On Friday, March 1, Toronto musician grandson performed his biggest hometown show to date at The Opera House to wrap up the Canadian leg of his 2019 “No Apologies” North American headlining tour. Prior to his highly anticipated performance, Warner Music Canada surprised the 2019 JUNO Breakthrough Artist of the Year nominee with a Gold Single Award for his breakout hit “Blood//Water,” which is featured on his debut 2018 EP a modern tragedy vol. 1.
last show at home was for 100-150 people
less than a year later we sold out almost 1000.
tonight will be an unbelievable night for the grandkids and I hope you feel personally responsible for this in some way because you are.
Folk Alliance International, the world’s largest folk music conference, descended on one of Canada’s most culturally historic cities in 2019 and was host to countless spirited performances, discussions, and interactions. The festival is known for musical performances into the wee hours, but a relatively early panel yielded profoundly moving, honest, and inspiring discussion.
On Saturday, February 16 at the Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal, Music Canada, in participation with Miranda Mulholland, was proud to present an event titled ‘Artist Advocates in Action.’
Five artists, each with their own advocacy issues close to their hearts, discussed how they most effectively work to create change, and how they tackle challenges such as criticism, drawing a line between their personal and professional lives, and balancing life on the road with parenting and other commitments.
The panel featured musicians Zoë Keating, Peter Katz, Aaron Myers, and Caroline Brooks, with Miranda Mulholland moderating the discussion. Watch the full ‘Artist Advocates in Action’ panel below.
More on the artists:
Caroline Brooks
Caroline Brooks is a singer-songwriter, session vocalist and guitar player from Toronto. She is one third of critically acclaimed Good Lovelies, a JUNO award-winning band that has toured internationally for the last 12 years. They have released 8 albums and their latest single “I See Gold” is up for Song of the Year at the International Folk Music Awards.
Outside of performing, Caroline is a sitting board member with the Mariposa Folk Festival and Muskoka-based advocacy group Safe Quiet Lakes. She and her partner also co-founded Secondhand Sunday, a community re-use and waste reduction program based in Toronto.
DIY Cellist and composer Zoë Keating has worked with many artists and productions, including Jeff Russo, Amanda Palmer, Imogen Heap and the podcast Radiolab. Her music has achieved a surprising degree of ubiquity for a DIY artist, from the bumper music to NPR’s Morning Edition to the thinking-music of the Sherlock Holmes character on CBS Elementary to the theme music for the Brazilian telenovela Para Sempre.
A vocal advocate for the rights of creators, Keating was elected a governor of the San Francisco chapter of the Recording Academy, named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum, and serves on the board of CASH Music, a nonprofit organization that builds open source digital tools for musicians and labels.
Mr. Myers is a life-long social activist and musician who uses entertainment to increase awareness of social issues. While a full-time college student Mr. Myers ran unsuccessfully for the office of Mayor in Corsicana, Texas. In 2008 he served as a field organizer for the Obama campaign in Florida. Mr. Myers is also a skilled volunteer coordinator event manager and public speaker an experienced music teacher and an army veteran. He has also served as National Director of the nonprofit Global Family Program. A jazz and soul musician Mr. Myers is the Resident Artist at Mr. Henry’s Restaurant in DC.
Over the past decade, Peter has seen his albums debut at #1 on the iTunes singer-songwriter charts; he’s shared the stage and studio with the likes of Academy Award Winner Glen Hansard (Once, The Swell Season), JUNO Award-Winners The Good Lovelies, Polaris-Prize nominated Melissa McCelland (Whitehorse) and the Legendary Garth Hudson from The Band. He’s toured all over the world, regularly playing to capacity crowds, and has managed to build an impressive fan-base of loyal listeners, selling over 25,000 copies of his discs mostly from the stage, one show at a time. Never content to sit still for long, Peter Katz has his eyes firmly set on the future.
