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Release: Music Canada announces new Board Chair and Advisory Council at 2019 JUNO Awards Chair’s Reception

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The appointment of independent board Chair Jennifer M. Sloan and new 15-member Advisory Council reflect the findings of a comprehensive organizational review

Newly appointed Chair of the Music Canada Board of Directors Jennifer M. Sloan unveils Music Canada’s new Advisory Council at the 2019 JUNO Awards Chair’s Reception (Photo Credit: Ryan Bolton)

March 15, 2019, London, ON: At the 2019 JUNO Awards Chair’s Reception in London, Ontario, Music Canada announced key actions resulting from a comprehensive organizational review. Focusing on Board diversity and governance practices, the extensive review was commissioned to provide recommendations on ways Music Canada could demonstrate leadership in inclusion and good governance.

The first action stemming from the review was the addition of two new independent member positions to Music Canada’s Board of Directors, increasing the representation of women on the Board to 40 percent.

At the Chair’s Reception, Music Canada President and CEO Graham Henderson announced another important step: the appointment of Jennifer M. Sloan as the new independent Chair of the association’s Board. As Vice President, Public Policy at Mastercard Canada, Sloan brings outstanding expertise in corporate governance, finance and accountability, and government relations.

“I’m pleased to be joining Music Canada at this pivotal time, as the organization heads down a new and exciting path,” says Sloan. “We’re working to ensure a balance of skills, experience, knowledge and perspectives are represented in our governance and activities. The changes announced today will strengthen Music Canada in promoting the interests of our members and their partners, the artists, and to realize our vision for all Canadians to appreciate the power and value of music.”

In her first public remarks as Music Canada’s new Board Chair, Sloan unveiled another outcome of the association’s organizational review, the new Music Canada Advisory Council.

Reporting directly to the President and CEO, the Advisory Council is comprised of 15 exceptional and passionate individuals representing diverse ethno-cultural backgrounds, sexual identities, and geographic regions – reflecting Canada’s vibrant and diverse music community. The Council will evaluate Music Canada’s progress against the stated goals and objectives in the association’s strategic plan. The Council will also advise Music Canada on its programs, activities and research to support the organization in its mandate as an agent of change and thought leader in the music community.

The Music Canada Advisory Council members are:

  • Heather Bambrick
  • Steve Bellamy
  • Josh Colle
  • Nick Davis
  • ShoShona Kish
  • Amanda Martinez
  • Miranda Mulholland
  • Errol Nazareth
  • Alicia Rose
  • Mike Schroeder
  • Alka Sharma
  • Eon Sinclair
  • Darlene Tonelli
  • Chris Topping
  • Charlie Wall-Andrews

“The changes announced today are designed to ensure our leadership is guided by a broad spectrum of voices representing the exquisite mosaic that is our music community,” says Henderson. “I’m excited to welcome Jennifer Sloan and our new Advisory Council members to Music Canada to help us build a more robust music ecosystem. With the support of our members, Sony, Universal, and Warner, we are committed to reflecting the communities in which we live and work, and to fostering an environment in which music businesses can thrive, and artists can prosper.”

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For more information:
Corey Poole, Music Canada
cpoole@musiccanada.com
+1 (647) 808-7359

 

About Music Canada
Music Canada is a non-profit trade organization that represents the major record companies in Canada:  Sony Music Entertainment Canada, Universal Music Canada and Warner Music Canada. Music Canada also works with some of the leading independent record labels and distributors, recording studios, live music venues, concert promoters, managers and artists in the promotion and development of the music cluster.

 

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Playback 2018: Josh Colle recognized with Music Canada President’s Award

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On Tuesday, October 16th, Music Canada President and CEO Graham Henderson presented Josh Colle, lifelong music fan and outgoing Toronto City Councillor, with the Music Canada President’s Award. The announcement was made at Playback 2018, Music Canada’s annual industry dialogue and celebration, which took place at The Great Hall.

The Music Canada President’s Award is presented to an individual outside of the music community who exhibits a deep passion for music and the people who make it, and who has had a considerable impact on the music industry.

