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Blue Umbrella Releases Debut Album ‘Recklessly Yours,’ The Saskatchewan Folk Rock Supergroup 30 Years in the Making
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Saskatoon folk rock outfit Blue Umbrella releases its debut album, ‘Recklessly Yours,’ out now on streaming platforms and vinyl. Led by singer-songwriter Ryan Meili, better known across Canada as a family doctor, public health advocate and former leader of the Saskatchewan NDP, the record blends 70s folk rock with the grit of 90s prairie bar bands, carrying the depth of perspective that comes from a genuinely well lived life.
The album’s story stretches back three decades, to when Meili first started writing songs and playing shows in his twenties. Medicine, a growing family and a career in public life kept a full album out of reach for years, until Meili turned 49 and decided the time had finally come. Drawing on skills honed building political campaigns, he brought together a rotating cast of longtime friends and accomplished musicians, organizing rehearsals and recording sessions the same way he once organized a nomination race: patiently, deliberately, and with a clear goal in mind.
That process produced « Ignorance, » the album’s first single, released in May of this year. A reflective, plainspoken meditation on innocence and self-forgiveness, the track has drawn comparisons to early Tragically Hip and REM from listeners, a connection Meili has said was never intentional but one he is more than happy to embrace. The recording features Meili on guitar and vocals alongside Tyson McShane on bass, Luke Ryalls on guitar, Sam Corbett on drums, Burke Barlow on pedal steel and Barrett Ross on organ.
The second single, « Tropical Storm, » released in June, shifts into more vivid, image-driven territory, using weather and vegetation as metaphors for growth that only comes through upheaval. The track’s warm, rhythmic groove is carried by the same core lineup, with Ellen Froese adding vocals to round out the arrangement, giving the song a lush, full band sound that mirrors its themes of pressure building toward release.
The album’s third single, « Laid Back, » is out now and finds Meili at his most self-deprecating, turning a wry, rapid fire character sketch into one of the record’s most purely enjoyable moments. Recorded with McShane, Ryalls, Froese and Barlow, alongside drummer Charles Lemire, the track captures the loose, confident chemistry that developed once the full band found its footing.
That chemistry comes from real experience. Corbett spent twenty years touring the world as drummer for the Sheepdogs before stepping behind the board to produce ‘Recklessly Yours,’ following earlier production work on Ellen Froese’s ‘For Each Flower Growing’ and his own acclaimed record, ‘NUTANA.’ McShane has built an international career fronting indie stalwarts Slow Down Molasses, while Ryalls previously led Saskatoon’s The Fjords and released his own solo album, ‘The City.’ Barlow, formerly of Deep Dark Woods, rounds out the lineup on pedal steel. The album also features a feature spot from rising songwriter Lachlan Neville and a non-political guest cello performance from Saskatchewan MLA Meara Conway, with Barrett Ross engineering and mixing the entire record at Rec Hall Studios in Saskatoon and mastering handled by João Carvalho.
Alongside ten original songs, ‘Recklessly Yours’ includes two deep cut Canadian covers, the Tragically Hip’s « We’ll Go Too » and Leonard Cohen’s « Old Revolution, » a nod to the tradition the band draws from most directly. The album’s title and band name both trace back to Meili’s own history, with Blue Umbrella borrowed from a 1975 John Prine song and the phrase « Recklessly Yours » a nod to chances taken and adventures lived. The album cover plays with that recklessness, using the found poetry of fortune cookie papers to evoke a playful approach to the mysteries of life’s many possible paths. The record has already earned feature segments on Global News, CTV Morning and CBC BlueSky and coveted booking at this year’s Saskatoon Jazz Festival.
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ndependent Artist Darling Nikki Releases Debut EP ‘Hippie Soul,’ With Cinematic Single « Stay » Leading Listeners Into Her Artistic World
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Independent artist Darling Nikki has released her debut EP, ‘Hippie Soul,’ an entirely self written, self produced introduction to an artist who has spent her career building a sound and a philosophy entirely her own. Blending soul, funk, and vintage pop into a modern retro sound rooted in analog, 70s inspired production, ‘Hippie Soul’ plays out as a full artistic statement, one that Darling Nikki describes not simply as a project title but as a reflection of who she is. « I make Hippie Soul because I am a Hippie Soul, » she says.
That description carries real weight across the EP. A lifelong free spirit drawn to the values of the hippie movement, Düsseldorf, Germany’s Darling Nikki has built her music around freedom, creativity, and intuition, exploring themes of hope, faith, love, loss, healing, and inner freedom across each of the EP’s songs. Every track tells a personal story while reaching for something universal, an approach she credits to the complete creative control she holds over every stage of the process, from first lyric to final mix. « Music to me is far more than entertainment, » she explains. « It’s freedom, vibration, frequency and raw emotion, allowing something greater to move through me. It reconnects me with my soul. »
‘Hippie Soul’ is also a genuinely international project, bringing together musicians and engineers from Brazil, Turkey, Germany, and the United Kingdom to shape its genre blending journey through groove, grit, and soul. That global collaboration reflects the same reach that has defined Darling Nikki’s career, which began young in a musical family and has since carried her onto stages alongside Dionne Warwick and Larry Graham of Sly Stone and Prince fame, along with television appearances and international features that extended her music well beyond Germany’s borders.
Leading listeners into the EP is « Stay, » a cinematic single that pairs the warmth of Motown with the sweeping grandeur of classic 1960s film scoring. Recorded entirely live and analog, the track sets sweeping strings and powerful horns against a plainly personal story of love and longing, with Darling Nikki singing, « For all I ever wanted is to be with you, this truth I can’t deny, it’s written in the books, I’m yours, you’re mine, stay. » It is a lyric that distills the emotional heart of the EP into a single, direct plea, and a fitting entry point into the larger world Darling Nikki has built with ‘Hippie Soul.’
The accompanying music video for « Stay, » filmed among the striking Capo Testa rock formations in Sardinia, extends that vintage sensibility into a visual world of its own, with Darling Nikki portraying herself as the heroine of a retro, space age comic inspired by 1960s science fiction. « To me, music is emotion first, » she says. « If a song doesn’t make you feel something, nothing else matters. Stay is about allowing yourself to be vulnerable enough to say the words we sometimes wish we had said. »
That willingness to be vulnerable defines ‘Hippie Soul’ from beginning to end. Alongside « Stay, » the EP includes « Elvis, » Darling Nikki’s debut single, which made waves on national radio in Germany and drew attention from international music blogs and media, as well as « Time 2 Let Go » and « On The Other Side, » rounding out a collection built entirely on Darling Nikki’s own vision. With ‘Hippie Soul’ now available, Darling Nikki invites listeners fully into her world, one shaped by freedom, soul, and timeless music.
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Mary Garnett Edwards, Vancouver-Based Country and Bluegrass Storyteller, Releases New Single « Boneyard »
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Mary Garnett Edwards has spent more than five decades turning her own life into song, and her raw, raspy new single « Boneyard » stands as one of her most haunting works yet. Out now, the track pulls listeners into a money scarce, small town world of poverty, broken trust, and a rage filled ending that closes with a hanging, with Edwards crying out lines like « I walk the road as the moon shines bright, I hear the spirits in the forest night, I feel my knees they are a quiver. » It is a performance built on grit, and one that finds Edwards, born in Edmonton and now based in North Vancouver, working at the height of her storytelling powers.
« Boneyard » was produced by Andreas Schuld, one of the most recorded guitarists in Canada, whose credits include work with Long John Baldry and his own project Schuld & Stamer. He is joined on the track by a formidable lineup of Canadian musicians: Pat Steward, known for his work with Bryan Adams and The Odds, on kick drum; Stu MacDonald, whose credits include Crawfish Fiesta and Sue Leonard, on acoustic bass; Gord Maxwell, who has played with Chilliwack and One Horse Blue, on background vocals; and Nashville’s Chas Williams, who has recorded with David Gates and Nanci Griffith, on dobro. The track was recorded at Studio Downe Under in Abbotsford and Coa’s Hideaway in Maple Ridge, with Soren Lonnqvist and Schuld behind the board, and serves as the latest single from Edwards’s upcoming eight song album ‘Madhouse.’
Edwards’s musical story began at the age of ten, when she started singing, playing guitar, and writing her first songs. By twelve, her mother brought her to the Barricade Coffee House in Edmonton, where she performed her original material, a start that carried her through open mic nights at Vancouver venues including the Classical Joint, Soft Rock Cafe, and Kits House after her move to the coast. In the early seventies, she recorded with songwriter and lead guitarist Doug Mix at Psi Chord Studio, and was part of the original rock band Breeze, where Mix paired her with vocalist Tasi Sharpe to create a sound built on hard hitting vocals and tight harmonies.
Those early sessions with producer Robin Spurgin, founder of Psi Chord Studio, would go on to shape the rest of Edwards’s career in an unexpected way. After her husband Doug Edwards, known for his work with Skylark and Chilliwack, passed away from cancer in 2016, Mary rediscovered the original tracks Spurgin had recorded years earlier and decided it was time to sing them again. That rediscovery led to 2019’s ‘White Lightning,’ a thirteen-song album produced by Andreas Schuld and recorded with Soren Lonnqvist, featuring « Robin’s Song, » written for her longtime friend, along with three songs by Vancouver songwriter John Holbrook. The album’s track « I Had a Dream » was later featured in the award-winning documentary The Circle of Eagles.
Across a discography that includes ‘Street Spirits,’ recorded with Dan Morrow, and ‘Garnett Edwards First Stone,’ recorded with Doug Edwards in 1997, Edwards has built a body of work defined by honesty and hard-won experience. « Boneyard » continues that tradition, pairing her weathered voice with a story of desperation and consequence that feels pulled straight from the small towns she sings about.
With ‘Madhouse’ now taking shape and more singles on the way, Mary Garnett Edwards shows no signs of setting down her pen. She has spent a lifetime turning grief, hardship, and hard truths into song, and « Boneyard » proves that well runs as deep as ever. For Edwards, music has always been where the darkest stories get told, and where she keeps finding the next one worth singing.
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Eau the Music partage un nouveau single réfléchi « In This Silence », premier avant-goût de son premier album « Light in the Dark »
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L’artiste indie rock et dream pop basée à Ottawa, Eau the Music, a sorti « In This Silence », le premier single de son premier album, « Light in the Dark », qui sortira le 16 octobre. Écrit, produit et mixé entièrement par Ophelie Quraishi, l’artiste derrière Eau the Music, l’album capte l’incertitude, entre les moments de la vie, des relations au deuil en passant par la relation qu’elle entretient avec elle-même.
La chanson a commencé avec un mémo vocal, un simple grattement et une mélodie qui faisaient émerger la phrase « in this silence, I remain » avant que Quraishi ne comprenne pleinement ce que cela signifiait. Elle l’a écrit pendant une période d’introspection, s’appuyant sur une pratique régulière de méditation qui avait déjà commencé à ouvrir des nouvelles réflexions. Les paroles portent plusieurs sens à la fois, abordant la peur d’être incompris, l’inconfort de l’incertitude, et la confiance nécessaire pour donner à elle-même et aux autres de l’espace pour simplement être.
Cette qualité profondément personnelle et scrutatrice traverse tout l’album. Quraishi a commencé à écrire « Light in the Dark » après le décès de son père et de sa belle-mère, décédés à quelques mois d’intervalle après de longues maladies. La méditation est devenue sa façon d’y passer à travers. En se reconnectant à ses émotions, elle s’est retrouvée à écrire des chansons, un exutoire qu’elle n’avait jamais exploré auparavant et dans lequel elle n’a reçu aucune formation. Ce qui a commencé comme une façon de traiter des moments difficiles est devenu un réveil créatif complet, qu’elle décrit comme une reconnexion avec une version d’elle-même qu’elle avait connue enfant mais avec laquelle elle avait perdu contact avec le temps.
Au cœur de « In This Silence » se trouve une méditation sur la paix dans l’incertitude, avec des paroles comme « In this silence I remain », « Love survives me once again » et « But the lights will shine again » reflètent la résilience, la patience et l’espoir tranquille qui perdure même à travers la perte et l’incompréhension. Inspirée par la pratique de la méditation d’Eau the Music, la chanson capture l’espace émotionnel entre le deuil, les relations et la découverte de soi, reflétant le parcours profondément personnel derrière son premier album « Light in the Dark », qui a émergé en découvrant sa voix créative.
Fait remarquable, Quraishi a construit tout l’album elle-même, s’enseignant les instruments entièrement à l’oreille, et enregistrant tout dans le studio qu’elle a construit pièce par pièce à Ottawa. « In This Silence » a été le premier morceau qu’elle a tenté de mixer seule, un processus qui a pris des mois d’essais et d’instinct avant qu’elle ne trouve le son qu’elle cherchait. Elle a décrit ses chansons comme étant construites à partir de cinquante à deux cents morceaux superposés, avec certaines parties de guitare et de synthétiseur conservées exactement telles qu’elles étaient capturées en une seule prise non répétable.
L’histoire d’Eau the Music remonte à son premier single « Unfamiliar » sorti en 2022, écrit pour son premier groupe, First of the Last Stars, à propos de son père pendant sa maladie. Son travail solo a déjà trouvé un public au-delà du Canada, son single « Life » servant de pièce-titre à « Back Tide », un court métrage britannique de Hellion Films qui explore la vengeance, la culpabilité et les abus avant d’arriver finalement à l’espoir, un projet qu’elle a aussi contribué à composer. Elle a également été reconnue comme demi-finaliste au Concours international d’écriture de chansons et a récemment fait l’objet d’un portrait par Women in Music Canada.
Au fond, « Light in the Dark » parle de transformation, celle qui commence de façon incertaine et inconfortable avant de s’installer dans quelque chose de paisible. Quraishi a décrit l’album comme une invitation pour les auditeurs à s’asseoir avec toutes les parties d’eux-mêmes, la lumière comme l’obscurité, la même honnêteté qu’elle apporte à chaque niveau de « In This Silence ».
Le prochain Single de Eau the Music est une chanson bilingue mélangeant le français avec un peu d’anglais : « Ici Par Là/The Rest of Me » sort le 14 août.
