementing her place as a Canadian icon.
Now, Bif is making rounds on her Canadian tour. On March 2, she stopped in Calgary for another showing of the documentary, followed by a beautiful acoustic set and Q&A at Mount Royal University’s Bella Concert Hall.
Bif’s film captures the impact she has had on generations of fans who saw themselves in her long before they saw themselves represented anywhere else.
“Whether or not she wanted to, she became this icon for girls who wanted to be different,” said George Stroumboulopoulos, Canadian broadcaster and media personality, in the documentary.
Turning pain into punk
To understand how Bif Naked became the punk icon we know today, you have to look at the story behind the music.
Bif Naked was born in India and adopted as a baby before moving to Canada. In her documentary, she talks about the abuse and sexual assault she endured in her early years. She battled an eating disorder, came face-to-face with drugs and experienced more violence than any child should have to.
For many people, experiences like that could define a life. For Bif, they became fuel.
Music became the place where she could finally let it all out. Bif quickly made her mark in Canada’s punk scene with a fearless, tell-it-like-it-is style that fans couldn’t get enough of.
Over the years, she built a career that includes multiple albums, international tours and a reputation as one of the most unapologetically authentic voices in punk rock. Songs like “Moment of Weakness,” “I Love Myself Today” and “Spaceman” solidify her as a staple of Canadian alternative music.
Breaking into the boy’s club
The documentary also explores what it was like for her as a woman navigating the punk scene, a space that wasn’t always welcoming.
“In punk rock music, you don’t give a fuck,” Bif explained in her film.
But that didn’t mean the industry treated her fairly. In the film, she recalls moments that highlight just how difficult the environment could be.
“I was barred from walking on stage,” she said on screen. “Bands that we had played on the bill with asked me who I was gonna fuck.”
Rather than letting those experiences silence her, Bif responded the only way she knew how. She would “tell them to go fuck themselves.”
It’s that refusal to be intimidated that helped shape the fierce, outspoken persona fans know today. Bif has never been afraid to take up space, speak her mind or challenge the systems around her.
Humour as armour
On the flip side, the documentary also reveals a softer and deeply human side of her story, particularly when she talks about friendship and girlhood.
In the Q&A that followed the screening at MRU, Bif Naked was asked about her resilience.
“I didn’t identify ever as a sexual abuse survivor or as a sexual assault survivor,” she said. “Nor did any of my girlfriends.”
For Bif and many of the girls she grew up with, coping with trauma didn’t look the way people might expect.
“We used to compare notes back when we were growing up,” Bif recalled. “And I had girlfriends who would, you know, we would light a smoke and wait for the bus to come and compare notes on terrible events in our lives . . . we would laugh our heads off literally, and that was our therapy.”
In those moments of dark humour and shared understanding, they found something important.
“We felt a sense of belonging, and we found a sense of connection, validation, and almost a sense of community in that way,” she said.
That sense of community has remained a defining part of Bif’s career. Fans have long connected with her willingness to talk openly about the difficult parts of life.
Her humour, however, is never far away.
More than music
I had the privilege of speaking with Bif myself.
When I asked her what she credits for her strength and resilience, she didn’t point to something glamorous or self-ritualistic — Instead, she offered a simple and very human explanation.
“I think that you fake it ‘till you make it, because there’s a lot of anxiety that goes along with being a human,” she said.
That honesty is part of what has made Bif so relatable to so many people. She’s never pretended to have it all figured out — and that honesty is something fans connect with.
When I asked her what inspires her to continue speaking out on issues she cares about, Bif did not hesitate. With her usual humour and conviction, Bif explained that “the older I get, the bigger my mouth is.”
And that voice has been used to advocate for causes that often don’t get the attention they deserve.
“I feel like using my voice where it is needed,” she said. “I feel like there are lots of people that make lots of noise for really popular topics. They don’t need me.”
Instead, she focuses on issues that don’t always have the same spotlight.
“There’s lots of different causes that don’t have a lot of eyes and ears on them. Those are the causes I’m interested in.”
Among the causes she highlights were encouraging people to vote, improving healthcare, addressing disability poverty, and advocating for animals.
Still unapologetically Bif
Through it all, Bif Naked has remained exactly what she has always been: outspoken, resilient, and unapologetically herself.
For many fans, that authenticity is exactly the point. Long before conversations about trauma, resilience, and belonging were common in music, Bif was already talking about them — loudly, honestly, and without apology.