Colle has exemplified those qualities in his role as City Councillor for Ward 15. Since being elected in 2010, Colle has been known as “the music guy” on Council – first unofficially, as a frequent concertgoer, and then officially, in his role as Co-Chair of the Toronto Music Advisory Council (TMAC).

Colle “has been the most stalwart champion of our industry at City Hall,” said Henderson, noting that Colle formed the first task force for music at City Hall, which later evolved into TMAC.

“In his ward, Josh has tirelessly advocated for increased arts and music programming, connected youth with music grant opportunities and industry mentors, and spearheaded efforts to celebrate Toronto’s reggae music history with the creation of Reggae Lane,” continued Henderson. “It is my absolute honour to present the 2018 Music Canada President’s Award to Josh Colle.”

“As a lifelong fan and supporter or Toronto’s amazing music scene I am honoured to be recognized by Music Canada,” said Colle. “We have made so much progress, have so much to be proud of, and I look forward to continuing to support music in Toronto.”

Through his passion for music, Colle has helped change the way that City Hall views Toronto’s music scene. Where it was once an afterthought in terms of planning and policies, today departments like Municipal Licensing, City Planning, Public Library, Emergency Services, Toronto Parks and more have consulted the industry and consider its needs as they conduct their work.

Colle was an early champion of the City of Toronto Music Office, the Toronto Music Strategy, the Toronto/Austin Music City Alliance, and provided crucial leadership on the protection of live music venues. Recognizing that rapid gentrification and development in Toronto could threaten the city’s live music venues, Colle presented a motion to help protect Toronto’s existing venues, and foster an environment to help new venues become established.

One of Colle’s proudest achievements as Councillor was the establishment of Reggae Lane, which recognizes the rich music heritage of Eglinton Avenue West. After helping rename the roadway near Eglinton Avenue and Oakwoods Avenue, Colle commissioned the largest reggae-themed mural anywhere in Canada to pay tribute to the musical icons that made the area the second-largest hub for reggae music after Kingston, Jamaica. The 1,200 square foot mural, painted by local artist Adrian Hayles, depicts artists Pluggy Satchmo, Bernie Pitters, Leroy Sibbles, Lord Tanamo, Jay Douglas, and more.

Watch the video below as Councillor Colle accepts the award, presented by Music Canada’s President and CEO, Graham Henderson.

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Toronto Music Advisory Council highlights key milestones at last meeting of the term

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The Toronto Music Advisory Council’s (TMAC) final meeting of the year took place on June 20th, 2018. Committee members discussed a variety of critical issues and developments, with the Working Groups providing progress updates on a number of their agenda items.

TMAC Co-Chairs City Councillor Josh Colle and Spencer Sutherland also presented a written summary of TMAC’s key milestones during the meeting, emphasizing the accomplishments that helped achieve the committee’s priority items.

Key highlights of the summary document are featured below.

Creating opportunities to support local musicians: major accomplishments include initiatives like Arts/Music in the Parks; the Toronto Music Directory; the YYZ Live series; and City Hall Live. Several pilot programs are still yet to be launched, as they are pending official Council approval. Some of the most notable include a pilot program regarding musician loading zones, tour bus parking, and an entertainment zone study.

Addressing regulatory burdens of music venues: this includes policies that aim to streamline regulations and permit processes or remove unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles for venues and spaces.  One of the early major accomplishments was eliminating the enforcement against music venues for illegal postering in 2015. Additionally, TMAC has played an important role in the development of various ongoing noise bylaw-related initiatives at the City of Toronto, such as the development of a Terms of Reference for Noise Impact Studies for new developments within 120 metres of existing live music venues.

Measures to protect music venues: TMAC has long advocated for the development of policies that protect existing music venues, such as the establishment of a live music venue certification program and the proposed creation of tax benefits for local live venues.

However, one of TMAC’s major accomplishments was its role in endorsing the adoption of a version of the “Agent of Change” principle in Toronto. This principle has now been adopted and is a culmination of several recent decisions at City Hall.