Dates de tournée:
2 septembre, Ottawa, House of Targ
12 novembre, Ottawa, Club Saw
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Alan Gerber, Founding Member of Cult Favourites Rhinoceros, Shares New Single « Over Again » From Album ‘The Well’
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Long before « supergroup » became a music industry buzzword, Elektra Records assembled one of the format’s earliest and most electrifying experiments: Rhinoceros, a late-1960s heavy-soul/rock outfit whose blend of muscle and melody made them favourites among musicians and critics who understood exactly what they were witnessing. Decades later, Rhinoceros remains one of rock’s great under-the-radar treasures, a band cherished by those who found them and overdue for discovery by those who have not.
Founding member Alan Gerber, the pianist, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter whose fingerprints have been on soul and blues music for half a century, is giving a new generation every reason to go looking, with the arrival of his new single « Over Again, » the latest offering from his new album ‘The Well.’
Born in Chicago, Gerber has spent a lifetime moving fluidly between piano, acoustic and electric slide guitar, fiddle, and button accordion, building a body of work that draws from blues, soul, and folk in equal measure. He has shared stages with Bob Dylan, B.B. King, Van Morrison, Lou Reed, Janis Joplin, John Lee Hooker, and Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee, a lineup that speaks to the era he helped define and the respect he continues to command from his peers. Steven Van Zandt once singled out Gerber’s « Four Riders » as the Coolest Song in the World on Little Steven’s Underground Garage, a nod that captures what longtime listeners already know: Gerber writes songs built to last.
« Over Again » carries a particularly personal history. Gerber wrote the music and the song’s closing lines, « To be here now with you I’d go through it all again, I’d do it all over again, » then handed the song to his longtime writing partner Rolf Kempf, who returned it finished the following day. Kempf’s opening line, « I can smell the suntan lotion, isn’t the ocean an amazing green, » gave the song its vivid, sun warmed entry point, one Gerber admits took him a moment to embrace before falling for it completely. The song’s central theme, that love worth keeping is love worth working for, gives the track its emotional pull, framing devotion not as something simple but as something earned again and again.
The recording itself carries its own story. Gerber’s son Eli, a co-producer on the album and one of his favourite guitarists, was juggling his day job as a physicist when he sent over a quick demo of his guitar ideas for the track. Gerber liked what he heard so much that the demo became the final recording, prompting him to declare, « this ain’t no demo. » It’s a detail that speaks to the loose, instinctive spirit running through ‘The Well,’ an album where first takes and family collaboration carried real creative weight.
That sense of family runs through the entire record. ‘The Well’ marks Gerber’s last opportunity to write with Kempf, who passed away before the album’s release, and also reunites him with Danny Weis, his former Rhinoceros bandmate, whose guitar work appears across eight tracks. Quebec guitarist Gaston Gagnon of Garolou lends his touch to the songs « Mysterious, » & “On A Roll” while Gerber’s daughter, Hannah, contributes vocals throughout the record. Gerber’s wife Robin, a ceramic artist, even created the bowl photographed for the album cover, making ‘The Well’ a project built as much from lifelong friendships as from blood relations.
Gerber continues to tour extensively as both a solo artist and with a full band, bringing decades of stage experience to every performance. As Terry Whalen, Artistic Director of Whalen’s Barn Concert Series in Miramichi, New Brunswick, put it, within the first thirty seconds of a live Alan Gerber show, audiences are hooked completely. With « Over Again » now available and ‘The Well’ both out now, listeners have a fresh entry point into an artist whose catalogue rewards discovery, and whose next chapter is only getting started.
TOUR DATES
Aug 5 — Val-David, QC — 1001 Pots
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Marshmellow Overcoat Channels Classic Rock Spirit on New Album ‘Beat a Dead Horse’
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Bradford, Pennsylvania rock band Marshmellow Overcoat has released their new studio album, ‘Beat a Dead Horse,’ arriving alongside lead single « Wrote a Letter to You. » Formed by singer-songwriter Tyler Calkins in 2008 to blend the songwriting instincts of the sixties, seventies and nineties with a modern rock edge, the band has spent more than a decade building a devoted following across Western Pennsylvania and New York State, becoming one of the Southern Tier’s most consistently popular live acts.
« Wrote a Letter to You » carries real personal weight for Calkins. He had the bones of the song in his head for over a year before finishing it the day a close friend passed away, using the guitar as a way of reaching out one more time. Calkins has noted the lyrics also read as though they could be about his wife, giving the song a layered, dual meaning that runs through its every line. The track was recorded live at GCR Audio in Buffalo, New York, with Calkins on a Yamaha grand piano he has called one of the finest he has ever played, drawing on influences including John Lennon, Billy Joel, Warren Zevon, The Band and The Wallflowers.
‘Beat a Dead Horse’ rounds out « Wrote a Letter to You » with fellow singles « Walkin’ Tonight » and « Castles They Live In, » alongside seven additional original songs from the full band, Tyler Calkins on lead vocals, piano and guitar, Dave Verbocy on vocals and bass, Alan Hancock on guitar and Anthony Cavallaro on drums.
The album was recorded at GCR Audio and Mammoth Recording Studio in Buffalo, with sessions finished at Calkins’s home studio, mixed and mastered by Brad Lauchert, and engineered by Michael Bridges and Joey Bastian. Artist Kevin Kurecki provided the album’s artwork and collages.
Marshmellow Overcoat will bring the new album to audiences across Pennsylvania and New York throughout the summer, including a July 26 performance at the Kids and Cancer Benefit in the band’s hometown of Bradford, where the group will donate half of its album and merchandise sales from the day.
With ‘Beat a Dead Horse’ now available on all digital platforms, as well as vinyl and CD, Marshmellow Overcoat continues to deliver on its promise of classic rock and roll for today.
Marshmellow Overcoat Co. Tour Dates
- July 25, 2026 – Kids and Cancer Benefit – Bradford, PA (2:00 PM) – MMOC Full Band
- July 26, 2026 – Dam Inn – Wilcox, PA (4:30 PM) – MMOC Full Band
- July 30, 2026 – The Ram Sports Bar & Grill – Johnsonburg, PA (7:00 PM) – Tyler Calkins & Jim Copeland
- August 2, 2026 – Kinzua Wolf Run Marina – Clarendon, PA (3:30 PM) – MMOC Full Band
- August 7, 2026 – Kettle Creek Music Festival – Cross Fork, PA (1:30 PM) – MMOC Full Band
- August 7, 2026 – Seneca Gaming & Entertainment – Salamanca, NY (5:00 PM) – MMOC Full Band
- August 8, 2026 – Italian American Progressive Club – Bradford, PA (5:00 PM) – MMOC Full Band
- August 9, 2026 – Swedish Fest – Mount Jewett, PA (1:30 PM) – Tyler Calkins
- August 15, 2026 – Bent Run Brewing Company – Warren, PA (6:00 PM) – MMOC Full Band
- August 19, 2026 – Quaker Amphitheater – Salamanca, NY (7:00 PM) – Tyler Calkins
- August 21, 2026 – Moonwinks – Cuba, NY (7:00 PM) – Tyler Calkins
- August 22, 2026 – Tony’s Napoli – Olean, NY (6:00 PM) – MMOC Full Band
- August 29, 2026 – Wilds Sonshine Factory, Inc. – Kane, PA (7:00 PM) – MMOC Full Band
- August 30, 2026 – Ellicottville Distillery LLC – Ellicottville, NY (2:00 PM) – Tyler Calkins & Jim Copeland
- September 5, 2026 – A&W West End Grill – Coudersport, PA (7:00 PM) – Tyler Calkins & Jim Copeland
- September 12, 2026 – Big Inlet Brewing – Mayville, NY (5:00 PM) – MMOC Full Band
- September 17, 2026 – The Gin Mill – Ellicottville, NY (8:00 PM) – Tyler Calkins & Jim Copeland
- September 18, 2026 – Moonwinks – Cuba, NY (6:00 PM) – Tyler Calkins
- September 20, 2026 – Wilds Sonshine Factory, Inc. – Kane, PA (1:00 PM) – Tyler Calkins
- October 3, 2026 – Pine Acres Country Club – Bradford, PA (3:00 PM, time TBA) – MMOC Full Band
- October 9, 2026 – Moonwinks – Cuba, NY (6:00 PM) – Tyler Calkins
- October 29, 2026 – The Gin Mill – Ellicottville, NY (8:00 PM) – Tyler Calkins & Jim Copeland
- November 8, 2026 – Wilds Sonshine Factory, Inc. – Kane, PA (1:00 PM) – Tyler Calkins
- November 13, 2026 – Moonwinks – Cuba, NY (6:00 PM) – Tyler Calkins
- November 19, 2026 – The Gin Mill – Ellicottville, NY (8:00 PM) – Tyler Calkins & Jim Copeland
- December 11, 2026 – Moonwinks – Cuba, NY (6:00 PM) – Tyler Calkins
- December 18, 2026 – Big Inlet Brewing – Mayville, NY (6:00 PM) – Tyler Calkins
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Ottawa Dream Pop Artist Eau the Music Finds Hope in Silence on New Single « In This Silence, » Announces Debut Album ‘Light in the Dark’
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Ottawa-based indie rock and dream pop artist Eau the Music has released « In This Silence, » the first single from her forthcoming debut album, ‘Light in the Dark,’ arriving October 16. Written, produced and mixed entirely by Ophelie Quraishi, the artist behind Eau the Music, the track captures the uncertain, in between moments of life, from relationships to grief to the ongoing relationship she holds with herself.
The song began as a voice memo, a simple strum and melody that surfaced the phrase « in this silence, I remain » before Quraishi fully understood what it meant. She wrote it during a time of self-reflection, drawing on a regular meditation practice that had already begun opening up new layers of reflection. The lyrics carry multiple meanings at once, touching on the fear of being misunderstood, the discomfort of uncertainty, and the quiet trust required to give both herself and others room to simply be.
That searching, deeply personal quality runs through the entire album. Quraishi began writing ‘Light in the Dark’ following the deaths of her father and stepmother, who passed a few months apart after long illnesses. Meditation became her way through it, and in reconnecting with her own emotions, she found herself writing songs, an outlet she had never explored before and had no formal training in. What started as a way to process loss became a full creative reawakening, one she describes as reconnecting with a version of herself she had known as a child but had lost touch with over time.
At the heart of « In This Silence » is a meditation on finding peace in uncertainty, with lyrics like « In this silence I remain, » « Love survives me once again, » and « But the lights will shine again » reflecting resilience, patience and the quiet hope that endures even through loss and misunderstanding. Inspired by Eau the Music’s meditation practice, the song captures the emotional space between grief, relationships and self-discovery, mirroring the deeply personal journey behind her debut album ‘Light in the Dark,’ which emerged while discovering her creative voice.
Remarkably, Quraishi built the entire album herself, teaching herself guitar, vocals, synth, bass and drum programming entirely by ear, and recording everything in the home studio she constructed piece by piece in Ottawa. « In This Silence » was the first track she attempted to mix on her own, a process that took months of trial and instinct before she found the sound she was chasing. She has described her songs as built from anywhere between fifty and two hundred layered tracks, with certain guitar and synth parts kept exactly as they were captured in a single, unrepeatable take.
Eau the Music’s story reaches back to her 2022 debut single « Unfamiliar, » written for her first band, First of the Last Stars, about her father during his illness. Her solo work has already found an audience beyond Canada, with her single « Life » serving as the title track for ‘Back Tide,’ a UK short film from Hellion Films exploring revenge, guilt and abuse before ultimately arriving at hope, a project she also helped score. She was additionally recognised as a semi-finalist in the International Songwriting Competition and was recently profiled by Women in Music Canada.
At its core, ‘Light in the Dark’ is about transformation, the kind that begins uncertain and uncomfortable before settling into something peaceful. Quraishi has described the album as an invitation for listeners to sit with all the parts of themselves, the light and the dark alike, the same honesty she brings to every layer of « In This Silence. »
Tour Dates:
September 2, Ottawa, House of Targ
November 12, Ottawa, Club Saw
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Eric Alper
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Award-Winning Hip-Hop Artist Zaire Ink Confronts Mental Health and Faith on New Single « Audio/Biography »
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Calgary-raised, Edmonton-based hip-hop artist Zaire Ink releases « Audio/Biography » on June 5, a defining single from his forthcoming debut album, ‘When You Meet Yourself,’ with the full project arriving November 20. Known for merging dense, precise lyricism with spoken word roots and a deep well of faith, Zaire Ink built the song around a single pivotal night that reshaped the course of his life. The album chronicles a deeply personal journey through mental health challenges, suicidal ideation, and the redemption he found through faith, a story Zaire Ink now speaks on directly as part of his work as a public speaker and youth mentor.
The track opens with his parents’ divorce, the culmination of a difficult season that began years earlier when his family relocated from Montréal to Calgary at the age of sixteen. As the foundations he had built his identity upon started to crumble, Zaire found himself searching for relief in all the wrong places. That search reached a breaking point on the night recounted in the song, when a car accident involving one of his brothers was followed by a heated family argument during which Zaire made a split-second, dangerous decision that left him asking hard questions about what was really driving him underneath the surface.
That night became the hinge point for a much longer journey; one the second half of « Audio/Biography » uses the imagery of a near-death experience to explore the deeper spiritual search that followed. Over the subsequent years, Zaire found himself questioning the beliefs and assumptions that had shaped his life, eventually arriving at a faith that became personal rather than inherited, and a sense that his life carried real purpose. It is this same journey, from crisis through faith to renewal, that now anchors his performances and public speaking engagements, where he shares his story directly with audiences navigating similar struggles.
The lyrics place listeners inside that pivotal night with striking immediacy, opening on the pain of his parents’ divorce before returning to the refrain, « I don’t wanna be the one inside a broken home, why should I keep living when I’m out here on my own? » As the song unfolds, the account of a family argument, a split-second leap from a moving vehicle, and a deeply personal spiritual awakening transforms « Audio/Biography » into more than autobiography. It becomes the emotional and thematic centrepiece of ‘When You Meet Yourself,’ giving voice to the mental health struggles, suicidal ideation, faith, and redemption that now shape both Zaire’s music and the message he shares as a public speaker and youth mentor.