Classically trained on violin and in voice, Miranda is a versatile performer and in high demand as a fiddler and singer covering a wide range of styles. Her debut full length solo album, Whipping Boy, was released in May 2014 to critical acclaim. It became the flagship of her own record label, Roaring Girl Records which is quickly gaining a reputation for as a home for diverse and excellent artists. She is the founder of a music festival in historic Gravenhurst, Ontario called Sawdust City Music Festival which is now three years old.
Currently she is a member Harrow Fair, a duo with Andrew Penner of Sunparlour Players. She makes select appearances in the violin show, ‘Bowfire’ and her fiddle trio, Belle Starr as well as with Stephen Kellogg and the South West North East Band. She has also sung and played fiddle with Jim Cuddy, Steven Page, Calexico, Joel Plaskett, Rose Cousins, Alan Doyle, Raine Maida, Dan Mangan, John Borra, The Rattlesnake Choir and Justin Rutledge, among others. Not limited to band performances, Miranda has appeared in various theatre productions including the Dora winning productions of ‘Parfumerie’ and ‘Spoon River’ with Soulpepper Theatre in Toronto.
On Sunday night, Danielle Bregoli – AKA Bhad Bhabie – packed Toronto’s Phoenix Concert Theatre for the second stop on her 2019 Canadian tour. Following her high energy set, the 15 year-old viral rapper was brought back on stage and surprised with two Canadian Gold Single Award plaques for her hits “Gucci Flip Flops” and “Hi Bich” in front of her adoring fanbase.
The IFPI revealed their Top 10 Global Recording Artist Chart today, naming Drake as the world’s best-selling artist of 2018. The Toronto hip hop sensation is the sixth recipient of the IFPI Global Recording Artist Award, and the only artist to ever hold this title multiple times, with his first being in 2016.
Drake earned the top spot following the global success of his fifth album Scorpion, which was officially certified Double Platinum in Canada in July 2018, and includes the hits “God’s Plan” (8x Platinum), “In My Feelings (5x Platinum), “Nice For What” (4x Platinum). The 25-track double album broke multiple global records in its first week of release, including being the first album to reach one billion streams across all platforms worldwide.
“Drake has had an incredible, record-breaking year, one that is more than worthy of the title of Global Recording Artist of the Year,” says Frances Moore, chief executive of IFPI. “That Drake has won this award for the second time is testament to his continued global appeal and his ability to engage and connect with fans.”
Drake is the only Canadian artist to receive the prestigious award, with previous recipients including One Direction (2013), Taylor Swift (2014), Adele (2015), and Ed Sheeran (2017), who remains on this year’s list at number 3.
“This year’s Top Ten artists reflect the global appeal of music” Moore continues. “From modern-day superstars like Drake, Ed Sheeran and Ariana Grande, to the rise of genres such as K-Pop, to legacy acts like Queen, fans are exploring and enjoying music of all types and from all corners of the world.”
The full Top 10 list, which was counted down by the IFPI on Twitter, is now available below.
Last Thursday, dozens of artists and members of Canada’s music community gathered at Toronto’s Phoenix Concert Theatre for the annual Spirit of John concert benefiting The Alzheimer Society Music Project, which helps those suffering from dementia rediscover pleasure in the world through the power of music. The concert series began in 2015 when Spirit of the West singer and main song co-writer John Mann was diagnosed with Early Onset Alzheimer’s.
The incredible evening of music featured a set of fan-favourites from Spirit of the West, and a second set of covers of some of John’s favourite songs, with artists like Serena Ryder, Jim Cuddy, Jessica Mitchell, Royal Wood, and many more exchanging vocal duties.
During the intermission and live auction led by the Alzheimer Society of Toronto, the band surprised fans with the news of their classic hit “Home For A Rest,” performed earlier in the evening with Damhnait Doyle, had now officially reached Platinum status in Canada. Members of True North Records’ team then brought an official custom Platinum plaque on stage, which the band members autographed and auctioned off.