Arising from PG29.4 TO Core: Downtown Plan Official Plan Amendment, the proposed measures are intended to encourage the retention of live music venues, by:

  • Ensuring that live music venues can continue to function without noise-related impact on new residential development, meaning that:
    • New live music venues located within Mixed Use Areas 1, 2, 3, 4 and Regeneration Areas will be designed and constructed to minimize noise from the premises and provide acoustic attenuation measures that would protect residential uses; and
    • New mixed-use developments located within Mixed Use Areas 1, 2, 3, 4 and Regeneration Areas will be designed and constructed to include acoustic attenuation measures on-site, or within the building design, to mitigate noise levels from adjacent indoor live music venues and from outdoor live music venues.
  • Requring an advisory to be implemented for newly developed residential units within 120 meters of a live music venue.

Supporting the development of a robust night-time economy: TMAC has advocated for the City of Toronto to take steps towards establishing measures to support live venues and other night-time operators. One of the major accomplishments is the implementation of an 18-month nightlife economy study, led by the Responsible Hospitality Institute.

Promoting Toronto internationally and fostering alliances with global music cities: notable accomplishments in this arena include the successful development of recurring initiatives, such as the Tale of Two Cities event series; an Austin-Toronto Music Business Summit that took place in 2016, with a new summit in development for late 2018; a series of SXSW activations between 2015 to 2018, and more.

 

The full summary document of TMAC’s accomplishments can be found here.

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A series of recommendations from Toronto Music Advisory Council are one step closer to policy after Economic Development Committee approval

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Members of Toronto’s Economic Development Committee passed a suite of Toronto Music Advisory Council (TMAC) recommendations today aimed at providing better support for the city’s live music venues, and facilitating the collection of data for an international study on night time economies.

Toronto’s Economic Development Committee is composed of councillors Fragedakis, Grimes, Hart, Holland, Kelly and Thompson (Chair), many of whom spoke passionately about the value of music and culture to the city’s identity and well-being, as well as music’s significant contribution to the local economy.

“Life without music, life without culture, would be no life,” said Committee Chair Michael Thompson, Councilor for Ward 37 (Scarborough Centre) and former TMAC Co-Chair.

Spencer Sutherland, current Co-Chair of TMAC, owner of Toronto music venue Nocturne and Chairman of the Queen West Business Improvement Area, gave a deputation at the meeting thanking the Committee and Council for its support thus far, and speaking to the progress TMAC has made to reach these recommendations.

Many of the recommendations were specifically created to address the challenges that live music venues face, like rising property taxes, as well as licensing and other logistical challenges. A sense of urgency to address the situation for venues came to a fever pitch in 2017.

“As you might recall at the same time last year our city was facing an unprecedented crisis of music venues closing at an alarming rate of one per week,” said Sutherland. “Thankfully, so far this year we have seen none of that.”

Later in the meeting Josh Colle, Councillor for Ward 15 (Eglinton-Lawrence) and TMAC Co-Chair, said the story that is not often told is about venues opening or re-opening, such as Hugh’s Room and The Hideout. Colle praised the work of TMAC, and specifically the venue sustainability working group, which he said “really lit a fire” under councillors to act to provide better protection and support for live music.

The agenda item up for consideration was titled “Night-time Economy – Collection of Data and Protection of Live Music Venues,” and recommendations made to the Committee by the TMAC were divided into two categories.

The first related to an international study of the night time economy being conducted by the Responsible Hospitality Institute examining effective and sustainable models for night time economy management.  TMAC requested that the General Manager, Economic Development and Culture, in collaboration with the Director, Office of Emergency Management and the Executive Director, Municipal Licensing and Standards, facilitate the collection of accurate data by the Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas (TABIA) to contribute to the international study.

Cities around the globe are examining various policies to best support their night time economies, and some cities, such as Amsterdam and New York, have appointed a Night Mayor to represent the businesses and cultures that thrive outside of the nine-to-five. In a 2016 Huffington Post blog, Music Canada’s Executive Vice President Amy Terrill asked “Does Toronto need a Night Mayor?”

Councillor Thompson noted that Toronto is paying attention to initiatives in other cities, including New York and London, and felt the City could do more to maximize the potential of its night time economy. “There are many things that are taking place and in a city like ours – it never sleeps,” Thompson told the Committee. “People sleep at individual times but the city itself is always alive and vibrant.”

