Photo by Matt Barnes, of/de Lights.

Lights, Aaron Goodvin, Elijah Woods x Jamie Fine, Nuela Charles, Tim Baker, Tom Wilson, Whitehorse to perform at 2020 JUNO Songwriters’ Circle

Story by SOCAN | Thursday February 13th, 2020

SOCAN members Aaron Goodvin, Elijah Woods x Jamie Fine, Nuela Charles, Tim Baker, Tom Wilson, and Whitehorse will perform at the 2020 JUNO Songwriters’ Circle, presented by SOCAN in association with Music Publishers Canada, on Sunday, March 15, 2020, from 12 noon to 2:00 p.m. at the Sid Buckwold Theatre at TCU Place in Saskatoon. Lights will also perform, and co-host the event with CBC q’s Tom Power.

 

Lights is a three-time JUNO Award winner, while the other Songwriters’ Circle participants are all 2020 JUNO Award nominees, as follows:

  • Aaron Goodvin (Country Album of the Year)
  • Elijah Woods x Jamie Fine (Pop Album of the Year)
  • Nuela Charles (Adult Contemporary Album of the Year)
  • Tim Baker (Songwriter of the Year, sponsored by SOCAN)
  • Tom Wilson (Contemporary Roots Album of the Year, with Lee Harvey Osmond)
  • 2016 JUNO Award winners Whitehorse (Blues Album of the Year)

The event will be broadcast live on CBC Radio One, CBC Music and live streamed via CBC Gem and cbcmusic.ca/junos.

Presented by SOCAN, the JUNO Songwriters’ Circle is an intimate and interactive event, benefiting MusiCounts. Considered “The Jewel of JUNO Week,” the Songwriters’ Circle showcases some of Canada’s most talented songwriters performing their original songs and sharing the stories behind them.

Tickets for the 2020 JUNO Songwriters’ Circle are on sale now, through TCU Place, starting at $39.00 (plus taxes and service fees).

SOCAN Foundation announces participants for 2020 development program

Story by Howard Druckman, with files from / avec la participation de Charlie Andrews, Meryl Gosch. | Thursday February 13th, 2020

The SOCAN Foundation has announced the participants for the second edition of the TD Incubator for Creative Entrepreneurship. The incubator is an exciting new program that provides emerging music creators with seed funding, mentorship, and the opportunity to participate in a progressive webinar series that will hone their skills of entrepreneurship, while providing them with the tools and resources needed to turn their talent into a sustainable career. The incubator is made possible with the generous support of TD.

“The program is designed to identify, celebrate, and support the next generation of music creators that have demonstrated extraordinary potential,” said Charlie Wall-Andrews, Executive Director of the SOCAN Foundation.

After reviewing nearly 1,000 submissions, the Foundation was pleased to announce that the following music creators have been accepted into the 2020 edition of the program:

  • Idman Abdulkadir (Ontario)
  • Caitlin Canning (British Columbia)
  • Charmie Deller (Ontario)
  • Elsa Gebremichael (Ontario)
  • Emily Gifford (Ontario)
  • Babette Hayward (Nova Scotia)
  • Mikey Jose (British Columbia)
  • Jacky Leung (Ontario)
  • Charles Lowe (Quebec)
  • Manuela Wuthrich (Alberta)
  • Muhammad Mneina (Manitoba)
  • Madison Olds (British Columbia)
  • Prisca Pange-Ibinimion (Alberta)
  • Nicholas Ramsahoye (Ontario)
  • Lara Rawadi (Quebec)
  • Claire Ridgely (Quebec)
  • Michael Simard (Quebec)
  • Scott  Spicker (British Columbia)
  • Teddy Thomason (Nova Scotia)
  • Mariah Wheeler (Ontario)

Click here to meet the participants.

Each participant in the program will receive:

  • A cash grant of up to $3,000, intended to defray start-up costs (such as those spent on marketing, business development, branding, etc.);
  • Mentorship by an industry professional; and
  • Access to an exclusive webinar series led by industry professionals and experts, to fuel the entrepreneurial spirit of the participants.

Five of the participants who demonstrate the greatest potential, and most significantly benefit from the program, will be invited to Toronto to complete a three-day residency, during which they’ll have studio time at the Slaight Studio, an opportunity to showcase their work, and an additional mentorship opportunity with an established songwriter chosen by the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame (CSHF). The residency portion of the program is established by the CSHF with the support of SOCAN Foundation, Slaight Music, and Kobalt Publishing.

Apply now for $25,000 Top of the Country music competition

Story by Howard Druckman | Wednesday February 12th, 2020

SOCAN members who make country music are invited to apply now for the $25,000 Top of the Country music competition, sponsored by the Canadian Country Music Association (CCMA) and SiriusXM, and supported by SOCAN and SOCAN Foundation.

The CCMA and SiriusXM will choose nine finalists (three each from Western, Central and Eastern Canada) to record in studios in Vancouver, Toronto, or Halifax. Videos of the performances will be uploaded online this spring for a Canada-wide vote, promoted by an extensive marketing campaign. The top act in each of the three regions will move on as finalists. This year, semi-finalists will be determined by a panel of industry judges, along with a public vote.

The top three finalists will have the chance to travel to Nashville on a writing trip with support from SOCAN. SOCAN will help make travel arrangements, and provide accommodations for the finalists at the SOCAN House in Nashville.

The top three will also:

  • play a set during a performance slot at a major country music festival;
  • participate in an industry mentorship program; and
  • play during Country Music Week at the Top of the Country Finale – airing across North America on SiriusXM – where one winner will be chosen by an industry panel and the audience.

For the winner, prizes will include $25,000, an appearance on the CCMA Awards broadcast in 2020, and attendance at CCMA/SOCAN song camps (in Nashville and one other location TBD).

Interested country music creators can register here, until midnight ET on Feb. 28, 2020.