That arc gives ‘When You Meet Yourself’ its structure. The ten-track album develops across three sections, Salvation, Sanctification and Glorification, mirroring the progression from recognising a need for change to the ongoing, lifelong work of growth and transformation. Each song functions as its own chapter, guiding listeners through self-confrontation toward surrender and, ultimately, hope.
« Audio/Biography » was written by Zaire Sealy alongside Jonathan Johansen and Nolan Sarnicki, produced by Rocket Beats and Producer X, mixed by Afuhmbom and mastered by Get MXD, with Zaire Ink handling the performance.
Before stepping into his solo career, Zaire co-founded the faith driven collective Two World Creatives, releasing two conceptual EPs, ‘Wait’ and ‘Molded,’ which laid the groundwork for the voice he brings to this new project. A two-time YYC Music Award recipient, he has been featured on Global News, CBC Radio, CBC Searchlight and in the Calgary Herald, and has performed at notable venues including the Saddledome and the Palace Theatre. Alongside his own music, he leads writing workshops across Western Canada, partnering with schools, faith groups, and community organisations, helping young people use creative expression to find their voice and speak openly about their experiences with mental health.
With « Audio/Biography » now available and ‘When You Meet Yourself’ continuing its rollout toward a November release, Zaire Ink offers listeners and audiences alike an unflinching, yet honest account of what a journey of faith can look like, inviting them to confront life’s deepest questions and discover the hope found in the promises of Christ.
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Ottawa Dream Pop Artist Eau the Music Finds Hope in Silence on New Single « In This Silence, » Announces Debut Album ‘Light in the Dark’
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Ottawa-based indie rock and dream pop artist Eau the Music has released « In This Silence, » the first single from her forthcoming debut album, ‘Light in the Dark,’ arriving October 16. Written, produced and mixed entirely by Ophelie Quraishi, the artist behind Eau the Music, the track captures the uncertain, in between moments of life, from relationships to grief to the ongoing relationship she holds with herself.
The song began as a voice memo, a simple strum and melody that surfaced the phrase « in this silence, I remain » before Quraishi fully understood what it meant. She wrote it during a time of self-reflection, drawing on a regular meditation practice that had already begun opening up new layers of reflection. The lyrics carry multiple meanings at once, touching on the fear of being misunderstood, the discomfort of uncertainty, and the quiet trust required to give both herself and others room to simply be.
That searching, deeply personal quality runs through the entire album. Quraishi began writing ‘Light in the Dark’ following the deaths of her father and stepmother, who passed a few months apart after long illnesses. Meditation became her way through it, and in reconnecting with her own emotions, she found herself writing songs, an outlet she had never explored before and had no formal training in. What started as a way to process loss became a full creative reawakening, one she describes as reconnecting with a version of herself she had known as a child but had lost touch with over time.
At the heart of « In This Silence » is a meditation on finding peace in uncertainty, with lyrics like « In this silence I remain, » « Love survives me once again, » and « But the lights will shine again » reflecting resilience, patience and the quiet hope that endures even through loss and misunderstanding. Inspired by Eau the Music’s meditation practice, the song captures the emotional space between grief, relationships and self-discovery, mirroring the deeply personal journey behind her debut album ‘Light in the Dark,’ which emerged while discovering her creative voice.
Remarkably, Quraishi built the entire album herself, teaching herself guitar, vocals, synth, bass and drum programming entirely by ear, and recording everything in the home studio she constructed piece by piece in Ottawa. « In This Silence » was the first track she attempted to mix on her own, a process that took months of trial and instinct before she found the sound she was chasing. She has described her songs as built from anywhere between fifty and two hundred layered tracks, with certain guitar and synth parts kept exactly as they were captured in a single, unrepeatable take.
Eau the Music’s story reaches back to her 2022 debut single « Unfamiliar, » written for her first band, First of the Last Stars, about her father during his illness. Her solo work has already found an audience beyond Canada, with her single « Life » serving as the title track for ‘Back Tide,’ a UK short film from Hellion Films exploring revenge, guilt and abuse before ultimately arriving at hope, a project she also helped score. She was additionally recognised as a semi-finalist in the International Songwriting Competition and was recently profiled by Women in Music Canada.
At its core, ‘Light in the Dark’ is about transformation, the kind that begins uncertain and uncomfortable before settling into something peaceful. Quraishi has described the album as an invitation for listeners to sit with all the parts of themselves, the light and the dark alike, the same honesty she brings to every layer of « In This Silence. »
Tour Dates:
September 2, Ottawa, House of Targ
November 12, Ottawa, Club Saw
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Canadian Rock Icon Bif Naked Returns with New Single « Lift Me Up »
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Canadian rock icon Bif Naked has released « Lift Me Up, » a new single written with longtime collaborator Ezra Cipes and produced by Cipes alongside Peter Karroll. The track marks a reunion between two artists whose creative history stretches back nearly two decades, and it arrives as Bif continues one of the busiest stretches of her career, touring behind both her acclaimed, multi award winning documentary and her 2025 studio album ‘Champion.’
Born in secret in India and adopted by American missionaries, Bif built an international career entirely on her own terms, turning personal hardship into music, advocacy, and a message of resilience that still resonates today. Across seven studio albums she’s delivered chart topping anthems including the number one Billboard Canada hit « Spaceman, » the enduring « I Love Myself Today, » and fan favourites like « Tango Shoes » and « Lucky, » while sharing stages with Billy Idol, Foo Fighters, Smashing Pumpkins, and Green Day.
« I love this song so much and I love the words, » Bif says of « Lift Me Up. » « I love the vision and the feeling that I get when I hear it. It makes me dreamy. It makes me hopeful, even weepy. » She describes the song as an extension of a lifelong yearning for connection, one that reaches beyond romance into something communal. « The significance of lifting up, instead of dragging down, is really driven by a deep desire to keep moving towards love energy and peace, which I try and live by and embody as a person, not just as an artist. »
For Cipes, the song closes a long circle. Bif and her team gave him and his brother Gabe their first shot on Her Royal Majesty’s Records, and he credits her with shaping his own path in music. « Bif walks her own singular path of courage and light, » Cipes says. « That’s a huge inspiration to a lot of people. It’s amazing to have reconnected and have done this project together. » The two began writing « Lift Me Up » years ago, long before either could have known when it would find its moment. « Some songs have their own right time, » he adds. « Big blessing. »
That sense of timing fits neatly into a milestone year for Bif. Her multi award winning documentary, ‘Bif Naked a Documentary,’ wrapped a run of sold-out screenings across Canada after premiering at the Calgary International Film Festival, where it won the Audience Choice Award, before its streaming debut on Super Channel. Meanwhile, ‘Superbeautifulmonster,’ the 2006 album Bif has called her personal favourite, celebrates its 20th anniversary this year with a new vinyl reissue.
Bif brings « Lift Me Up » and the rest of her catalogue to the road throughout the summer and fall.
Bif Naked Tour Dates:
July 24, 2026 – Fallsview Casino – Niagara Falls, ON
August 5, 2026 – Penticton Peach Festival – Penticton, BC
August 15, 2026 – Starlight Stadium – Victoria, BC
September 10, 2026 – Live Loud, Massey Hall – Toronto, ON
October 9, 2026 – Oktoberfest – Kitchener, ON
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Niagara-On-The-Lake Alt-Folk Rocker Ryan Bissell Releases Debut Single « Get Up Get Ready »
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Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario’s Ryan Bissell has released his debut single, « Get Up Get Ready, » a raw, urgent alt-rock track produced by Paul Gigliotti and marking the arrival of a songwriter who spent decades writing music before he ever finished a song. Released through this own label, the track kicks off a catalogue born out of one of the more unlikely origin stories in recent memory.
Bissell has played guitar and sung since childhood, but for years his songwriting amounted to little more than freestyled gibberish, catchy fragments of melody without any real structure behind them. Sitting down to shape those ideas into a finished song with a real story never held the same appeal as simply letting the ideas flow. That changed in February of 2023, after a freak accident on vacation in Costa Rica left him with a six inch, gaping wound from a stingray sting that refused to heal for six months.
Months of antibiotics wrecked his stomach and triggered a stretch of insomnia that took a serious toll on his mental health, leaving him wide awake most nights until sunrise. Music became his outlet. He challenged himself to finish just one song, simply to say he had done it. Then he finished another. And another. Some nights he woke with entire songs already formed in his head, sitting down to play them as though he had known them his whole life.
That surge of songwriting reignited a passion for music that had sat dormant for the better part of a decade, his guitar collecting dust under his bed. As his catalogue grew, Bissell began working with producer and musician Paul Gigliotti, best known as one half of the Canadian pop rock duo Wave, to bring the songs to life in the studio.
« Get Up Get Ready » channels that restless energy directly into its lyrics. « Five more minutes ‘til the van’s here, how can you just stand there, » Bissell sings over a driving, tension filled arrangement, building toward a chorus that repeats like a mantra: « Get up, come on get ready, for anything. » It’s a song about the moment right before everything changes, delivered by an artist who knows that moment firsthand.
With « Get Up Get Ready » now out in the world, Ryan Bissell is ready for listeners to hear the results of a catalogue built in the middle of the night, one song at a time.
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Tupelo/Winston-Salem Rock and Power Pop Artist Clay Howard Releases New Single « Lovin' » (Sunshine Mix)
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Tupelo, Mississippi-born, Winston-Salem, North Carolina-based singer-songwriter and guitarist Clay Howard has released « Lovin' » (Sunshine Mix), a bright, danceable reimagining of a standout track from his 2026 album ‘A Little More Nothin’,’ and finds Howard distilling three decades of Southeastern stagecraft into three irresistible minutes built around a simple, universal message: love one another.
Howard has spent more than 30 years performing throughout the Southeast, moving fluidly between solo shows and full-band projects that draw on classic rock, power pop, Americana, and country. That range is on full display across ‘A Little More Nothin’,’ which produced international independent radio airplay and sent its title track to the Top 10 on the Radio Indie Alliance chart. « Lovin' » extends that momentum, following singles like « Magic » and his take on « A Cowboy’s Work Is Never Done » as the next chapter in a catalog built on hook-filled songwriting and lyrics that connect.
The origin story behind « Lovin' » began as a dare: a friend sent Howard a 55-second video of a June bug flipped on its back on a North Carolina sidewalk, daring him to write a song about it. Howard, off work that day, sat down at his keyboard and sketched out the bones of what he called « Buggin’, » a catchy, playful sketch he was content to leave exactly as it was. Four years later, while assembling demos for his producer Joey Barnes, a former drummer for modern rock band Daughtry, Howard tucked the old song in almost as an afterthought. Barnes heard something bigger in it, asked Howard to rework the lyrics and add a bridge, and helped turn a joke about a bug on a sidewalk into an anthem about connection.
At the heart of « Lovin' » is an uncomplicated message about choosing connection over division. Howard opens by acknowledging the noise and weight people carry every day, singing, « People come into our lives / they’ve got so much to say / it holds us back and weighs us down / every single day, » before pivoting toward hope in the chorus: « If you want to love me / I can love you too… We aren’t around forever / so we’ve got a lot of lovin’ to do. » Later, the bridge drives the point home with the realization that « the love I seek is sometimes standing right in front of me, » reinforcing the song’s optimistic belief that the connections people are searching for may already be within reach.
The Sunshine Mix keeps the original album version’s instrumental tracks and vocals intact while giving the percussion a full overhaul, stripping the arrangement back into a lighter, more danceable groove. The music was tracked at Barnes’ studio, while Howard recorded vocals in his own music room in the woods outside Winston-Salem, a fitting split for a song that grew out of both collaboration and quiet, solitary reflection.
At its core, « Lovin' » is a plainspoken call for connection. Whether the love in question is romantic, platonic or brotherly, Howard frames it as the force that actually moves the world forward—a message that lands as easily on the dance floor as it does in quiet reflection.
Howard’s creative life runs alongside a second career as Regional Director for the North Carolina Small Business and Technology Development Center, where he helps entrepreneurs across the Triad start and grow their businesses. It’s a dual path that mirrors the pragmatic optimism running through « Lovin' » itself, a songwriter equally comfortable building small businesses and building bridges between people through music.
Beyond his solo output, Howard fronts the popular yacht rock outfit Camel City Yacht Club and Blacklight Idols, and has performed with Clay & Fran and Stratocruiser, giving him one of the more varied résumés on the North Carolina live circuit. That range will be on full display throughout the summer and fall as Howard brings « Lovin' » to stages across the region.
Clay Howard Tour Dates:
July 31, 2026 – Winston-Salem, NC – Joymongers (8-11 PM)
August 7, 2026 – High Point, NC – Private Event at High Point Country Club
August 8, 2026 – Boonville, NC – RagApple Lassie Vineyards (5-8 PM)
August 15, 2026 – Greensboro, NC – ONETHIRTEEN Brewhouse (8:30-11:30 PM)
August 22, 2026 – Winston-Salem, NC – Summer on Fourth (7-10 PM)
August 30, 2026 – Jamestown, NC – The Deck (4-7 PM)
September 4, 2026 – Jamestown, NC – Music in the Park at Wrenn Miller Park (6-8 PM)
September 6, 2026 – Banner Elk, NC – Sorrento’s Italian Bistro (7-9 PM)
September 11, 2026 – Greensboro, NC – Private Event at Greensboro Country Club (7-10 PM)
September 12, 2026 – Greensboro, NC – Tunnel to Towers Benefit (8-11 PM)
September 20, 2026 – Kernersville, NC – Gypsy Road Brewing (3-6 PM)
October 9, 2026 – Greensboro, NC – Joymongers (8-11 PM)
October 24, 2026 – Radford, VA – Radford Homecoming
October 25, 2026 – Jamestown, NC – The Deck (4-7 PM)
November 14, 2026 – Yadkinville, NC – Private Party
November 27, 2026 – Winston-Salem, NC – Ramkat (8-11 PM)
December 5, 2026 – Greensboro, NC – Private Event at Starmount Country Club
December 26, 2026 – Greensboro, NC – Ziggy’s (8-11 PM)
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Hi there,
I hope you’re doing well!