L to R – Spirit of the West’s Tobin ‘The Gull’ Frank, Matthew Harder, Geoffrey Kelly, Hugh McMillan and Vince R. Ditrich. with True North Records’ Brad Machry, Layne The Auctionista, True North Records’ Jordan Percival and Eric Alper. Photo Credit: Adam PW Smith
Vancouver folk rock band Spirit of the West joined on stage by Jill Daum and @MusicProjectCA auction winner Renee van Kessel for a Platinum Single Award plaque presentation of their classic “Home For A Rest!” 💿🍁 #SpiritOfJohnpic.twitter.com/04vRIfIAEg
“Home For A Rest” is the band’s first official Single Award certification. The classic barroom favourite is featured on the band’s 1990 album Save This House, which was certified Platinum nearly 23 years earlier in 1996.
On Friday morning, The Alzheimer Society of Toronto announced that this year’s event raised over $100,000 to benefit the Alzheimer Society Music Project, which will help provide personalized music players to people living with dementia. For those who were unable to attend the Spirit of John concert, donations can still be made to help offer support, information and education to people with dementia, their families and caregivers.
Musician, label owner and music festival founder Miranda Mulholland, in participation with Music Canada, will present a panel discussion at Folk Alliance International 2019 titled Artist Advocates in Action. The panel is scheduled for Saturday, February 16 from 10:00 am to 11:15 am in the Anne Murray Room at Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montréal.
The discussion will explore various elements of artist advocacy including work / life balance, best practices, and art as an advocacy tool. How can artists best navigate through their careers while advocating for changes to global and local landscapes? What is the personal cost and how can artists maintain their own interests while championing for necessary causes? Moderator Miranda Mulholland will take the panelists – all practicing artists and advocates – through their own experiences, fears, challenges and triumphs.
The panel will feature the following artist advocates:
Caroline Brooks
Caroline Brooks is a singer-songwriter, session vocalist and guitar player from Toronto. She is one third of critically acclaimed Good Lovelies, a Juno award-winning band that has toured internationally for the last 12 years. They have released 8 albums and their latest single “I See Gold” is up for Song of the Year at the International Folk Music Awards.
Outside of performing, Caroline is a sitting board member with the Mariposa Folk Festival and Muskoka-based advocacy group Safe Quiet Lakes. She and her partner also co-founded Secondhand Sunday, a community re-use and waste reduction program based in Toronto.
Zoë Keating
DIY Cellist and composer Zoë Keating has worked with many artists and productions, including Jeff Russo, Amanda Palmer, Imogen Heap and the podcast Radiolab. Her music has achieved a surprising degree of ubiquity for a DIY artist, from the bumper music to NPR’s Morning Edition to the thinking-music of the Sherlock Holmes character on CBS Elementary to the theme music for the Brazilian telenovela Para Sempre.
A vocal advocate for the rights of creators, Keating was elected a governor of the San Francisco chapter of the Recording Academy named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum and serves on the board of CASH Music, a nonprofit organization that builds open source digital tools for musicians and labels
Aaron Myers
Mr. Myers is a life-long social activist and musician who uses entertainment to increase awareness of social issues. While a full-time college student Mr. Myers ran unsuccessfully for the office of Mayor in Corsicana Texas. In 2008 he served as a field organizer for the Obama campaign in Florida. Mr. Myers is also a skilled volunteer coordinator event manager and public speaker an experienced music teacher and an army veteran. He has also served as National Director of the nonprofit Global Family Program. A jazz and soul musician Mr. Myers is the Resident Artist at Mr. Henry’s Restaurant in DC.
Peter Katz
Over the past decade, Peter has seen his albums debut at #1 on the iTunes singer-songwriter charts; he’s shared the stage and studio with the likes of Academy Award Winner Glen Hansard (Once, The Swell Season), Juno Award-Winners The Good Lovelies, Polaris-Prize nominated Melissa McCelland (Whitehorse) and the Legendary Garth Hudson from The Band. He’s toured all over the world, regularly playing to capacity crowds, and has managed to build an impressive fan-base of loyal listeners, selling over 25,000 copies of his discs mostly from the stage, one show at a time. Never content to sit still for long, Peter Katz has his eyes firmly set on the future.