The second recommendation from TMAC was all about live music and was made up of a suite of nine recommendations included in a previously requested report on protecting live music venues in Toronto. The General Manager, Economic Development and Culture, was asked to consider the following:

  1. Create tax benefits for local live music venues.
  2. Initiate and expand music pilot programs including ideas for artist tour bus parking, musician load in/out zones and artist poster zones.
  3. Create a music venue certification program.
  4. Amend zoning and licensing to protect existing venues and encourage new ones including a clarification of what business license music venues require.
  5. Create a panel, consisting of a member of the Film and Entertainment Office, members of the Live Working Group, and senior members of planning, building and licensing, with regard to providing advice to individuals and/or organizations wishing to establish new and/or grow existing live music venues.
  6. Review Municipal Licensing Regulations governing parks, green spaces, and city owned outdoor venues.
  7. Support Night-time Economy initiatives with The Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas (TABIA) and Responsible Hospitality Institute (RHI).
  8. Financial support for an economic impact study of local live music venues.
  9. Financial support for a local Music Passport event series.

All recommendations in the agenda item passed with the support of the Economic Development Committee and will now be brought to Toronto City Council at a yet to be determined date.

“I hope that these suggestions are embraced and supported by Committee and then by Council,” commented Councillor Colle. “I hope we see the continuation of what I think is – well, what the challenge is – the healthiest and most robust Music City in the world.”

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YYZ Live performance series launches at Toronto Pearson International Airport

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Toronto Mayor John Tory was on hand Tuesday morning for the launch of YYZ Live, a new daily concert series greeting international arrivals at Pearson International Airport’s Terminal 1. In celebration of Canada 150, the event will run from June 26 to September 15, with 150 performances by 75 emerging artists from Toronto’s music scene.

“The first exposure a lot of people have to Toronto and Canada is in this building,” said Mayor John Tory, echoing earlier remarks by Greater Toronto Airports Authority CEO Howard Eng. “I’m proud that, thanks to this program, the first exposure people have to our culture is through music played by Toronto artists.”

Pearson is Canada’s largest airport, seeing more than 44 million passengers travel through the airport in 2016. As identified in Music Canada’s The Mastering Of A Music City report, airports in cities like Austin, Melbourne, and Seattle have already successfully hosted music performances. In Seattle, the trial program generated USD$259,000 for the artists from wages, tips and merchandise. The program’s success guaranteed its continuation for another three years, and helped permit the opening of a Sub Pop record store in the airport.

“As an independent musician, I’ve traveled over 50,000 miles sharing my music with audiences from Nashville to the Netherlands, because as many Toronto musicians know, it’s often easier to build a fan base abroad and online than it is in a city as big and as diverse as ours,” said acclaimed indie soul artist AHI in a release, who concluded today’s launch event with a performance. “I appreciate that the City of Toronto is working to develop creative opportunities for live music to become an accessible part of the community, and I’ve been privileged to participate in several events where I can share my music and build my audience right here at home.”

Mayor Tory concluded his remarks by reinstating his commitment to the future success of music in Toronto, noting the success of its artists and the arts sector help the “soul of the city” and attract more talented people to Toronto. Mayor Tory and Councillor Josh Colle, Chair of the Toronto Music Advisory Council, also acknowledged the efforts of Councillor John Filion, who was absent from Tuesday’s announcement, but instrumental in making YYZ Live a reality.

There will be two opportunities daily to catch the performances, with a 7pm show at the YYZ Live Stage (Terminal 1, International Arrivals), and an 8pm show at the YYZ Live Acoustic Stage (Terminal Link train platform). For artists interested in performing, applications are still being accepted by submitting this application to perform@toronto.ca.

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City of Toronto expands support for Toronto’s music community with City Hall Live

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Hannah Shira Naiman performing at Nathan Phillips Square

Music Canada, in partnership with TD Bank Group, is proud to return as sponsor of City Hall Live, formerly known as Live From City Hall.

The program will expand this year to include new collaborations with local venues, events, presenters and musicians. This past weekend, City Hall Live presented eight artists performing at 159 Manning Ave as part of Doors Open Toronto. Today, City Hall Live is presenting performances by Toronto artists Ammoye and Charmie as part of the pre-Lulaworld 2017 festivities at Lulu Lounge following a 6:30pm panel discussion on diversity and live music in the media. More collaborations will be announced in the coming weeks.