Osheaga returns to Montreal’s Parc Jean-Drapeau from July 31 to August 2 for its nineteenth year, bringing together an eighty seven act lineup topped by Twenty One Pilots, Tate McRae, and Lorde, and organizers have made two compelling interview subjects available ahead of the festival: Toronto’s Valley, making their Osheaga debut, and festival co-founder Nick Farkas, whose Evenko team has shaped the event from its earliest days in 2006 into one of the most significant music festivals in North America.
For Toronto-based Valley, made up of Rob Laska, Alex Dimauro, and Karah James, this year’s booking marks a milestone in a career built steadily since forming in Toronto in 2014. Known for pairing catchy melodies with vulnerable, introspective lyrics, the band has built a devoted fan base and real momentum on the road, opening for acts including Lennon Stella and COIN, and earning a JUNO nomination for their 2024 album ‘Water the Flowers, Pray for a Garden.’ Valley is available to speak about what it means to play a festival of Osheaga’s stature for the first time, how they are preparing, and what they expect from the weekend.
Nick Farkas offers a different but equally compelling angle. As co-founder of Osheaga and senior vice president of booking, concerts, and events at Evenko, Farkas has overseen the festival’s growth from a modest 2006 debut into one of North America’s most significant music events. Farkas is available to discuss what the festival’s nineteenth year represents, how Osheaga’s programming philosophy has evolved, and what continues to set it apart from other major festivals.
Together, Valley and Farkas offer two complementary entry points into this year’s festival story, one following an emerging Canadian band’s big stage debut, the other offering a rare, insider view from the person who built that stage. Both are available for interviews ahead of the festival’s July 31 opening.
Let me know if you’d be interested, and I’ll be happy to set it up here, and thank you – as always – for considering!
Best,
Eric
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Cobourg, ON Indie Celtic Folk Duo Lo & the High Road Launch Kickstarter for Sophomore Album ‘Standing Stones,’ Announce ‘Lanterns in the Mist’ Tour
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Lo & the High Road, the Cobourg based Indie Celtic folk project of Lauren Halász and Colin McMahon, have opened a Kickstarter campaign to fund the vinyl and CD pressing of their sophomore album, ‘Standing Stones,’ targeted for release in early fall 2026. The campaign arrives as the duo heads out on the road for their « Lanterns in the Mist Tour, » bringing their latest single and a catalogue steeped in fantasy, folklore, and nature to stages across Ontario, Quebec, and Atlantic Canada.
Halász (songwriting, lead vocals, bodhrán, Irish whistle) and McMahon (songwriting, production, guitar, mandolin, bouzouki) have spent the past several years building a devoted following of more than 200,000 fans who turn to their music for tabletop role playing soundtracks, woodland weddings, and Renaissance faires alike. Their 2023 debut, ‘Jackalope Tales (& Other Stories),’ has surpassed 2.5 million streams on Spotify, weaving three traditional songs with six originals into a record centred on growing up, resilience, and childhood wonder.
That same sense of myth carried into 2025’s « Lanterns in the Mist, » a single that follows a child spirited away by fairies, a story Halász has said appears across cultures worldwide, sometimes as a warning and sometimes as a rescue. She has described writing the song as a way of finding a space between worlds to rest.
‘Standing Stones’ extends that world building across a thirteen-track collection, pairing the band’s originals with traditional pieces from Ireland, Scotland, and Canada. The album folds in previously released singles « The Fawn & the Huntress, » featuring Lunar Bloom, and « Dance of the Dryads, » both drawn from Greek mythology, alongside new songs like the title track, « Salem, » and « The Weaver. » Guest artists Christine Rabey (vocals), Jordan Baldwin (violin, viol, vocals), Saskia Tomkins (nyckelharpa), and Steáfán Hannigan (uilleann pipes, bodhrán, Irish flute) join the record, with cover art once again designed by Abbey Komes, who previously created the artwork for « The Fawn & the Huntress » and « Lanterns in the Mist. »
The Kickstarter serves both as a pre-order for physical copies and a way for fans to support the album’s completion, with all backers acknowledged in the CD and vinyl insert. Supporters can also pick up existing merchandise through the campaign while the band finishes the album’s remaining tracks ahead of its fall release.
Fans can catch Lo & the High Road live throughout the summer as the « Lanterns in the Mist Tour » makes its way across the country.
Lo & the High Road Tour Dates
July 23, 7:00 PM – Bar le Ritz PDB – Montréal, QC
July 24, 7:00 PM – Robo Lounge – Ottawa, ON
July 25, 7:00 PM – The John at Sadleir House – Peterborough, ON
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Boston, Massachusetts Folk and Americana Singer-Songwriter John Gerard Announces New Album ‘Threads’
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Boston based singer, songwriter, and guitarist John Gerard has released his new album ‘Threads,’ a collection built around the ebb and flow of family life and the ties that shape who we become. Now available at johngerard.com, with the single « New England » leading the way, the record folds four decades of songwriting experience into ten songs of striking honesty.
Born in Paris, France and raised in Massachusetts, Gerard has spent his career writing from the corners of everyday life, the « moments that slip through the cracks, » as he describes them. His music has earned reviews in Metronome Magazine, a feature in The Boston Globe, the documentary « Subway Serenade, » and an opening slot for Lori McKenna at Club Passim. These days he splits his time between busking through the Boston subway and Cambridge, where his songwriting first took root, and playing intimate listening rooms, house concerts, and coffee shops across New England.
‘Threads’ carries a deeply personal weight. « I found myself battling addiction early in adulthood, » Gerard says. « Through a recovery program, I found the support and guidance I needed to rebuild my life. Along that journey, I met countless others whose stories and family experiences echoed my own. » That collision of his own upbringing and the stories he encountered in recovery became the record’s foundation, a reminder, in his words, that anyone struggling is not alone.
« New England » sets the tone, a letter set to melody about leaving home and everything that home holds. « Maybe it’s time for me to move on, leave Boston skies for LA’s sun, » Gerard sings, before landing on the album’s emotional core, « New England fall I miss the most, the look on your face when the leaves turn to gold. » It is a small, specific image that opens onto something much larger about family, memory, and the pull of the place we come from.
Gerard’s melodic guitar work and unique chord progressions have long been a hallmark of his sound, holding listeners in anticipation as his songs move through reflection and vulnerability. With ‘Threads,’ he continues building his audience city by city and stage by stage, carrying his songs from the subway platforms of Boston to listening rooms across the region.
John Gerard – Upcoming Tour Dates:
Jul 23, 2:00 PM, Upper Campus – Academic Entrance, Farmington, CT
Jul 25, 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM, Keene Farmer’s Market, Keene, NH
Jul 25, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM, The Hive Public Market, Lowell, MA
Jul 25, 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM, The Hive Public Market, Lowell, MA
Jul 26, 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM, The Hive Public Market, Lowell, MA
Jul 26, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM, The Hive Public Market, Lowell, MA
Aug 8, 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM, Silver Creek Acres, Lempster, NH
Aug 27, 6:00 PM – 8:30 PM, Winchendon History and Cultural Museum, Winchendon, MA
Aug 30, 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM, Apex Orchards, Shelburne Falls, MA
Aug 31, 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM, Branch and Blade, Keene, NH
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Los Angeles Pop Artist ALYA Finds Hope in New Cinematic Single ‘Believer’
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Grammy-winning pop artist ALYA returns with « Believer, » a soaring, cinematic new single that arrives ahead of her forthcoming album ‘In The Moment,’ due in March 2027. Produced by Tim Carmon and co-written with Breana Marin, the song folds ALYA’s signature blend of inspirational pop, soul, and sweeping storytelling into her most personal release yet.
Known for her powerful vocals and emotionally driven songwriting, ALYA has built a global following of more than 50 million views across social platforms, connecting audiences through themes of hope, humanity, and empowerment. She has collaborated with artists including Eric Clapton, Erica Campbell, and D Smoke, and her ongoing « Hope » project, including Hope: The Sequel, has grown into a movement centered on kindness and collective good.
« Believer » was born out of heartbreak. « The song was created at a time in my life when I had completely given up on love after a failed situation that really got the best of me, » ALYA says. « Out of the clear blue sky, life sent an angel into my life that I couldn’t have imagined was even possible and made me a believer again. »
Written across several days, in kitchens, showers, and pretty much wherever inspiration struck, the song almost stayed shelved… « My partner had to convince me several times, » ALYA recalls. « He kept saying, nobody else has heard it and you don’t know who you may inspire to keep going and not give up. So here we are, ready to inspire the next believer. »
Vulnerability runs through the track’s hook, where ALYA sings, « Made me a believer, when I didn’t believe in love, never the same, never the same, after just one touch. » The production carries an unexpected signature too: an accordion throughout the song, an instrument ALYA grew up playing and wanted to bring into a pop setting. « Not too many people can say in the western world that they have an accordion on their pop song, » she says.
Six years after it was first written, « Believer » has finally made its way into the world. « Believer » is both intimate and uplifting; a love song rooted in resilience rather than fantasy. « I feel ‘Believer’ will help those who gave up on love, to be a believer again. » ALYA says.
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Ohio/Washington’s Christopher James Blends Traditional Country Storytelling With Modern Sound on New Single « Shotgun County Pawn and Gun »
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Independent country artist Christopher James releases his new single « Shotgun County Pawn and Gun » on June 30, out now on all platforms. The track pairs a classic country narrative with a modern edge, following a chance encounter with a girl in a green Mustang that leads the narrator to an unlikely pawn shop where, over the course of the song, he finds nearly everything he needs, right down to an engagement ring.
The song arrived fully formed. James received the lyrics from songwriter David Graham and knew almost immediately how the track should sound, requiring only minor tweaks before it felt like his own. « It was one of those songs that felt like it had already written itself, » James says. Rather than reworking the arrangement, he leaned into the traditional country feel the story called for while giving it a light modern touch, a nod to the sound he grew up loving in the 1990s and early 2000s.
James recorded the track himself in Waldorf, Maryland, handling production, engineering, mixing and mastering, and performing nearly every instrument on the song, from vocals to rhythm guitar to bass and drums. The lone outside contribution comes from longtime collaborator George Waltemire, who delivers the track’s lead guitar work. « George has a habit of making my job easy, » James says. « Every time I ask him to play on a song, he seems to nail the solo almost immediately, and this track was no different. » The entire song came together in roughly two days.
James leans into classic country storytelling on the song. After spotting « a green Mustang / with a heartbreaker at the wheel, » the narrator follows the mysterious woman to the shop, where he soon discovers that « you can get almost anything you want »—from « DVDs or a Fender Bass » to « a wedding ring and a green Mustang. » As the story unfolds, the pawn shop transforms from a place to buy and sell odds and ends into the backdrop for romance, with the narrator even pawning his motorcycle and some of his guns to buy an engagement ring before the song ends with the tongue-in-cheek reveal that the wedding itself will be held at the very place where it all began. The lighthearted narrative reflects the traditional country influences James grew up with while giving the track a modern polish that fits naturally alongside today’s country sound.
A career military man, James has served more than twenty years in the United States Army, a commitment he has balanced alongside a steady rise as a performing and recording artist. His time in uniform has taken him across stages nationwide, including appearances alongside Chris Stapleton, Maren Morris and Train, experiences that helped shape his musicianship and his instincts as a performer long before he stepped forward with music of his own.
That instinct has translated into fast, organic momentum since he began releasing music under his own name. In just a year and a half, James has built more than 60,000 independent streams, earned regional radio airplay, landed playlist placements, opened for Garth Brooks and contributed production work to a Craig Morgan project, all while continuing his military service. His approach favours steady, sustainable growth over any single breakout moment, one song at a time.
« Shotgun County Pawn and Gun » fits naturally into that trajectory. Where some of James’s earlier releases leaned more modern or rock oriented, this single reflects the traditional country roots at the core of who he is as an artist. « I think country music is at its best when it embraces all sides of the genre, » James says, « and this song is my way of showing that every part of country music matters. »
Raised in Ayersville, Ohio and now based in Washington, DC, James continues to build a catalogue grounded in honest storytelling, hands on craftsmanship and a genuine reverence for the country tradition he was raised on. With « Shotgun County Pawn and Gun » now available everywhere, he adds another chapter to a career built on service, songwriting and steady forward motion.
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Sultans of String Mark UN’s International Day of Hope with New REFUGE Live Video Featuring Leen Hamo
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“Refuge is a fantastic, moving, dreamlike, epic, timely album.”
Ken Micallef – Jazz Times, Stereophile, Downbeat
“Dazzles with inventiveness!”
Rock ‘n’ Reel Magazine, UK
In honour of the United Nations designating July 12th as the International Day of Hope, Sultans of String and the Mississauga Symphony Orchestra (under the direction of Maestro Dennis Mastromonaco), are sharing this live video of “El Bint El Shalabeya” from Sultans of String’s REFUGE concert, featuring acclaimed Syrian Canadian vocalist Leen Hamo.
This arrangement is from the album REFUGE, a collaboration with over 30 musicians, including Majd Sukkar, Leen Hamo, Tamar Ilana, Padideh Ahrarnejad, Saskia Tomkins, Ahmed Moneka, Juan Carlos Medrano, Robi Botos, Ifrah Mansour, Demetrios Petsalakis, Imad Al Taha, Amir Amiri, Béla Fleck, Duke Redbird and others on wide-ranging treatise on displaced peoples.
Addressing the struggles of life on Mother Earth has always inspired Toronto-based quintet, Sultans of String. On their visionary seventh and eighth albums, Refuge and Sanctuary, Sultans of String bring their unique brand of musical synergy and collaboration to bear on songs that speak to the challenges facing the world’s displaced peoples–their stories, their songs, their persistence and their humanity.
Joined by an international cast, some of whom are recent immigrants to North America, the celebrated quintet immerses themselves in the plight of the international refugee on Refuge, and the humanitarian response that should greet everyone in search of a home.
“This project is centered around the positive contributions of refugees and new immigrants to North America,” says bandleader Chris McKhool (ancestral name Makhoul), whose Lebanese grandfather stowed away on a ship bound for North America a century ago. “We’re collaborating with special guests on the album who are newcomers to this land, Indigenous artists, as well as global talents who have been ambassadors for peace. We wish to celebrate the successes of those who make the journey here and bring their extraordinary talents with them. We hope the conversations we can have as musicians will provide a model for peace that will inspire our politicians and citizens.”