Folk Alliance International is the world’s largest gathering of the folk music industry and community. To attend this panel you must be registered for the conference. Registration also gains you access to conference showcases, and passes can be purchased from the Folk Alliance International website.
The nominees for the 2019 JUNO Awards were announced earlier today from CBC’s headquarters in Toronto, hosted by CBC Radio personality Raina Douris.
Multi-Platinum star Shawn Mendes leads the pack of nominees with 6 nominations, followed by R&B superstar The Weeknd with 5. Loud Luxury and bülow, who will both perform at the 48th annual broadcast along with Corey Hart, both received 4 nominations. The full list of nominees can be viewed here.
12-time JUNO winner and Diamond-certified artist Sarah McLachlan, who was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 2017, was announced as the host for this year’s awards, and was in attendance to reveal this year’s nominees.
Prior to announcing McLachlan as this year’s host, CARAS/JUNOs President & CEO Allan Reid took to the podium to welcome the industry guests in attendance, congratulate this year’s special award recipients, and reveal new details about the JUNO Week celebrations in London, ON. Reid also announced preliminary details on a new partnership with the National Music Centre, as well as an “Allies in Action” discussion panel in partnership with Women In Music Canada, Canadian Live Music Association, and PwC.
Music Canada is proud to work alongside the JUNOs and return as sponsor of the Album of the Year category, featuring the albums Darlène by Hubert Lenoir, These Are The Days by Jann Arden, Shawn Mendes by Shawn Mendes, My Dear Melancholy, by The Weeknd, and Outsider by Three Days Grace.
Fans will have the opportunity to vote for their favourite JUNO artists with the 2019 Fan Choice category, featuring nominees Alessia Cara, Avril Lavigne, bülow, Elijah Woods x Jamie Fine, Killy, Loud Luxury, NAV, Shawn Mendes, The Weeknd, and Tory Lanez. Fans can vote by sharing the official JUNO Fan Choice hashtag on Twitter or Instagram, or by including the hashtag in a comment on any post on The JUNO Awards Facebook Page. As well, fans can vote by listening to their favourite artists’ songs in the official JUNO Fan Choice Presented by TD playlist on Apple Music.
Tickets to The 2019 JUNO Awards are available online at budweisergardens.com, by phone at 1-866-455-2849 and in-person at the Courtesy Ford Box Office at Budweiser Gardens (Located at Gate 1).
The City of Toronto’s Municipal Licensing & Standards (MLS) division is holding public consultations as part of its noise bylaw review. The review aims to introduce updates that reflect our growing and vibrant city, while enhancing the noise standards that protect the residents of Toronto.
Public consultations will take place during a series of five meetings between January 28 to February 06, 2019 that aim to present and seek feedback on developing Noise Bylaw updates.
The third meeting will be centered around the topic of ‘Amplified Sound’, and will be highly relevant to the music community in Toronto. Artists, venue operators, festival and music event organizers, and many other members of the live music industry are invited to attend and contribute to the process. The meeting will take place on January 30th at the Scadding Court Community Centre (707 Dundas St. West), from 6-8 p.m.
The music industry has played an important role in helping to influence policy-making at the City. In particular, the Toronto Music Advisory Council (TMAC) has had a significant impact on the development of various noise bylaw-related initiatives. Indeed, one of TMAC’s major accomplishments was its role in endorsing the adoption of a version of the ‘Agent of Change’ principle in Toronto – a landmark policy decision that will go towards helping protect live music venues in the city.
A comprehensive new report highlighting how record labels have transformed in response to the digital and streaming age was recently released. The study was conducted by NYU Professor Larry Miller (who also hosts the popular Musonomics podcast) and was commissioned by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
The report – entitled Same Heart. New Beat. How Record Labels Amplify Talent in the Modern Music Marketplace – features in-depth interviews with 50 company executives at both major and independent record labels. The study also incorporated revenue data from the RIAA on the music industry over the last several decades. The RIAA’s Chairman and CEO Mitch Glazier discussed the impact of the study in a recent op-ed.
