Three SOCAN-affiliated leaders – Racquel Villagante, Charlie Wall-Andrews, and Julien Boumard Coallier – are being honoured in the Billboard Canada 40 Under 40 List, as this recognition moves North of the 49th parallel for the first time, to spotlight the next generation of leaders driving the country’s evolving music industry.
Racquel Villagante, SOCAN’s Associate Director, Creative Executives, is being celebrated for, as Billboard says, “shaping how Canadian creators find community and opportunity beyond borders. Based in Los Angeles, she elevates Canadian talent in the U.S. market and leads SOCAN’s North American team of creative executives. Across Toronto, Vancouver, and L.A., she connects songwriters and producers to new collaborations through showcases, songwriting camps, and international partnerships. Her focus is on mentorship and access, helping artists build sustainable creative lives while expanding Canada’s cultural footprint across the globe.”
Charlie Wall-Andrews, Executive Director of SOCAN Foundation, is being fêted for being, in Billboard’s words, “a champion of equity, research and innovation in Canada’s music ecosystem [who] bridges academia and industry to create meaningful change… The scholar and industry voice worked with ADVANCE, Canada’s Black Music Business Collective, and Speaking Non-English, on landmark studies on the value of Black music in Canada and the rise of Latin music – the latter of which led to the JUNOs’ first-ever Latin Music category. Wall-Andrews also partnered with CBC to launch the Reverie Program for Indigenous artists, and helped shape the first graduating class of TMU’s Professional Music program.”
Julien Boumar Coallier, Program Manager, SOCAN Foundation, to quote Billboard once again, “is passionate about supporting music creators in Québec and across Canada. Through his work at the SOCAN Foundation, the Montréal-based Program Manager has supported the music organization’s musicians, producers, and composers, developing programs that bridge opportunity gaps and celebrate diverse talent. In 2o19, the exec established the Screen Music Lab, a program that elevates emerging Canadian composers and teaches music creators how to write for television and film – a key cross-industry opportunity. He also established a French-language residency for artist-entrepreneurs.”
SOCAN congratulates our leaders on these honours, which recognize their exceptional contributions to the growth and development our members’ careers, and livelihoods.