THANKS to the generous support of the Ontario Arts Council, an agency of the Government of Ontario.
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Award Winning Documentary Play It Loud! How Toronto Got Soul to screen at The Pan African Film Festival at the Austin Film Society
When: Friday, July 31st @ 9:00 PM
Where: AFS Cinema – 6259 Middle Fiskville Rd, Austin, TX, 78752
Tickets: https://www.austinfilm.org/screening/play-it-loud-how-toronto-got-soul/
Watch for giveaways of vinyl copies of Light in the Attic’s Jamaica to Toronto compilation courtesy of Austin’s Light in the Attic Records https://www.austinfilm.org/paff-2026/
Director Graeme Mathieson, producer Andrew Munger and Matt Sullivan, President of Light in the Attic Records will be in the house to introduce the film and for a post screening Q & A.
Austin, Texas – The soulful story of Jamaican Canadian icon Jay Douglas and Toronto’s vibrant R&B scene is coming to Austin. The multi-award-winning documentary Play It Loud! How Toronto Got Soul will be presented on Friday, July 31st, 9PM, at the Pan African Film Festival, presented by the Austin Film Society, at AFS Cinema.
After playing to enthusiastic audiences at festivals and cinemas across Canada, the United States (Detroit, New Orleans) the United Kingdom and the Caribbean (Kingston, Port au Spain), Play it Loud! How Toronto Got Soul is bringing its warm island vibes to one of America’s music capitals. During the late 1960s and early 70s, Toronto’s Jamaican music scene was unrivaled and second only to London, England as an outpost of the island music that Bob Marley, the Skatalites and others were bringing to the world.
Jay Douglas, lead singer of The Cougars and one of the biggest and brightest talents of that time, is the subject of a fantastic new documentary entitled Play It Loud! How Toronto Got Soul, directed by Jamaican Canadian filmmaker Graeme Mathieson, produced by Andrew Munger (Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and The Band, the Emmy winning Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry it On). The executive producer is Clement Virgo (Brother, The Wire, The Get Down). Play it Loud! features music by Bob Marley and the Wailers, James Brown, Jay Douglas, Sly Dunbar, the Staples, DJ Supreme La Rock and many others.
Play It Loud! How Toronto Got Soul traces Douglas’ journey from rural Jamaica, singing in church choirs to bustling Kingston, capital of newly independent Jamaica. Here, the ambitious young singer encounters Bob Marley and auditions for legendary producer Coxone Dodd of Studio One Records before immigrating to Canada where he is reunited with his mother and brother in Canada. A serendipitous series of events finds the 17-year-old recruited as lead singer in Toronto’s hottest Caribbean band, part of a burgeoning Jamaican music community that included some of the biggest stars of Jamaican music, including Jackie Mittoo, Leroy Sibbles, Alton Ellis, and Wayne McGhie.
They were all in-demand performers, alternating between performing in smoky nightclubs (alongside acts like Little Charles, Bo Diddley & James Brown, recording and releasing numerous albums and singles, while maintaining “day jobs”. But Toronto lacked the Black music infrastructure of comparable cities like Detroit, Chicago or New York.
Without industry the records received little airplay and promotion and eventually went out of print and faced into obscurity.
In the early ought’s, West Coast DJ’s, including legendary crate digger Supreme La Rock discovered the records and began sampling them for break beats. La Rock brought the records to Matt Sullivan of Seattle (now Austin) record label Light In The Attic. Sullivan was astonished by the quality of Black music from a city he associated with hockey and classic rock. He released the landmark Jamaica to Toronto compilation, part of a series of 6 full albums from Toronto’s Jamaican musical pioneers, many of whom had long retired from music. Not Douglas. He continued to perform through the ups and down, feast and famine years, at weddings, on cruise ships, nightclubs. He was (and is) the ultimate working musician. But the Jamaica to Toronto record has had a profound effect on his career. Since the record’s release, Douglas has been more in demand than ever, including performances alongside legends like Marcia Griffiths, Luciano, Ziggy Marley and many others. It’s given him the notoriety and recognition he had long deserved.
CBC Radio: “Jay Douglas finally gets his flowers!”
Exclaim: « An entertaining celebration of one of the key architects of the Toronto sound”
JAZZ FM: « Beloved Toronto music legend Jay Douglas is finally getting his flowers! Proud to see his story come to life through this film!”
Reggae North: “A landmark event in Canadian music history!”
Sly Dunbar: “Jay is the Lou Rawls of Jamaican music”
Press Kit & Still Photos Trailer
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Kamloops Teenage Blues Phenom Jake Soberlak Releases Debut Single ‘You Gotta Leave’ Ahead of September Album ‘I’m In Trouble’
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At 17-years-old, Jake Soberlak of Kamloops, British Columbia plays the blues with the authority of someone who has lived inside the music for half a century. Today, the young guitarist, singer and harmonica player shares his debut single « You Gotta Leave, » the first taste of his forthcoming album ‘I’m In Trouble’, arriving September 11, 2026. The song announces the arrival of one of the most compelling young voices working in Canadian blues today.
Soberlak’s path into the blues began with a discovery that reached across generations. Digging through a collection of his grandfather’s old records brought over from England, he found something scratchy, raw and utterly alive that grabbed hold and never let go. He followed the threads the way devoted blues listeners always have, one name leading to another, one record to the next, building a deep self-education in a tradition more than a century old. B.B. King, Peter Green and Eric Clapton became his teachers. He picked up guitar at thirteen and harmonica at fourteen, and word soon spread through Kamloops that something special was happening.
« You Gotta Leave » is an original Soberlak composition, and its origin offers a window into how completely he has absorbed the form. He wrote the song after hearing « Wine, Whiskey and Women » by Papa Lightfoot, a recording where the vocal sounds as though it is being sung straight through the harmonica microphone. Soberlak set out to write something where he could capture that very effect, channeling a vintage technique into a fresh new song. The result swaggers with confidence, anchored by a piano solo that he counts among his favourite moments on the entire record.
The lyrics carry the plainspoken directness that defines the best of the genre. « You gotta leave now babe go away from my door, » Soberlak sings, « it’s over now baby I don’t want you around no more. » There is a knowing assurance in lines like « won’t you tell me where you learned to be so cold, » delivered by a young artist who understands that the blues was always about connecting to something real and giving it your own honest take.
The single arrives from sessions that honour the way the great records were made. Soberlak cut his debut album at Afterlife Studios in Vancouver with producer and drummer Leon Power, known for his work with City and Colour and Frazey Ford. Power assembled a seasoned band for the dates, with Darren Parris on bass, the acclaimed Darryl Havers on piano and John Raham engineering. Every track went down live off the floor across two days, four musicians playing together in a room, capturing the spontaneity and feeling that the form demands.
For a teenager recording his first album alongside players of that caliber, the experience proved joyful and affirming. « They’re all great people and great musicians, and it was so much fun, » Soberlak says. He approaches the music with a humility that runs deeper than his years. « Not all blues songs are sad, » he explains. « It’s really a reflection of life. I like finding songs from the 30s, 40s or 50s, these gems that I really connect with, and I enjoy giving them my own take once I’ve learned them. »
Soberlak has been building his live reputation across Kamloops and the surrounding region one room at a time, and his goals remain refreshingly uncomplicated. « I just want to be playing music and gigging, » he says. « That’s all I want to do. » That clarity of purpose runs through every note of « You Gotta Leave » and points toward a debut album that introduces a genuine old soul finding his voice.
Jake Soberlak performs live this summer:
July 24 to 26 — Salmon Arm Roots & Blues Festival
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Eric Alper
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Wet’suwet’en Tsimshian Alt-Rock Singer-Songwriter Mercedes Brown Releases Debut Album ‘Light the Fire’
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Red Deer, Alberta singer-songwriter Mercedes Brown releases her debut album, ‘Light the Fire,’ out now on all platforms. The Wet’suwet’en Tsimshian artist has already begun turning heads with lead single « Playing With Fire, » and new single, “So What?,” a churning, alt-rock declaration that picked up early support from outlets including Tinnitist, Cashbox Canada, Radio and Music and Record World International, along with attention from the production crew of CBS’s Tracker after catching Brown’s performance at an open mic in Ucluelet, BC.
« Playing With Fire » began, fittingly, as a school poetry assignment, a free verse exercise that gave Brown a way to write toward control at a time when she needed it most. Recorded at Ukee Sound Studios in Ucluelet with producer Brent Halfyard, who also contributes bass and guitar, the track is joined by guitarists Peter Esquivel and Jon Roper and drummer Timmy Proznick, with mixing and mastering by Chris Potter. What started as a rough bedroom recording grew into a fully realized studio track that keeps every bit of its original nerve intact.
The album’s second single is « So What?” and marks a lighter, more carefree moment on ‘Light the Fire,’ capturing Brown’s decision to let go of perfectionism and embrace life’s imperfections with humour and optimism. She has cited Aurora’s « Runaway » as a touchstone for its carefree spirit, and her label, Small Frog Records, identified it early as a natural warm weather single meant to sit alongside its more intense counterpart rather than compete with it. The singalong-ready track reframes everyday setbacks with lines like « So what if life hands you lemons / So what if it’s a cloudy day, » before delivering its playful punchline: « When life hands you lemons / Make orange juice. » Rather than dwelling on what goes wrong, the song celebrates resilience, encouraging listeners to find joy, adapt and keep moving forward.
“No Tomorrow” is track two on the album. Brown explains that it came about after she regained passion in life. It has a deeper meaning to her now after some family members passed away in December 2025 and she dedicated the song to them. She continues, “It really means that tomorrow isn’t promised and shouldn’t be taken for granted. It is important to value what you have and the people around you.”
‘Light the Fire’ closes with « Kwin nedïhk’ayh, (Home Awaits You)” a track co-written with her aunt and uncle Denise and Brent Halfyard that weaves Wet’suwet’en language throughout. The song translates to ‘Light the Fire’ which gives the album its title, and stands as the record’s clearest expression of Brown’s connection to her heritage and to the family members who have shaped her as an artist.
Throughout the album, Brown draws on a period of real personal growth, crediting her faith and her family, particularly her aunt and uncle, with helping her move from writing out of old wounds to writing from a place of healing. The album’s release lands during Men’s Mental Health Month, a timing Brown has called a happy coincidence given how directly the songs speak to reaching and moving past a breaking point.
With ‘Light the Fire’ now available, Brown has described the album as a way of sealing off a season of her life, closing the door on the songs that helped launch her career as a singer songwriter. She’s proven she has something to say and the world is listening.
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Montuno Cubano Releases « Baila Mi Guaracha, » a Global Invitation to Dance
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Prince Edward Island based Latin outfit Montuno Cubano releases its new single « Baila Mi Guaracha » out now, ahead of a summer run of shows that includes headline appearances at Stratford Summer Music and Toronto’s Harbourfront Centre. Led by Santiago de Cuba born songwriter, singer and requinto player Jorge Luis Peña Acosta, the track draws on the vibrant guaracha tradition, a style built for infectious rhythm, spirited vocals, and an irresistible pull toward the dance floor.
The song’s path mirrors Peña’s own journey across borders. Originally written while he was performing in Spain, « Baila Mi Guaracha » took on new resonance once he settled in Canada, prompting him to revisit and rerecord it for a wider, more connected world. « The world is changing, so I changed the song and recorded it again to engage people living in today’s world, » Peña says. The result reframes what began as a regional dance tune into something closer to a global musical invitation, built around the idea that once the music starts, people from every background find the same rhythm.
That international spirit deepened in the studio. Recording at Crabbe Road Productions in Prince Edward Island, producer Sergey Varlamov helped shape new ways to draw audiences directly into the song, adding an enthusiastic call and response shout of « ¡Guaracha! » designed to unite crowds at festivals and dance halls. Varlamov and Peña also wove the names of different countries into the performance, reinforcing the song’s underlying message that music moves past language, geography, and culture.
For Peña, that message carries personal weight. « People are always asking me about my family in Cuba and how they are doing, » he explains. « Music and dance have always helped people through difficult times. That is true in Cuba, and it is true everywhere. » It is a philosophy he distills into a simple, favourite turn of phrase, playing on the shared root of the English and Spanish words for optimism: no matter what is happening in the world, he says, he chooses optimismo over pesimismo.
« Baila Mi Guaracha » arrives on the heels of real momentum for the project. Montuno Cubano’s debut album, ‘Frágil de Cristal,’ released in October 2025, earned coverage from outlets including Tinnitist, Cashbox Canada, Canadian Beats and FindYourSounds, introducing audiences to a sound built around the close sibling harmonies of Jorge and his brother, who have performed together for twenty-five years as Hermanos Peña. On « Baila Mi Guaracha, » every instrument was performed by Peña and producer Sergey Varlamov, a tight two-person collaboration that shaped the track from the ground up.
Peña grew up on a coffee plantation in the mountains outside Santiago de Cuba, a fitting origin for an artist whose band takes its name from the montuno, the fast, bold, largely improvised closing section of a Cuban son. Now a Permanent Resident of Canada based in Prince Edward Island, he has built Montuno Cubano into a genuine bridge between his Cuban roots and his Maritime home, blending salsa, bolero son, guaracha and more into a repertoire that feels equally rooted and outward looking.
At its heart, « Baila Mi Guaracha » is about more than getting people on their feet. « If the song gets people dancing and smiling, and they know people in other countries are enjoying that same positive experience, then it has done exactly what I hoped it would do, » Peña says. « We want to live in a happy world. »
Tour Dates:
July 11, Stratford Summer Music, Music Barge, Stratford, ON
July 12, Summer Music in the Garden, Harbourfront Centre, Toronto, ON
July 14, Drom Taberna, Queen West, Toronto, ON
July 21, New Glasgow Resort, New Glasgow, PEI
July 27, Kensington Rail Station, Kensington, PEI
September 2, « Montuno Cubano: Bringing the Heat of Latin Music, » The Guild, Charlottetown, PEI
September 11, « The Taste of Tantramar, » Levee on the Lake, Sussex, NB
October 10, « Montuno Cubano: Cuban Soul, Maritime Spirit, » Scott MacAulay Theatre, College of Piping, Summerside, PEI
For more information, please contact:
Eric Alper
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London, ON Singer-Songwriter Stephen Ingram Releases « Sour Candy, » First Single From Upcoming Album ‘Silly Things’
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London, Ontario singer-songwriter Stephen Ingram releases « Sour Candy » out now, the first single from his sophomore album, ‘Silly Things,’ arriving September 25. The track marks a warm, self-aware entry point into a record that finds Ingram examining the space between who he used to be and who he has become, all set against the specific backdrop of Southwestern Ontario.
