During a two-night stop in Montreal, QC on his headlining North American tour, Belgian singer Stromae was presented with a custom Platinum plaque by DEP Distribution for his 2013 album Racine carrée. The crossover francophone pop star performed September 28 & 29 at at Montreal’s Bell Centre and earlier in the week at Toronto’s Echo Beach on September 26,
View the video for “Tous les memes” below:
Diamond-certified recording artist Michael Bublé was among the list of 2015 Canada’s Walk Of Fame inductees announced today at the Royal York Hotel in Toronto, ON. Along with Bublé, the 2015 inductees include actors Wendy Crewson and Lorne Greene, author Lawrence Hill, athlete Silken Laumann and Hockey Night In Canada broadcasters Don Cherry and Ron MacLean.
Also honoured at this year’s ceremony will be 17-year-old singer-songwriter and multi-platinum recording artist Shawn Mendes, who will receive this year’s Allan Slaight Honour, which recognizes young, inspirational Canadians who have achieved international success in the music industry.
“Our mission at Canada’s Walk of Fame is simple – to celebrate Canadian excellence, and to inspire the next generation,” said Melanie Hurley, CEO of Canada’s Walk of Fame. “This year’s inductees truly represent this mission, and the legacy they are creating for Canada is something we should all be proud of.”
Tickets for inductees ceremony on November 7, 2015 at Toronto’s Sony Centre are on-sale now. The televised special will air nationally on Global December 17 at 8pm ET/PT.
There’s nothing quite like catching your favourite band at an outdoor music festival, but the real headliners are the hundreds of hard-working skilled tradespeople preparing the grounds before you and the artists arrive. With the launch of their new Tune In Trade Up! campaign, the Ontario College Of Trades aims to attract prospective tradespeople looking for a new and fulfilling adventure in the music industry.
Highlighting the tradespeople behind Republic Live’s WayHome and Boots & Hearts festivals in their new promotional video, the College showcases the benefits of earning a skilled trades certificate for carpenters, electricians, chefs, equipment operators, and more. The video features interviews with The Road Hammers, For Esme and Cross Dog, who stress the importance and appreciation for the trade work that gives them a stage to play on.
View the Tune In Trade Up! video below and click here to learn more about how you can work towards making next summer’s music festivals rock!
The 2015 Polaris Music Prize was handed out Monday night at The Carlu in Toronto, ON to influential Native Canadian singer/songwriter Buffy Sainte-Marie for her album Power In The Blood. Sainte-Marie, 74, was in attendance to accept the award and perform the songs “Power In The Blood” and “Carry It On” earlier in the evening.
Congratulations to Buffy Sainte-Marie, winner of the 2015 @PolarisPrize for 'Power In The Blood'! #Polaris2015 pic.twitter.com/lhgIzdKlmh
— Music Canada (@Music_Canada) September 22, 2015
Determined by a Grand Jury of 11 music media professionals, the Polaris Prize is awarded to the best Canadian album of the year based on “artistic merit without regard to genre, sales history or label affiliation.” Hosted by beloved Canadian family entertainer Fred Penner, the gala also featured performances by short-list nominees Alvvays, Braids, Jennifer Castle and Viet Cong.
While last year’s winner Tanya Tagaq was not in attendance to present the award, the singer praised Sainte-Marie and Polaris’ decision via her Twitter account.
So amazing. So beautiful. So great! Wonderful choice @PolarisPrize @BuffySteMarie
— tanya tagaq (@tagaq) September 22, 2015
The 2015 Polaris Music Prize Short List was:
Alvvays – Alvvays
BADBADNOTGOOD & Ghostface Killah – Sour Soul
Braids – Deep In The Iris
Caribou – Our Love
Jennifer Castle – Pink City
Drake – If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late
Tobias Jesso Jr. – Goon
The New Pornographers – Brill Bruisers
Buffy Sainte-Marie – Power In The Blood
Viet Cong – Viet Cong
The 2015 Polaris Music Prize Gala is just around the corner and today Polaris has revealed the short lists for its first Slaight Family Polaris Heritage Prize, which honours Canadian albums of the past from four distinct time periods: the ’60s & ’70s, the ’80s, the ’90s, and the ’00s (2000-05).
Like the Polaris Music Prize, winners and nominees for the Heritage Prize are albums of the highest artistic quality, without regards to sales or affiliations. The jury for the Heritage Prize consisted of 25 people from current and past Polaris juries as well as former members of the Canadian music media and Canadian music historians.
Below you will find the 2015 Slaight Family Polaris Heritage Prize Short Lists. Voting is open now until October 5 and the winners will be revealed on October 9.
