By Kerry Doole
Is Drake ready to leave hip hop? If he does he’s got plenty of other options
A 16-second clip from Drake’s conversation with Lil Yachty has some fearing that hip hop could soon lose its GOAT. – Nick Krewen, Toronto Star
Tenille Townes says a ‘wild thought’ and chance encounter led to Bryan Adams duet
A new duet between rocker Bryan Adams and country singer Tenille Townes was borne from an unexpected encounter in a stairwell. The Grande Prairie, Alta.-raised Townes describes a combination of luck and good timing as what led to recording “The Thing That Wrecks You” with one of her musical inspirations. – David Friend, CP
Feist announces Halifax Jazz Festival show July 11
Tickets went on sale to see the legendary indie artist last week. – Morgan Mullin, The Coast
Neil Young, wife actress Daryl Hannah surprise crowd at Victoria old-growth rally
The singer also addressed the crowd between songs, saying thank you Canada and calling old trees sacred and precious. – Dirk Meissner, CP
The second coming of Begonia
A room full of Elvises, decked out in their Graceland best, waited at the bar of the Royal George Hotel for the biggest diva in Winnipeg’s musical galaxy. – Ben Waldman, Winnipeg Free Press
Hamilton’s return to Toronto proves well worth the wait
If you’re a Torontonian who didn’t catch it before the lockdown and couldn’t travel, Hamilton's return engagement has felt like a long time coming. – Martin Morrow, The Globe and Mail
As Vancouver's Shameful Tiki gets ready to celebrate its 10th anniversary, Rod Moore looks for the right buyer
After a decade of running one of North America’s most successful Polynesian-themed bars, Rod Moore is selling Vancouver’s Shameful Tiki. In an interview with the Straight, he said it’s a decision that wasn’t easy to make. – Mike Usinger, Georgia Straight
Jerry Harrison and Adrian Belew bring the Talking Heads’ ‘Remain in Light’ to Toronto
The guitarists were inspired by video of the Talking Heads’ 1980 tour stop in Rome to tour their own version of the seminal album, with a March 2 stop in Toronto. – Nick Krewen, The Star
Black History Month: Acclaimed London choir revisiting Road to Freedom
A London choir and celebrated area performers celebrated Black History Month and those who fight for freedom with a concert Saturday.– Joe Belanger, London Free Press
Billy Joel hits jackpot at OLG Stage grand opening in Niagara Falls
The Piano Man deals out hits and pleases crowd at the show. – Nick Krewen, Toronto Star
Tons of tango on tap for your ear
You can hear Payadora’s compositions and arrangements on March 2 as part of the Hamilton Music Collective’s Jazz at the Gasworks series, Leonard Turnevicius writes. – Hamilton Spectator
International
How Sony Music Group accelerated its status as the world's 2nd biggest music rights company in 2022
Sony Music enjoyed a spectacular night at the Grammys in Los Angeles last month, as an array of its blockbuster recording artists, including Beyoncé, Harry Styles, and Adele claimed the night's most glittering prizes. the company is on a roll. – MBW
Universal Music ‘well placed’ to remain global leader
Universal Music Group (UMG) is “well placed” to remain a leader in the global entertainment industry, according to Deutsche Bank, which also upgraded its price target. Deutsche rated the entertainment conglomerate a ‘buy,’ raising its share price target. – Proactive Investors
London’s V&A Museum acquires David Bowie archive with £10m donation
The V&A has secured the archive of the late legendary David Bowie and plans to make it available to the public beginning in 2025. V&A secured the archive through the David Bowie Estate and a GBP £10 million donation from the Blavatnik Family Foundation and Warner Music Group, the museum said in a press release last week. – MBW
The push to Ban TikTok in the US isn’t about privacy
Lawmakers are increasingly hellbent on punishing the popular social network while efforts to pass a broader privacy law have dwindled. – Wired
A visual breakdown of global music consumption
There’s no doubt that the internet has revolutionized how music is being consumed. Including all video and music streaming, internet-based music consumption was the primary choice for 64% of respondents. That’s not even accounting for livestreams or music purchased through the internet. – Athul Alexander, Visual Capitalist
Long time WMG board member Thomas H, Lee found dead at 78.
Thomas H. Lee, a billionaire financier based in New York who served on Warner Music Group‘s board for nearly two decades, was found dead yesterday in Manhattan aged 78. Lee stepped down as a board director at WMG in 2021 following 17 years of service, but subsequently continued his affiliation with the music company as Director Emeritus. – MBW
Sampa the Great, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard pull out of Bluesfest
Another big-name act has pulled out of the iconic Bluesfest music festival in Byron Bay amid controversy sparked by the addition of Sydney band Sticky Fingers to the line-up. Representatives for Sampa the Great confirm the performer had been pushing to pull out of the line-up since Feb. 14. – Savannah Meacham, 9News
Rihanna will sing ‘Lift Me Up’ at the Oscars next month
Rihanna will follow-up her soaring Super Bowl halftime show with a performance at the Super Bowl of movies – the Oscars. Producers of the telecast said Thursday that the music superstar will sing “Lift Me Up” from “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.” – AP
How this obscure ’90s band became the new kids on TikTok
Pavement ruled the indie rock scene but were never commercially popular. So how did they inspire a film, a musical, a museum and a TikTok dance? – Barry Divola, The Age
Mark Lanegan remembered in new book: Exclusive excerpts from his peers
It includes testimonials from current and former members of Soundgarden, Screaming Trees, Nirvana, QOTSA, and more. – CoS
I signed a big record deal and thought I'd made it
"I had finally done it ... The world was finally hearing my music, and I was ecstatic. Unfortunately, that feeling didn’t last long." – Charlotte Martin, Huffington Post
Deepfake AI hack dupes Avenged Sevenfold fans into thinking the band canceled festival dates
Singer M. Shadows informed fans that the announcement made using deepfake voice AI was false. – CoS
The friendship of John Williams and Steven Spielberg
“I found it amazing that he would want to reveal such personal aspects of his life so close to the bone and the soul,” composer John Williams says of working with Steven Spielberg on “The Fabelmans.” – Tim Greiving, LA Times
There’s a Grammy for Christian music. These musicians want one for Jewish music, too
There is a Grammy Award for just about every kind of music — from pop to metal to New Age to Contemporary Christian — but there’s no Jewish category. Two Jewish musician friends hope to change that. – The Times of Israel