« Sour Candy » grew out of Ingram’s move from his twenties into his thirties, and the realisation that finding himself meant letting go of the instinct to please everyone around him. Rather than framing that shift as a loss, the song treats it as an essential trade, developing a firmer sense of self to reach the sweeter parts of life waiting on the other side. At its core, like much of Ingram’s catalogue, it doubles as a love song for his wife, tracing how staying true to himself has only brought the two of them closer.
That balance runs through the entire album. Ingram began writing ‘Silly Things’ shortly after receiving an ADHD diagnosis, using the songs to explore how it shapes his daily life and to revisit past relationships and events with fresh understanding. Rather than dwelling on stigma, Ingram set out to celebrate the creativity and momentum his ADHD brings him alongside its real challenges, giving the record a grounded, hopeful throughline even as individual songs sit with conflict or uncertainty before resolving it.
« Sour Candy » uses the bittersweet metaphor of its title to capture the growing pains of adulthood, trading youthful people-pleasing for the confidence that comes with knowing who you are. Through witty, self-deprecating lyrics like « Used to be so sweet ’til I turned sour » and the playful refrain « Sour candy, taste it on me, » Stephen Ingram reflects on aging, anxiety, changing priorities and learning to embrace imperfections, ultimately revealing that becoming a little « sour » has made room for healthier relationships, deeper self-acceptance and a love that feels more genuine than ever before.
Written and recorded entirely in London, Ontario, ‘Silly Things’ leans further into folk textures than Ingram’s 2023 debut, ‘Fridge Magnet Symphony,’ which introduced his storytelling-forward songwriting and earned him an early feature with Canadian Beats Media. For the follow up, Ingram assembled an all-star ensemble of fellow London musicians, including cellist Anna Grigg, violinist and mandolin player Jesse Grandmont, guitarist Peter Karle, bassist Aidan Wasse and percussionist Mark Swan, giving the largely acoustic arrangements room to breathe. The album was co-produced by Ingram and Dean Nelson, mixed by Nelson and mastered by Kristian Montano.
A Hamilton native who moved to London over a decade ago to study at Western University’s Don Wright Faculty of Music, Ingram found his way from music into live theatre, where he has made his career for the last decade. Because of this long-standing connection to live theatre, he brings a strong instinct for narrative to everything he writes, drawing comparisons to Canadian songwriting touchstones including Joni Mitchell, Gordon Lightfoot and Joel Plaskett. That local specificity, right down to references scattered throughout the record, gives ‘Silly Things’ a strong sense of place even as its themes of growth and self-acceptance reach well beyond Southwestern Ontario.
With « Sour Candy » now out and ‘Silly Things’ arriving in September, Ingram brings the material to audiences across Ontario throughout the summer, building toward an album release show in London this fall.
Tour Dates:
July 28, The Aeolian Hall, London, ON
July 31, The Bunker, Stratford, ON
August 21, Cornerstone Cafe, Guelph, ON
August 28, Burdock Brewing, Toronto, ON
September 26, XUUX Artists, London, ON
For more information, please contact:
Eric Alper
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Montréal Alt-Rock Singer-Songwriter Silka Weil Releases Sophomore EP ‘Midnight Blue’
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Montréal singer-songwriter Silka Weil releases her long-anticipated sophomore EP, ‘Midnight Blue,’ out now on all platforms. The Musi-Flo Artist of the Year follows her celebrated 2023 debut with a record that pushes further into both her rock edged confidence and her most intimate songwriting yet, built around three core threads that run through every track: passion, intimacy, and commitment.
The EP’s rollout began with « Make Me Lose Control, » a charged, confrontational single born from Weil’s desire to write something electrifying for the stage. The track pairs rock heavy verses and chorus with a softer, more intimate bridge, a contrast Weil has called one of the most rewarding parts of building the song. Recorded at Studio de la Ruelle with longtime collaborator Jean-Sébastien Brault-Labbé, the track carries the energy of its own creation, with Weil finishing the third verse on the spot in the studio and a late decision to swap in live drums after the bridge giving the recording a final surge of physicality.
Where « Make Me Lose Control » leans into tension, second single « Forever » settles into ease and security. Written in the lead up to Weil’s 2023 wedding, the song draws on imagery from the honeymoon she and her partner were planning at the time, using travel as a way of contrasting fleeting highs with lasting commitment. Even at its lightest, the song acknowledges the weight of what came before it, framing the relationship it celebrates as a steady anchor rather than a temporary escape.
The EP’s title track, « Midnight Blue, » serves as its emotional centrepiece, using rich maritime imagery to explore the lingering impact of betrayal, memory, and forgiveness. Through evocative lyrics about shipwrecks, open water, and the recurring refrain « out in the midnight blue, » Silka Weil reflects on the ways people change after life-altering mistakes, asking difficult questions without seeking easy answers. Rather than dwelling on blame, the song traces a path from heartbreak toward compassion, recognizing that while time may soften old wounds, the memories remain, ultimately framing forgiveness not as forgetting, but as choosing to move forward together.
Together, the EP’s songs resist easy categorisation as simply happy or heartbroken, instead capturing love as something lived in both loud and quiet moments, reached for equally in light and dark times, a duality that gives ‘Midnight Blue’ its name. Weil wrote every song on the EP herself, with Brault-Labbé handling arrangements, instrumentation, production, mixing and mastering at Studio de la Ruelle, a partnership that has become central to her sound.
Since her 2023 debut, Weil has built a genuine international footprint, earning Musi-Flo’s Artist of the Year honour, a July 2025 cover feature with radiodowntown.ca, a guest appearance on The Perfect Note with John K, and a live interview with Mexico based media outlet Ella Suena. Her music, often compared to PJ Harvey, Norah Jones, Alanis Morissette and Lana Del Rey, has earned her radio play and live audiences across Canada in Banff, Kingston and Montréal, as well as abroad in Newcastle upon Tyne, England.
With ‘Midnight Blue’ now available, Silka Weil delivers the fullest picture yet of an artist equally comfortable in confrontation and tenderness, offering listeners a record built on the belief that real love, like real forgiveness, rarely arrives in just one shade.
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Alan Gerber, Founding Member of Rhinoceros, Releases New Single « Put Back My Heart » From New Album ‘The Well’
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Alan Gerber, the Chicago-born, Val-David, Quebec-based singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and founding member of late-1960s Elektra Records supergroup Rhinoceros, releases his irresistible new single « Put Back My Heart » today, the opening track from his deeply personal new album ‘The Well,’ out now. A swaggering, blues-drenched soul romp co-written with his son Eli Gerber and produced by the two of them together, « Put Back My Heart » announces the album with exactly the kind of high-energy, good-humoured, emotionally honest songwriting that has made Alan Gerber one of the most beloved live performers in Canada and beyond for more than five decades.
The song moves with the effortless confidence of a man who has spent a lifetime inside the blues. « Fell for you like a baby grand from a tower, » Gerber sings with a grin you can hear, before the chorus lands its perfectly timed demand: « Put back, put back my heart, you stole it / Put back, put back my heart, steam rolled it. » It is a song that wears its heartbreak lightly and its joy loudly, a signature Gerber combination that has earned him a devoted following from Miramichi to Montreal and far beyond. Steven Van Zandt, guitarist for Bruce Springsteen and host of Little Steven’s Underground Garage, previously selected Gerber’s « Four Riders » as the Coolest Song in the World, a distinction that will surprise no one who has heard what Gerber does with a room.
‘The Well’ is a record that distills a lifetime of blues, soul, folk, and rock into a journey from gritty R&B grooves to poetic ballads and adventurous, genre-bending instrumentals. The album carries particular emotional weight as the last project Gerber was able to complete with his writing collaborator of nearly 50 years, Rolf Kempf, who passed away before its release. Kempf was celebrated beyond their partnership for writing « Hello Hurray, » which became a major hit for Alice Cooper, and his presence runs deep through the record. The album also reunited Gerber with his old Rhinoceros bandmate, the extraordinary guitarist Danny Weis, whose playing appears on eight of the album’s tracks, alongside Gaston Gagnon of Quebec legends Garolou, harmonica player James Tyrone Zeller, and a full ensemble of longtime collaborators mixed at Groove Paradise Studio with mixing engineer Nicolas Maranda and mastered by Harris Newman at Grey Market Mastering.
Family is at the heart of ‘The Well’ in every sense. Gerber’s son Eli plays guitars and co-produces throughout, while his daughter Hannah contributes lead and background vocals, and his wife Robin, a ceramic artist, created the bowl photographed for the album cover. He also wrote the song, Time Is My Treasure, from a poem written by his sister, Barbara Ford.
That circle of creativity reflects the life Gerber has built across more than three decades in the Laurentians, far from the Laurel Canyon living rooms and Elektra Records pressures of his early career, but every bit as rich with music, community, and meaning. Before any of that, there was Chicago, a family that had fled the pogroms of Eastern Europe, a mother’s crimson fingernails on a Wurlitzer baby grand, and blues piano sessions with his uncles that set the course for everything that followed.
Over the years Gerber has shared the stage with Bob Dylan, B.B. King, Van Morrison, Lou Reed, Janis Joplin, John Lee Hooker, and Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee, among many others, and has performed at the Montreal Jazz Festival, Ottawa Bluesfest, and the Carcassonne Music Festival in France. Terry Whalen, Artistic Director of Whalen’s Barn Concert Series in Miramichi, has written that within the first 30 seconds of a live Alan Gerber show the audience is hooked, completely, calling him a seasoned pro and a master-class of how to take years of honing your craft and a million plus miles of live performances to reach this level. ‘The Well’ is the fullest expression yet of what those miles have made him.
TOUR DATES
Aug 5 — Val-David, QC — 1001 Pots
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a Punk-Pop Pride Anthem About the Shirt You’d Be Buried In and the Love You’d Never Want Back
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Toronto-based singer, songwriter, and storyteller Elina Filice releases her joyful, life-affirming new single « Bury Me » today, a Canadiana-soaked punk-pop anthem that announces itself immediately as one of the most infectious and emotionally generous songs of her career. Co-produced by Filice and Kevin Brennan and released on her own Red Vine Records, the track is a love song built around a Molson Canadian t-shirt, a running joke, and the quietly astonishing realisation that you have built a life with someone you never want to give back. It is the kind of song that sneaks up on you, arriving as a laugh and staying as something much deeper and more lasting.
The song began, as Filice tells it, with a very real dispute. An old t-shirt, stolen from a past love, became a years-long argument about who it truly belonged to, until one night her partner settled it with a line that stopped everything: if I die tonight, they’ll have to bury me in this shirt, and then you’re never gonna get it back. That line, and the whole ordinary extraordinary universe it opened up, became « Bury Me. » As Filice has described it, the song is about the seemingly ordinary artefacts that narrate our lives, the almost accidental life you build with someone you love, sharing your hopes, dreams, and fears. The chorus captures it with the kind of plainspoken clarity that great pop songs make look easy: « Bury me in this / Shirt that you got from The Beer Store / If I die tonight, you’re never gonna get it back. »
By the song’s second chorus the whole emotional architecture has shifted, the joke becoming a vow, the borrowed shirt becoming something sacred. « I never thought I’d love with my eyes so open wide, » Filice sings, before landing on the line that gives the whole song its true weight: « ‘Cuz I gotta see what she looks like at 65. » It is the kind of lyric that earns its place by being entirely, unmistakably true. Produced alongside Brennan with drums by Erik Thorkildsen and bass by Michael Myszkowski, the track moves with the energy of a Pride anthem and the tenderness of something far more private, a song that is equal parts Canadiana singalong and queer love letter, and a strong contender for the gay song of the summer.
Filice has been building toward this moment across a body of work that has earned consistent critical acclaim on multiple continents. Growing up in Singapore before relocating to Canada for university and then to Dublin, where she founded Red Vine Records and performed professionally across Ireland and Europe, she developed a singular artistic voice rooted in blues and spoken word but restless enough to range across folk, hip-hop, pop, rock, and back again. Her 2020 singles ‘Thinking of You’ and ‘Lying’ earned widespread critical praise and landed on official Spotify Editorial playlists, with Hot Press declaring her one of the most thrilling talents on the Irish scene and Nialler9 praising her bright spoken-word style that heightens the jazz-blues pop song’s charm. Her cover of Chance the Rapper’s ‘First World Problems,’ which she rewrote entirely in her own voice, demonstrated a lyrical confidence and range that few artists at any stage of a career can match, and her sophomore E P, released in May 2021, deepened that reputation considerably further.
Now back in Toronto and operating at the full breadth of her considerable abilities, Filice is also the founder of Drop Rocket, a music marketing startup that has built genuine momentum as innovative project management software empowering independent artists to release music smarter and more effectively. That entrepreneurial drive is entirely of a piece with the artistic independence that has defined her career from the beginning, and « Bury Me » is its most fully realised musical expression yet. A fierce advocate for queer visibility who regards music as a powerful tool for the queer community, Filice arrives this Pride season with a song that earns its place in that tradition not through statement but through pure, irresistible feeling. Her single release show takes place June 2 alongside Maiasha as part of a Queer Music Pride kick-off event, tickets available at eventbrite.ca.
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Contemporary Classical: Award-Winning Game Composer Dren McDonald Releases « Fading » Featuring Sophia James From Upcoming ‘Vox Pterous’ Album
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San Francisco Bay Area composer, producer, and musician Dren McDonald announces Vox Pterous (Appearing Records), a stunning new album due July 31, 2026 on which he takes the instrumental architecture of his celebrated 2023 record Pterous and opens it up entirely, inviting a remarkable ensemble of vocalists into those layered, sonic worlds to create something wholly new. The result is one of the most emotionally resonant records of his career that sits at a unique intersection of contemporary classical composition, songwriting, and the warmth of the human voice.