The report examines many different components of the relationship between labels and artists. In particular, it outlines: the evolution of label efforts to discover and market musical artists; how marketing plans differ and enhance opportunities for artists in a streaming world; the increasing role of data in label strategies; approaches undertaken by labels to build artist branding, and more.
As Professor Miller describes, just as in the past, “labels work to discover and develop artists, connect them with creative collaborators and make great records, promote and position them in the media or wherever fans go to get music, and reward successful outcomes. But how labels do their job is nearly unrecognizable from just a decade ago.”
Some of the key findings of the study include:
Data analysis has become a crucial tool for record labels: a variety of techniques and algorithms have been developed by labels in order to ingest the huge amounts of data available, in order to quickly produce actionable insights. Data has become king.
Labels are transitioning from B2B businesses to direct-to-consumer businesses, with a particular focus on building strong relationships with fans:As Professor Miller describes, the shift from the ‘access-based’ model of today has meant that artists often release a continuous flow of new content, rather than the traditional every-other-year album release cycle. The structure and promotional capacity of record labels has rendered them the most effective body to undertake these marketing necessities. Indeed, the report outlined how the labels’ promotional ‘machines’ are best equipped to release a steady flow of singles, EPs, and albums and videos and maximize the impact of each, while the social media departments are able to support this promotion through various social media platforms.
The digital transition has had a profound impact on the modus operandi of record labels, due to the prevalence of massive amounts of real-time discovery and consumption data:Staff at labels now analyze thousands of global inputs, such as: Twitter, Facebook followers, YouTube views, Instagram interaction, Shazam queries, Wikipedia searches — and more. This is in addition to the daily analysis of streaming and download figures on numerous music services, often globally. All this data is then consolidated and utilized to develop highly customized plans for artist releases.
It is true that the music industry has experienced extreme disruption brought on by the birth of digital services. Yet despite the impressive success of many DIY self-released artists, Professor Miller concludes in the report that “labels remain the key enabler for artists to maximize their creative vision and achieve their dreams for global visibility.”
On Sunday, March 17, Corey Hart will be officially inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame during the 2019 JUNO Awards broadcast at Budweiser Gardens in London, ON. To celebrate the induction, Hart will take to the stage to perform on live television for the time in 20 years.
“We are proud to welcome Corey into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame,” said Allan Reid, President & CEO, CARAS/The JUNO Awards & MusiCounts. “He was one of the biggest Canadian success stories of the eighties and nineties and even though he stepped back from the spotlight, he remained active in writing and producing for other artists. We look forward to celebrating him at The 2019 JUNO Awards in London.”
Hart has sold over 16 million records around the world, with his 1985 album Boy In The Box receiving a Canadian Diamond certification, and his debut album First Offense, featuring the iconic lead single “Sunglasses at Night,” reaching Triple Platinum status.
“I am deeply humbled by this invitation into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame,” said Hart. “It’s an incredible honour to be acknowledged alongside so many other talented and venerable Canadian artists. My career goal since the beginning has always been to remain one hundred percent authentic to my artistic vision while embodying the highest respect and dedication towards the craft I love so much. It’s even more symbolic to receive this recognition as I release my first collection of new studio music and prepare to embark on my first national Canadian tour in over 20 years – these are indeed …very exciting times for me.”
A new exhibition honouring Hart, in partnership with CARAS, will launch at Studio Bell, home of the National Music Centre in Calgary. Milestones: Corey Hart, which captures the stories behind some of Hart’s biggest career breakthroughs and features memorable artifacts from the singer-songwriter’s past, opens on March 22, 2019 and will run until October 2019. Some of these items include handwritten lyric books and the signature Wayfarer sunglasses that he wore in his “Sunglasses at Night” video. Bonus fan messages provided by Hart will be sprinkled throughout the exhibition and can be viewed using interactive “sunglasses.”
Fans from across the world can tune-in to this special performance as part of The 2019 JUNO Awards broadcast live on CBC, CBC Radio, the free CBC Gem streaming service in Canada, and globally at cbcmusic.ca/junos.
The IFPI revealed their 
Music Canada