“This series provides performance opportunities, information sessions and discussions that we hope will inform and empower Toronto’s talented music community,” said Mayor John Tory in a City release. “By bringing City Hall Live directly to artists and their communities, the series is now more accessible and can have greater impact.”

Lunchtime concerts under the City Hall Live banner will return to Nathan Phillips Square this summer, happening every Wednesday from 12:30-1:30pm (July 19 – August 30).

City Hall Live will also bring a larger focus this year on panel discussions and other learning opportunities for the music community.

“City Hall Live provides new opportunities for Toronto musicians and is one of many City initiatives aimed at making Toronto a more music and musician friendly city,” said Councillor Josh Colle, Chair of the Toronto Music Advisory Council.

Artists can submit applications to perform at City Hall Live and other events, as well as submit music for the City’s Music 311 playlist at toronto.ca/music.

More information on 2017 performances and panels will be announced soon at toronto.ca/music.

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Miranda Mulholland lays the reality for creators in the digital age bare at the Economic Club of Canada

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On May 24,  Miranda Mulholland became the first musician to deliver a keynote address to the Economic Club of Canada. Her speech, titled ‘Redefining Success in a Digital Marketplace,’ drew on her years of experience as a musician, label owner and entrepreneur to shed light on the reality artists face in the digital age. In her speech, she also identified actions that government, the music industry and music fans can take to help bring balance to the world in which creators live.

The room had a large contingent of artists, including Scott Helman, Alx Veliz, Royal Wood, Tona Tencreddi, Bandana Singh, Ammoye, Amanda Martinez, Zeno Calini, Kanwar Anit Singh Saini, QuiQue Escamilla, Eliana Cuevas, Sarah Thawer, Justin Rutledge, Brenley MacEachern, Lisa MacIsaac, Bradley Thachuk, Monica Pearce, Damhnait Doyle, Suzie Ungerleider, Emma Barnett, Andrew Penner, Jennifer Bryan, Sally Shaar and Jordan Circosta.

There were also representatives from the municipal, provincial and federal governments, as well as music industry groups MusiCounts, Re:Sound, The Canadian Federation of Musicians, CIMA, Music Ontario, The Ontario Media Development Corporation (OMDC), SOCAN, The Canadian Country Music Association, The Corporation of Massey Hall & Roy Thomson Hall, and record labels Sony Music, Universal Music and Warner Music.

Miranda was introduced by Toronto City Councillor Josh Colle, who chairs the Toronto Music Advisory Council on which Miranda also serves. Colle commented that musicians are often entrepreneurs, and in many cases, small businesses and that nobody is an embodiment of that more than Miranda Mulholland. He commented that artists should be supported by the City in the same way as other small businesses.

“As entrepreneurs and small businesses, I think it’s incumbent on all of us to want to see that they’re successful,” said Colle. “The same way we might put money or resources or time into helping other sectors and other small businesses, we should think of that the same way as our musicians and artists, who live in a city that’s increasingly expensive and difficult to find a place to live.”

The overarching theme of Miranda’s speech was accountability, and she pointed to a number of ways that digital music services eschew accountability to the music creators who make all of the content off which they profit.

“Picture each shiny new streaming platform as a shop window,” said Miranda. “Our content – at fire sale prices – fills their shop window, giving them credibility while creators of this content are asked to do the advertising. They give us – the creators – lists of ‘Best Practices’ to get more of our hard won fans to use their services. If we are not getting on playlists then it is our fault for not engaging with our fans enough.”

She was particularly critical of YouTube’s claims that it is merely a passive service, and as such, should be free from liability for the content that appears on the site.

“YouTube says – ‘it isn’t our fault – we are just the shop window. We didn’t put the items in the window, so we are not accountable for them. We are a passive intermediary. We are not liable for this massive copyright infringement.’ But – once again – wait. A top brass at Google just bragged that ‘80% of all watch time is recommended by YouTube.’ He explained that ‘Everybody thinks that all the music that’s being listened to and watched is by search.’  But it isn’t, and in his words, ‘that’s a really important and powerful thing.’ This means that YouTube actively directs consumers. This doesn’t seem all that passive to me. Zero accountability.”