Pterous, (latin for ‘with wings’) the record from which Vox Pterous grows, was itself an act of devotion, built into structures McDonald described as guitar orchestras: layers upon layers of single-note phrases recorded over and over on different instruments from different distances. Each song was dedicated to a different person he had lost within a three-year span. As he wrote at the time of those sessions, “sometimes the only way to work through grief like that is to make something.” WVIA heard in those pieces “a pleasing journey into the kind of minimalist musical world pioneered by people like Steve Reich, with the kind of obsessive layering of instrumental sounds that lends a distinctive texture to the work.” With Vox Pterous, McDonald returned to those same pieces and discovered there was still more to say, beginning with an experiment that would unlock the entire project.
That experiment was « Fading, » the album’s sixth track, recorded with vocalist Sophia James, whose song « Somebody New » has earned over 25 million streams on Spotify and whose recent TikTok trend « Group 7 » brought her to a vast new audience. McDonald knew James through her grandfather, Chuck Wackerman, his high school jazz band teacher, and understood that she possessed both the musicality and the emotional depth to carry a vocal performance capable of elevating the piece beyond its instrumental origins. The strength of her performance gave McDonald the confidence to arrange the remaining songs and set out in search of the remarkable group of collaborators who would complete the album.
That search became its own essential part of the creative process, a series of loose connections, and cold calls into the void, combined with the slow process of composing each lyric and melody before anything was sent to a vocalist. The ensemble McDonald assembled is a wide assortment of musicians hailing from their own unique musical corners: Amelie Anna (Death Stranding 2 Soundtrack) appears on three tracks, Carla Kihlstedt, whose work with Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, Tin Hat Trio and Tom Waits has long placed her among the most distinctive voices in contemporary experimental music, is featured on « Resting of Light. » Paula Frazer (Tarnation) lends her unmistakable presence to « Aviation Eyes » alongside artist, Girl Swallows Nightingale, and Lily Bloom and Daria Novo share the luminous « She’s The Sky. » The album was produced, engineered, and mixed by McDonald himself, with additi onal mixing from Bryan Jerden on two tracks, stereo mastering by Piper Payne, and artwork by Christine MacTernan. The album is also available in Atmos on platforms that support immersive music.
McDonald’s credentials as one of the most versatile and widely heard composers working in immersive and interactive media today. His game credits include Counter-Strike: Global Offensive/2 for Valve, Ghost Recon Commander for Ubisoft, and the award-winning indie title Gathering Sky for Pontoco, which earned him three Game Audio Network Guild Awards in 2016 including Best Indie Game Audio. His music has been heard in Stranger Things VR for Netflix/Tender Claws, VR animated films such as Mescaform Hill: The Missing Five (Tribeca 2022), and Perennials (Venice Film Festival in 2023).
His solo catalogue is equally distinguished, encompassing The String Arcade (2014), which won a GANG Award for Best Cover/Remix, his collaboration project, polyheDren, (Psychic, 2022), which featured collaborations with Josh Freese (Foo Fighters/NIN), Nels Cline (Wilco), The Residents, and Iva Bittová (Nonesuch), and Oceanic (2024) on Appearing Records, which The Answer Is In The Beat likened to “an underwater equivalent of Daniel Lanois’ spacious Americana.”
The LA Times has written that “McDonald offers symbolic and metaphoric dreamscapes”, and Electronica UK noted “his approach to creating immersive auditory experiences offers listeners a rich, three-dimensional sound journey.”
With Vox Pterous, McDonald has created something that honours its origins in loss while reaching toward something generous, and alive. The lyrics of « Anchors Up, » the album’s opening track, set the tone with quiet, circling precision: « Drawing little circles, drawing little circles rise and fall / Pulling in the anchor, pulling up and anchors away. » It is music made for listening deeply, from a composer who has spent a career proving that the most immersive sonic experiences are built not from spectacle but from patience, accumulation, and care.
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Singer-Songwriter Mercedes Brown ReleasesDebut Single « Playing With Fire »
Red Deer Artist Channels Freedom, Resilience, and Raw Honesty Into Her Most Visceral Song Yet, Ahead of Debut Album ‘Light The Fire’
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Red Deer, Alberta — Mercedes Brown, the Wet’suwet’en Tsimshian singer-songwriter whose sound reaches back to a time when rock music was built on grit and truth, releases her debut single “Playing With Fire” out now on all major platforms. The track arrives ahead of her debut album ‘Light The Fire,’ due June 19, 2026, on Ukee Sound Records, and it announces an artist of rare instinct and intention: a young writer who arrived at this song not through calculation, but through the kind of unguarded honesty that makes rock music matter.
“Playing With Fire” is the kind of debut that leaves no ambiguity about who Mercedes Brown is or what she is here to say. Built on a churning alt-rock foundation and driven by a vocal performance that is at once restrained and explosive, the song traces the edge between control and collapse with unsettling clarity. Brown wrote it as a poem first, free verse by design, a form with no rules, and that spirit carries into the song itself. The result is something that feels both structurally tight and emotionally boundless. When she sings “I walk down the line / Stare death right in the eye / They push me right down / I’m holding on by just a thread,” there is nothing performative about it. And in the chorus, the image crystallises with the precision of the best rock writing: “The flame is taking and it’s breaking all I have / The flame is taking and it’s breaking all I am.”
The song’s origin is as genuine as its execution. Brown was playing with matches and a lighter with her cousins when she made an offhand joke that it would make a “lit” song. The idea sat with her for months. When a school poetry assignment turned into an exercise in writing about wanting control over her own life and a way through depression, the two threads came together. “I wrote a poem at school and thought it needed to be more me,” she says. “Music has always been a way of self-expression to me.” What began in her bedroom as a rough recording became, with the guidance of her uncle and producer Brent Halfyard, a fully realised studio track that holds every bit of the raw energy it started with. The song is, in her words, about freedom, testing limits, and pushing boundaries while battling depression. It carries that weight without ever becoming heavy-handed, which is the mark of a songwriter who trusts the material.
Recorded at Ukee Sound in Ucluelet, BC, “Playing With Fire” is produced by Halfyard, who also plays bass and guitars on the track alongside guitarists Peter Esquivel and Jon Roper, with Timmy Proznickon drums. Mixing and mastering were handled by Chris Potter. The production is deliberate and assured, leaning into the analogue warmth and textural grit that Brown’s songwriting demands, and giving her vocals the space to move between vulnerability and defiance without losing either. It is a sound that references the alt-rock era Brown grew up loving without being beholden to it: music that means something, made by people who understand tha t distinction.
Mercedes Brown is Tsayu (beaver clan), from the Wet’suwet’en and Tsimshian Nation, and her identity as an Indigenous artist from Red Deer, Alberta, informs not just who she is but how she writes. Her father’s family is from Witset, and her family connection to Wet’suwet’en language and culture runs through her music as both a grounding and a source of creative energy. She counts the Smashing Pumpkins among her deepest influences; a band her father introduced her to and whose commitment to grit and thoughtful lyricism she carries forward in her own voice. The “Mercedes Brown Sound,” as she describes it, is a throwback to a time when music mattered more than image. On the evidence of “Playing With Fire,” that description lands with complete accuracy.
With ‘Light The Fire’ arriving June 19, 2026, “Playing With Fire” is the opening declaration of an artist ready to be heard. Mercedes Brown performs as a solo artist, in duo configurations, and with her full band featuring Ezra Beaton on guitar and vocals, Brent Halfyard on bass and vocals, and Jim Ljungh on drums.
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writing Competition Honouree Henry Lees Launches a Joyous Indie Pop Rocket with « Into Your Orbit »
Award-winning Canadian singer-songwriter explores new frontiers with Icelandic Producer/Composer Frosti Jónsson for first time collaboration honoured by the International Songwriting Competition
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TORONTO – (Date) The recent Artemis II lunar fly-by captured global fascination and reignited the spirit of exploration in many of us. Watching the intrepid crew – including Col. Jeremy Hansen, the first Canadian to travel to the vicinity of the moon – carry out their mission and land safely back home was an awe-inspiring adventure with the most satisfying ending. Fueled by that spirit of exploration, award-winning Canadian singer-songwriter Henry Lees has since been counting down to launch day for his cinematic, hook-powered new single, “Into Your Orbit”.
“Into Your Orbit” is an uplifting, driving pop anthem that celebrates the undeniable attraction of first love and how good it felt, and still feels, to be near that special person.
“Love has its own gravitational pull,” notes Lees, “especially that world-changing first time you fall in love with someone. For a lot of us, that first love carries on for a lifetime because it feels that strong and right – like being the first person to discover something, or someone, uniquely precious and beautiful.”
But now I float above your surface
And I still feel that sweet, familiar pull
Into your orbit
“Into Your Orbit” has already received pre-release industry accolades as a semi-finalist in the AAA category in 2025 for the prestigious annual International Songwriting Competition, Lees’ fifth ISC honour since 2021. The song is also a selected addition to the exclusive library of L.A.-based Imaginary Friends Music Partners, an agency that has placed music in popular programs such as The Young and The Restless, Shameless and America’s Funniest Home Videos.
“Into Your Orbit” is the magical result of a first time collaboration between Lees and notable Icelandic producer/composer, Frosti Jónsson. With waves of synths, piano and electric guitar gliding over a driving beat with percussion accents like starbursts supporting Lees’ alternatively reflective and soaring vocals, the track is an exciting journey into new sonic realms for the Toronto-based singer-songwriter.
“Co-writing with Henry was a really smooth and fun creative process,” recalls Jónsson. “I also love challenging my collaborators and pushing them out of their comfort zone; Henry can verify this. But I’m really happy with the outcome.”
“I hadn’t ventured very far in the direction of electronic music before,” offers Lees, “but from the initial co-writing session to the final mix, I marveled at Frosti’s amazing creativity and storytelling ability using elements from both the electronic and organic music worlds.”
Jónsson, now based in Tampa, Florida, has placed his solo music and other collaborations in many productions including Netflix’s Temptation Island, a variety of HGTV home renovation series, and true crime series featured on Peacock, Amazon Prime, Tubi and elsewhere. Jónsson also releases his own electronic instrumental music as Bistro Boy and performs live internationally.
“Frosti’s music is deliciously atmospheric and evocative. He can expertly set a scene and mood before anyone would sing a word,” says Lees. “I am very intrigued and excited about what we’ve created and continue to create together.”
“When I write and produce I let emotions lead the way, trusting the process and approaching it with an open mind,” explains Jónsson. “When Henry shared his initial ideas and the lyrical theme with me everything started to come together rather quickly. The outcome is this uplifting, almost anthemic song that hopefully captures the exhilarating feeling of Henry’s lyrics about first love and the nostalgic memories of it.”
“Into Your Orbit” is Lees’ fifth single and follows “Smoke”, a collaboration with Canadian artist and producer-on-the-rise, Sean Thomas (Joey McIntyre, Debbie Gibson, New Edition). “Smoke” was a semi-finalist in the 2025 Unsigned Only music competition and has enjoyed airplay on college and community radio across Canada and internationally in Europe and the UK, Mexico and South America. Prior to “Smoke”, “Free This Love”, another collaboration with Thomas, gathered five song competition honours including a Top 10 Finalist award from the 27th USA Songwriting Competition.
In 2022, Lees celebrated his first number ones as a songwriter when triple Maple Blues Award nominee Chris Antonik’s album « Morningstar » hit #1 for two weeks on Roots Music Report’s Top 50 Canada Albums Chart, with « Back to the Good » — one of six songs Lees co-wrote with Antonik — also hitting #1 on the RMR. He also released « Walking With Fear », a personal song supporting those dealing with anxiety disorders, co-written with multi-award-winning singer-songwriter David Leask and produced by Leask with JUNO winner Steve Dawson and The Henhouse Express. The single was released in partnership with Anxiety Canada in support of Action Anxiety Day.
More music is always on the way from Lees, with three more singles and a full EP in the works for 2026 – 27.
In the meantime, “Into Your Orbit” is rocketing into the digi-verse with the hope its reach will be out of this world.
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Dahlia Wakefield Ignites Her Boldest Chapter Yet With Anthemic New Single « Light of the Phoenix »
Powerhouse Edmonton Singer-Songwriter Delivers Her Most Personal and Triumphant Work to Date
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Edmonton, Alberta — Dahlia Wakefield, one of Western Canada’s most dynamic and versatile singer-songwriters, releases her soaring new single “Light of the Phoenix” on all major streaming platforms worldwide. The track is the fourth and most anticipated single from her forthcoming rock album ‘Phoenix Rising,’ scheduled for a full release in October 2026 via Skyrocket Records, and it arrives as a defining statement of resilience, self-reclamation, and creative momentum from an artist who has been building toward this moment for two decades.
From its first electrifying chord to its final sustained cry of freedom, “Light of the Phoenix” is a powerhouse rock anthem built for anyone who has ever chosen themselves over the weight of a toxic situation. Dahlia’s vocals ride the song’s surging dynamics with the precision of a seasoned performer and the raw authenticity of someone who has lived every word. The chorus lands with the force of a rallying cry: “By the light of the phoenix / I will find my way / I will rise above / And I will be okay.” And in a standout moment mid-song, she delivers one of the album’s most vivid lines with fearless conviction: “All the pain you caused just fueled the fire / You tried to ruin me but burning bright’s my best attire.” It is writing that radiates earned wisdom, and Wakefield delivers it with every ounce of her remarkable range.
The story behind “Light of the Phoenix” is as compelling as the song itself. Written in July 2023 in a single inspired burst of honesty between Wakefield and co-writer and musical partner Kevin Frey, the song grew out of a deeply personal conversation and a chord progression that instantly clicked. “Writing it was incredibly cathartic — it felt like shedding weight and stepping into clarity,” says Wakefield. “It was one of those rare writing experiences that felt like a huge release — raw, emotional and deeply healing. The song poured out of us.” Frey contributed the music while Wakefield penned the lyrics, a collaboration that also yielded “Still Waters,” which earned a 2024 Josie Award nomination from Nashville. That creative partnership is woven through nearly every track on ‘Phoenix Rising,’ making the album one of the most cohesive and personally resonant works of Wakefield’s career.