60s & 70s
The Band – Music From Big Pink
Robert Charlebois & Louise Forestier – Lindberg
Leonard Cohen – Songs Of Leonard Cohen
Joni Mitchell – Blue
Jackie Shane – Live
80s
Cowboy Junkies – The Trinity Session
Glenn Gould – Bach: The Goldberg Variations
Daniel Lanois – Acadie
Maestro Fresh-Wes – Symphony In Effect
Mary Margaret O’Hara – Miss America
Rush – Moving Pictures
90s
Blue Rodeo – Five Days In July
Bran Van 3000 – Glee
Dream Warriors – And Now The Legacy Begins
Lhasa de Sela – La Llorona
Sloan – Twice Removed
00s (2000 – 2005)
Arcade Fire – Funeral
Broken Social Scene – You Forgot It In People
Constantines – Shine A Light
Feist – Let It Die
Peaches – The Teaches Of Peaches
The programming team at Roy Thomson/Massey Hall will produce a tribute concert to the four winning albums of the Slaight Family Polaris Heritage Prize winners some time in early 2016. Winners will receive a special trophy at the tribute show and commemorative prints of each winning album will also be made available for purchase to the public.
During his performance last Saturday at the CCMA Awards‘s free Fanfest concert in Halifax, NS, Canadian country singer/songwriter Tim Hicks was presented his fourth Canadian Gold awards plaque for his hit track “Here Comes The Thunder”. Following the eventful weekend, Hicks took to his Twitter page to thank his fans and post a photo of the award presentation, which was also live-streamed via Periscope.
One of my favourite moments from the weekend…. Being presented my 4th gold record at Fanfest! #HereComestheThunder pic.twitter.com/yc1ir4Htiy
— Tim Hicks (@timhicksmusic) September 14, 2015
Hicks has previously been awarded Gold plaques for his tracks “Get By”, “Hell Raisin’ Good Time” and “Stronger Beer”. The video for “Here Comes The Thunder” can be viewed below.
Over the weekend, representatives from Warner Music Canada presented 2015 breakout artists Scott Helman and Matoma with their first Canadian Gold plaques in Toronto, ON and Montreal, QC.
Canadian singer/songwriter Scott Helman was presented with a Gold award plaque for his summer hit “Bungalow” by Steve Kane (President, left) and Ron Lopata (VP of A&R, right) at Edgefest in his hometown of Toronto. Helman, who was signed to the label when he was only 15, posted the photo below on his Instagram thanking the label for the surprise gift and continuous commitment to artist development. “Bungalow” is the lead track off his debut EP Augusta released in October 2014. Helman will join Walk Off The Earth on a Eurpean tour this October.
Prior to his set at Montreal’s IleSonique electronic music festival, Norwegian tropical house producer Matoma was also presented his first Canadian gold award at by John Delaney (Marketing, left) for his unique mix of “Old Thing Back” with the late Notorious B.I.G. and Ja Rule. The DJ also took to his Instagram to thank his Canadian fans and team for the success of the track. Matoma will return to Canada in October for a performance at Vancouver, BC’s Pacific Coliseum.
Over 35,000 music fans gathered together in Oro-Medonte, ON over the weekend for the inaugural WayHome Music & Arts Festival featuring Neil Young, Kendrick Lamar, Sam Smith, Hozier and many other Canadian Gold/Platinum certified artists. Prior to their 8:15 PM performance on the WayBright stage Friday night, English indie rock outfit alt-J were presented with Canadian Gold award plaques by Warner Music Canada staff representing the sales of over 40,000 units for their latest album This Is All Yours. It is the second Canadian certification for the group, with their first album An Awesome Wave earning Gold status in 2013.
The album features the hit single “Left Hand Free”, which can be heard below.
The Polaris Music Prize, an annual award which honours the year’s best Canadian album, has revealed the short list of nominees for the 2015 award at The Carlu in Toronto. This year marks the 10th anniversary of the prize gala, which will be hosted by beloved children’s entertainer Fred Penner on September 21, 2015 at The Carlu.
In June, Polaris revealed their long list of nominees in Halifax, NS. Both the long and short lists are determined by the Polaris Jury, which consists of 196 members from local and national media who have displayed a passion in their work for discovering and embracing new Canadian music. This year, the winner will be awarded $50,000 with the nine other shortlisted artists receiving a $3,000 prize courtesy of Slaight Music.
The 2015 Polaris short list includes:
Alvvays – Alvvays
BadBadNotGood with Ghostface Killah – Sour Soul
Braids – Deep In The Iris
Caribou – Our Love
Drake – If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late
Jennifer Castle – Pink City
Tobias Jesso Jr. – Goon
Buffy Sainte-Marie – Power In The Blood
The New Pornographers – Bill Bruisers
Viet Cong – Viet Cong
In 2014, the Polaris Prize was presented to Tanya Tagaq for her album Animism.
On Friday July 10, 2015, the new global release date for music went live, where all new albums and tracks will be released on the same Friday globally. This change is referred to as New Music Fridays.
Beginning today, Music Canada’s top albums and tracks charts, which are based on Nielsen SoundScan’s sales reports, will be updated Monday mornings to reflect the new Friday to Thursday sales cycle.
Prior to last week’s switchover, Nielsen’s charts released every Wednesday reported a Monday to Sunday sales cycle, which were reflected in the weekly top 20 albums and tracks charts posted Wednesday mornings on Music Canada’s homepage. On Wednesday July 8, the last charts based solely on the Tuesday release schedule were archived on Music Canada’s website.
For more information on how New Music Fridays will effect Billboard, radio and other retail, visit Nielsen’s post on their website. The images below have been provided by Nielsen to outline the switchover.
Music Canada