Miranda went on describe the ways in which we can correct the situation faced by artists, saying “We all have a role to play as artists, as consumers, as industry and as government.”

For artists, Miranda encouraged them to be honest about their lifestyle, protect their intellectual property, support robust copyright laws and to pay back into the music ecosystem by championing young talent.

She encouraged music fans to be tastemakers, to create playlists of their favourite music, and to write reviews and rate albums and songs, actions which help shift algorithms in favour of artists. She also encouraged fans to buy albums on their release days, another action which can help to drive albums to front pages of music services. Buying band merchandise was mentioned as a great way to support artists. She also encouraged music fans to subscribe to a streaming service, as the subscription model delivers a much better return to artists than ad-supported streaming.

As for government, Miranda pointed to the elimination of “safe harbour” laws, which provide tech companies with immunity from copyright infringement liability. In Canada, she pointed to eliminating industry cross-subsidies that shift wealth away from music creators, and used the radio royalty exemption as an example, an exemption in place since 1997 that excuses radio stations from paying more than $100 in royalties to artists and record labels on their first $1.25 million in advertising revenue.

Miranda’s heartfelt speech had a visible impact on guests, who gave her an extended standing ovation.

Miranda’s speech was followed by a Q&A discussion with Kate Taylor, author, film critic and arts columnist at The Globe and Mail.

You can view the full event video via the live stream archive on our Facebook page.

Below is a selection of tweets from the event:

https://twitter.com/ScottHelman/status/867595308364161025

(Swipe left) Such an eventful meeting this morning with #EconomicclubofCanada redefining success in a digital market place. Pic’d here with Former Member of #parliament #AndrewCash who personality invited us as well as #JenniferHardy #GeneralManagerofOperations at #MusicCanada and #AmyTerrill #ExecutiveVicePresident also at Music Canada and #TracyJenkins of #LulaMusic & #ArtsCentre/LulaWorld who booked me for my #CityHallLive performance on Monday May29th!!! Inside @lulalounge @lulaworldfest!!! And our honoured guest speaker fellow entrepreneur and artist #mirandamulholland!!!! So informative And impactful was this speech and meeting!!! #changeascome #changeisgood #independentartist movement!!!! #toronto #Canada #reggaemusictotheworld #Lightworker #musicismylife #Andsoitis #makingmoves #Artistonamission to create #change!!! #DontCountMeOut Creating our own opportunities!!!!

A post shared by Ammoye💫 (@ammoye) on

 

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The Mastering of a Music City: Music Cities Summit returns to Canadian Music Week

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Once again, global city planners and the music industry will take part in Music Canada’s and Canadian Music Week’s international creative-economy summit “The Mastering of a Music City.” The day-long summit will take place during Canadian Music Week on Friday, April 21, 2017.

This will be the second year of the summit which last year brought close to 200 entrepreneurs, industry executives, tourism experts, artists, and musicians from all over the world together to talk about Music Cities—the shared realization that cities across the globe enjoy an often-huge economic dividend from the creation, performance, and reception of music.

The summit will begin with opening remarks from Neill Dixon, President of Canadian Music Week, and Amy Terrill, EVP, Music Canada, and author of “The Mastering of a Music City” report, and Mayor of Toronto John Tory.

Helen Marcou, owner of Bakehouse Studio in Melbourne Australia, will deliver the opening keynote on The Role of Advocates: A Story of Successfully Fighting for Your Music City. When an iconic Melbourne venue was threatened with closure, Helen started a movement called Save Live Australia’s Music, or SLAM. Before she was done, 20,000 had marched on the steps of the legislature, laws were amended, and a permanent voice for music was created. Helen continues to be one of Melbourne’s strongest music advocates. Helen will share her story of fighting for her Music City.

Other notable events include:

  • A keynote presentation by Molly Neuman, Head of Music at Kickstarter How to Prevent Monoculture from Killing Our Music Cities. Neuman will speak to the future of culture sustainability.
  • A presentation and panel session on UNESCO Cities of Music that asks whether it is time for a North American member.

