Dean Brody conquers Toronto

Precedents are difficult to come by in the world of music, but when he plays Toronto on August 24, Brody will be the first Canadian country star to headline the venue based strictly on his domestic success — Nick Krewen, The Star

How 10,000 vinyl records of a late Canadian music lover will live on

Music critic and art curator Ben Portis, killed on Highway 400 in July, has his collection being sold at the London, ON, record show in October — Andrew Lupton, CBC News

Nova Scotia's Makayla Lynn finds 'sweet spot' in Rolling Stone magazine

Her songwriting skills took her to Nashville at the age of 12, and now 16-year-old Makayla Lynn of Nova Scotia has made the magazine’s 10 Country artists you need to know in this month’s issue — Susan Bradley, CBC News

Songwriter groups hit out at the major labels’ position on moral rights

Songwriter groups have hit out at the Recording Industry Association Of America over its submission to an official review of the moral rights of creators in the US. The songwriter organizations – including BASCA in the UK – reckon that the major record companies Stateside are pursuing an anti-songwriter agenda on this point, while concurrently relying on vocal support from the songwriting community when it comes to lobbying for safe harbour reform — Chris Cooke, CMU

Goldman Sachs sells $75M worth of shares in Spotify

The move is part of the streaming company’s ‘direct listing’ route to an offering on the New York Stock Exchange — Music Business Worldwide

The hit maker taking English-speaking Arab artists to the global stage

Platinum Independent is the first Middle East-based label to target the US market. The only criteria is the artists selected have to have regional ties to the Middle East and North Africa — Sam Wendel, Forbes

The case for cassettes: still bumping in 2017

Tapes are a logical choice for bands looking for smaller runs of 100 to 500 cassettes. A small production run of cassettes can cost less than half as much as vinyl, and they’re easier to move on merchandise tables at concerts — Peter Harlaub, The San Francisco Chronicle

Don’t leave home with it

Everybody Lies: What Big Data tells us about who we really are

Everybody Lies relies on big data to rip the veneer of what we like to think of as our civilized selves. A book that is fascinating, shocking, sometimes horrifying, but above all, revealing — Seth Stevens-Davidowitz, HarperCollins Canada

Taylor Swift left ‘a blank space, baby’ on her social media

The pop star is known for promotional trickery on her social streams ahead of releasing new material — Associated Press

Musicians’ Union members stage free concert to bring scoring jobs back to L.A.

The aim of the concert was to raise awareness for Assembly Bill 1300, known as the “Music Scoring Tax Credit Bill"—  Jon Burlingame and Shirley Halperin, Variety

Vancouver-based singer Bobby Taylor brought The Jackson 5 to Motown

The recently-deceased singer also had his own big hit  — Tom Hawthorn, Globe and Mail

How Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil make 'beautiful' music together

Hitmaking songwriting team was a rival to Carole King and Gerry Goffin — q, CBC

Cue the carrots! Strike up the squash!

Vegetable orchestras have now sprouted up around the globe. Bring on the broccoli flute --- Annie Correal, New York Times

After a rocky year, Fifth Harmony is in control — and tighter than ever

The star all-girl group release a new album on Friday, and it features their greater creative input – Gerrick Kennedy, LA Times

Justin Bieber looks to make ‘Friends’ with new song

The Canadian star released his new song on Thursday, and almost immediately the lyrical content fueled speculation over who the song could be about  — Alanna Rizza, Toronto Star

k.d. lang fills Constant Craving with first of two Jubilee shows

A review of the prairie star's Saturday night show in Edmonton —  Fish Griwkowsky, Edmonton Journal

What are some of the secrets behind vinyl records?

Insight on the history of vinyl, how does it work and what to do if you start getting addicted to its sound —.Alex Frank, Mic