And four panel discussions:

  • The Music City Leaders Panel will ask key questions of elected officials who have identified music as a key strategy or economic sector in their cities. Panelists include Karl Dean, former mayor of Nashville; John Tory, Mayor of Toronto; Filippo del Corno, Assessore alla Cultura, City of Milan; Maria Claudia Lopez Sorzano, Secretary of Culture, Recreation and Sports, City of Bogota; and Manon Gauthier, Member of the City of Montreal Executive Committee, City of Montreal.
  • The Music Ecosystem Panel will discuss how to identify gaps in a city’s music ecosystem—which supports the development of artists—which gaps are critical and what to do to address them.
  • The Music Tourism Panel will talk about how music is a powerful motivator for travel. Attendees will hear from some of the most successful properties that incorporate music into their offerings, and how it attracts music tourists.
  • The How to Work with the Development Community panel will be moderated by Toronto City Councillor Josh Colle, and will include Shain Shapiro, Managing Director of Sound Diplomacy and Co-Founder of the Music Cities Convention. The panel will investigate the competition for space between development and cultural spaces.

Individual tickets are available to the summit or you can gain access with the CMW VIP pass.

Music Canada will livestream the opening remarks and the following panels: The Role of Advocates: A Story of Successfully Fighting For Your Music City, The Music City Leader’s Panel, and How To Work With The Development Community. You can watch these discussions live on Music Canada’s Facebook feed.

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Mayor John Tory and Councillor Josh Colle issue statement on Toronto music venue closures

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Below is a statement jointly issued this afternoon by Toronto Mayor John Tory and Councillor Josh Colle on the City’s commitment to live music venues following recent venue closure announcements.

 

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Toronto City Council Makes Landmark Commitment to Arts Funding: Music Canada

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Toronto, January 16, 2013: On behalf of our members and partners, Music Canada wishes to congratulate Mayor Rob Ford and the Members of City Council for their commitment to increase funding to the broad spectrum of arts in Toronto, including the city’s diverse and authentic music cluster.

“Toronto is by any measurement, one of the most successful music markets in the world, evidenced by the diverse and authentic live music offerings found throughout the city on any day of the week. The business of music employs thousands of people, attracts visitors from down the road and beyond our borders, and makes the city a desirable place to live, work and invest. With today’s decision, City Council demonstrates that it recognizes the importance of the music cluster and opens the door to a new level of communication and cooperation. We commend the leadership of Mayor Ford and Councillors Gary Crawford and Josh Colle, who were integral to making this happen,” says Graham Henderson, President of Music Canada.

The 2013 Capital and Operating Budgets include a boost in arts funding derived from the billboard tax. Among the priorities listed in the motion put forward to the Executive Committee by Councillor Gary Crawford was “support for Toronto’s music cluster.”

“As one of the country’s premier music festivals, North by Northeast would like to offer sincere thanks and congratulations to the Mayor and City Council for recognizing the tremendous economic, cultural, and civic value of music on Toronto. The City’s firm support of artists, venues, festivals, and fans will help grow our already vibrant music scene into a global phenomenon that will attract and inspire the world,” says Andy McLean, Managing Director/Co-founder, North by Northeast.

“Toronto’s music community is one of the most vibrant and vital in all of North America, and we are both grateful for the City’s commitment to its health and excited about the possibilities it opens up for the continued growth of the sector. This announcement represents an investment in economic development, social health, and cultural heritage, all of which will return great dividends to the people of Toronto,” says Jesse Kumagai, Director of Programming for The Corporation of Massey Hall and Roy Thomson Hall.

Music Canada has published a report identifying opportunities for greater growth and promotion of the music industry in Toronto and is working with a coalition whose members include live music venues, festivals, concert promoters, music labels, recording studios, managers and artists.

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For more information:

Amy Terrill – Vice President Public Affairs, Music Canada
aterrill@musiccanada.com 647-963-6044

Music Canada is a non-profit trade organization that represents the major record companies in Canada, namely Sony Music Entertainment Canada, Universal Music Canada and Warner Music Canada. Music Canada also works with some of the leading independent record labels and distributors, recording studios, live music venues, concert promoters, managers and artists in the promotion and development of the music cluster.

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