Produced, mixed, and mastered by Sandro Dominelli at Dominelli Studios in St. Albert, Alberta, “Light of the Phoenix” showcases a recording process as layered and intentional as the song’s message. The track features lead guitarist Alan Tymofichuk, a musical collaborator of Wakefield’s since 2000; rhythm guitarist Kevin Frey; bassist Jeff Godley; and drummer Dennis Boisvert, with Wakefield herself on keyboards in addition to lead and background vocals. The song went through a rich evolution from its initial phone-demo recording in July 2023, through a first studio session in Edmonton, to its final incarnation at Dominelli Studios, where Wakefield previously recorded her acclaimed singles “Still Waters” and “Dreams of Yesterday.” Wakefield is also quick to note with a laugh that the record was made entirely without the use of artificial intelligence, a testament to t he irreplaceable value of genuine human artistry and real-room chemistry between musicians.
Beyond its musical impact, “Light of the Phoenix” carries a broader cultural significance that Wakefield is channelling into meaningful action. The song’s unflinching themes of reclaiming identity and walking away from narcissistic abuse have led her to partner with WIN House in Edmonton, a society dedicated to supporting survivors of domestic violence. “Like the phoenix, the song is about rising from the ashes of pain and confusion into finding strength, clarity and self-worth again — reclaiming your voice and choosing yourself,” Wakefield explains. “I hope it empowers anyone in a toxic situation to find the strength to walk away and take back their power.” In an era when music that speaks truthfully about emotional survival resonates deeply with audiences worldwide, “Light of the Phoenix” arrives as both a personal triumph and a communal anthem.
The single is accompanied by a music video shot in the striking desert landscape of Ashcroft, British Columbia in August 2025, with video footage captured by Robin Matkea. The visuals bring an expansive, sun-scorched grandeur to the song’s themes of emergence and transformation, pairing the soaring vocal performance with imagery that feels both intimate and cinematic. Photography for the release is by Amanda Clark, with cover artwork by Andrew Bacoto, completing a creative package that speaks to every dimension of Wakefield’s vision for this chapter of her artistry.
Dahlia Wakefield is one of Alberta’s most accomplished and multidimensional musical forces. A graduate with Distinction from Grant MacEwan University’s Music Program in Vocal Performance, she has performed professionally for over 20 years across stages of every scale, from intimate retirement home performances to New Year’s Eve sets for more than 10,000 people in Edmonton’s Churchill Square. A sought-after session and backup vocalist, she has sung alongside the band Toronto on multiple occasions and leads or participates in several active projects, including the Dahlia and Alan Duo, the hard rock band Kerosene, casino act Dahlia and The Villains, and country/rock band Dirt Road Angels, among others. Her previous single “Well Dressed Lies” has earned multiple ISSA nominations, including International Entertainer of the Year, Female Vocalist of the Year, and Female Single of the Year, with coverage appearing in Canadian Beats, Cashbox, Tinnitist, and Record World International, among others.
Upcoming Tour Dates
June 12 & 13 @ Caffreys, Sherwood Park, AB with Kerosene 9:30pm
Fri. June 19 @ Blowers & Grafton with Dahlia & Alan Duo
Sat. July 4 @ Ottewell No Frills with Dahlia & Alan Duo
Sat. July 25 @ Main Stage at Cornstock ‘26 with Brigade (Heart Tribute Band) (opening for Nick Gilder of Sweeney Todd, Headpins, Honeymoon Suite, and Colin James), Taber, AB – Time TBA
October 16 & 17 @ Caffreys, Sherwood Park, AB with Kerosene at 9:30pm
Sat. October 24 @ Ryley Community Centre, Ryley, AB with Dahlia & The Villains at 8pm
**More gigs to come (pending)
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Feura Unleashes « Lose Your Head, » a Bold Debut from a Queer BIPOC Rock Artist Done Asking Permission
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Feura takes a stand. The Toronto-based queer, BIPOC, East Asian rock artist releases her debut single « Lose Your Head » today, a sharp, unrelenting rock anthem that calls out every system, every person, and every institution that has ever had a problem with her existing. Funded by the Canada Council for the Arts and the Toronto Arts Council, written by Korol Pikulik, Alexandra Jelilyan, and Marc Koecher, and produced by Illegal Audio (Marc Koecher and Lexie Jay), « Lose Your Head » is the opening statement of an album that has been a lifetime in the making.
Feura grew up as one of the only people of colour in a small rural Ontario town, excluded early and excluded often. For years she tried to shrink herself to fit in, and it was never enough. At some point, she stopped trying. « Lose Your Head » is what came out of that decision: not a grievance, but a verdict.
« ‘Lose Your Head’ came from this feeling that no matter what I do, people will find a reason to react to me just existing, » Feura says. « I’m queer, BIPOC, East Asian, and a type 1 diabetic, and whether I want to define myself by those labels or not, they’ve always shaped how people treat me. So, at a certain point it became: Screw it. If people are going to lose their minds over me anyway, I’m going to be fully myself. This record comes from that switch. »
The song is funny, furious, and precise. « You get mad that I got tattoos, chipped nail polish, studded shoulders » lands in the first verse with the kind of specificity that makes satire sting. The chorus, « You can’t help but lose your head every time I take a breath, » is not a complaint. It is a diagnosis. And the bridge delivers the thesis without apology: « All you want is my freedom. » Three words that say everything about power, control, and why certain people cannot stand watching someone refuse to be diminished.
Feura is clear-eyed about what she represents and what she is up against. « Even existing as a queer East Asian artist in rock music feels radical, and it shouldn’t, » she says. « There’s so much pressure now to assimilate, to be digestible, and this record pushes back against that. At its core, it’s for anyone who’s ever felt like they had to ‘edit’ themselves to be accepted. It’s about being unapologetically yourself, even if it makes people uncomfortable, because that discomfort usually says more about them than it does about you. » That is not a press release talking point. That is someone who has lived it.
Produced by Illegal Audio and mastered by Kristian Montano, « Lose Your Head » hits with the full weight of a rock record that knows exactly what it wants to say and refuses to turn it down. The production gives Feura’s voice room to be both biting and anthemic, and the result is a song built for arenas and for anyone who has ever needed to hear someone say the quiet part loud.
Feura’s album release show takes place May 22nd at Geary Warehouse in Toronto, followed by a summer run that includes London Pride, Kempenfest at the OLG Main Stage in Barrie, a featured performance at Honey Jam at TD Music Hall in Toronto, and more dates through September. Every show is all ages. « Lose Your Head » is available now on all major platforms. The album follows.
###
SINGLE CREDITS:
Written by: Korol Pikulik / Alexandra Jelilyan / Marc Koecher (all SOCAN)
Produced by: Illegal Audio (Marc Koecher and Lexie Jay)
Mastered by: Kristian Montano
Funded by: Canada Council for the Arts / Toronto Arts Council
UPCOMING DATES (ALL AGES):
June 13, 2026: Rainbow Bistro, Ottawa ON (The Space Between Album Release Show)
July 17/18/19, 2026: Main Stage, London ON (London Pride – date TBC)
August 1, 2026: OLG Main Stage, Barrie ON (Kempenfest)
August 20, 2026: TD Music Hall, Toronto ON (Honey Jam featured performance)
August 23, 2026: Georgian Bay Steam Show Grounds, Cookstown ON (Gussapolooza)
September 25, 2026: Zion Memorial Church, Ottawa Valley ON (Stage Piot Productions)
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Eric Alper
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Bruce Cockburn Announces Extensive 2026 North American Tour
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Bruce Cockburn, one of Canada’s most celebrated and enduring singer-songwriters, today announces a sweeping North American tour spanning 2026, bringing his extraordinary catalogue of songs to stages from coast to coast across Canada and the United States. The run of dates represents one of the most anticipated live events of the concert season, uniting longtime devotees, and new listeners around a body of work that has shaped the very soul of Canadian music for more than five decades.
Bruce Cockburn upcoming new album, as-yet-untitled and to be released in Fall, 2026 – continues the legendary songwriter’s decades-long journey through folk, rock, jazz, and spiritual reflection with the wisdom and craftsmanship that have defined his career.
Ottawa-born and now based in San Francisco, Cockburn has spent more than 40 years documenting the full breadth of human experience across folk, rock, jazz, and worldbeat, travelling to Guatemala, Mali, Mozambique, Nepal, and beyond in the service of both his music and his activism. His guitar playing, both acoustic and electric, has placed him in the company of the world’s top instrumentalists, and his songs of romance, protest, and spiritual discovery are among the finest to have emerged from any country over the last half century. Music journalist Nicholas Jennings has written that Cockburn has deftly captured the joy, pain, fear, and faith of human experience in song, whether retreating to the country or going up against chaos, tackling imperialist lies or embracing ecclesiastical truths, always expressing what Cockburn himself has called a tough yet hopeful stance: to kick at the darkness till it bleeds daylight.
His remarkable journey has seen him embrace an extraordinary range of sounds and subject matter while working on behalf of organisations including Oxfam, Amnesty International, Doctors Without Borders, and Friends of the Earth, lending his voice to causes from native rights and land mines to the environment and Third World debt. For his many achievements, the artist has been honoured with 13 Juno Awards, induction into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, a Governor General’s Performing Arts Award, and has been made an Officer of the Order of Canada. His 38th album, ‘O Sun O Moon,’ continues one of the most remarkable bodies of work in the history of popular music.
Joining Cockburn for a significant run of dates on the tour are Jeff Pevar and Inger Nova, the Oregon-based duo whose original music blends soul, rock, R&B, jazz, folk, and blues into a sound that feels both deeply rooted and distinctly their own. Jeff Pevar is a guitarist, bassist, multi-instrumentalist, producer, and composer whose career spans decades of collaborations with legendary artists. A founding member of CPR alongside David Crosby, he has toured extensively with Crosby Nash, Crosby Stills and Nash, and Crosby’s Sky Trails Band, and his expansive career includes work with Ray Charles, Joe Cocker, Phil Lesh, Marc Cohn, Rickie Lee Jones, Bette Midler, Jennifer Warnes, and Jefferson Starship, among many others. A New York Blues Hall of Fame inductee, Pevar brings multi-instrumental production depth and a lifetime of world-class musicianship to every stage he inhabits.
Inger Nova Jorgensen is a vocalist, songwriter, sculptor, and painter whose multidisciplinary career deeply informs her musical voice. Together, Pevar and Nova have spent more than two decades writing, recording, and performing original music throughout the United States and Europe, including multiple tours across Italy, the Netherlands, Germany, and Denmark.
Cockburn has always insisted on continuing to grow, citing his models for graceful aging as John Lee Hooker and Mississippi John Hurt, musicians who never stopped working or deepening their craft. That spirit of perpetual creative renewal has carried him from the Riverboat in Toronto in 1969 through to the present day, and this tour is a vivid reminder of just how rare and precious the relationship between an artist and his listeners truly is. The tour includes a particularly meaningful Canadian homecoming, with Cockburn visiting some of the country’s most storied rooms, among them the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, Massey Hall in Toronto, Centre in the Square in Kitchener, and Gesù Salle in Montréal. A highlight of the broader run was his appearance at Legacy: A Celebration of David Suzuki at 90 in Vancouver on May 22, an event that sits squarely at the intersection of art, activism, and the natural world that has always animated Co ckburn’s finest work. Several dates also feature performances alongside the legendary Judy Collins on her « Sweet Judy Blue Eyes » Farewell Tour, and Cockburn appeared at Jefferson Airplane’s Jorma Kaukonen’s 85th Birthday celebration.
Several dates on the tour will feature performances alongside legendary singer-songwriter Judy Collins on her « Sweet Judy Blue Eyes » Farewell Tour for from July 22 to October 3. Livingston Taylor will join Cockburn for dates beginning October 20 through November 8.
Tickets and full details are available at brucecockburn.com.
TOUR DATES
Jul 10 — Saskatoon, SK — SaskJazz Festival, Victoria Park
Jul 22 — Denver, CO — Botanical Gardens **
Aug 7 — Los Angeles, CA — Ford Theatre **
Aug 26 — Iowa City, IA — Englert Theatre **
Aug 27 — Des Moines, IA — Hoyt Sherman Place **
Sep 8 — Omaha, NE — Astro Theater **
Sep 9 — Lawrence, KS — Liberty Hall **
Oct 3 — Eugene, OR — McDonald Theatre **
Oct 15 — Kitchener, ON — Centre in the Square
Oct 16 — Ottawa, ON — National Arts Centre
Oct 17 — Toronto, ON — Massey Hall
Oct 18 — Montréal, QC — Gesù Salle
Oct 20 — Plymouth, NH — Flying Monkey&
Oct 21 — Portland, ME — State Theatre&
Oct 23 — Boston, MA — Chevalier Theatre&
Oct 24 — New York, NY — Town Hall&
Oct 25 — Philadelphia, PA — Keswick Theatre&
Oct 27 — Washington, DC — Warner Theatre&
Oct 29 — Durham, NC — Fletcher Hall&
Oct 30 — Charlotte, NC — Carolina Theatre&
Nov 1 — Nashville, TN — CMA Theatre&
Nov 2 — Knoxville, TN — Bijou Theatre&
Nov 4 — Atlanta, GA — Variety Playhouse&
Nov 6 — Ponte Vedra, FL — Ponte Vedra Concert Hall&
Nov 7 — Fort Lauderdale, FL — Amaturo Theatre&
Nov 8 — Key West, FL — Key West Theatre&
** With Judy Collins
& With Livingston Taylor
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THE ‘INDIGENOUS ADELE’ : OTTAWA’S ALICIA KAYLEY MAKES HER DEBUT WITH TWO SINGLES
“NEW BEGINNINGS” AND “DON’T BREAK MY HEART” OUT NOW VIA NEW SUN MUSIC
Algonquin and Tahltan Nation Singer-Songwriter Partners with Crystal Shawanda’s Label for a Landmark Double Debut
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Ottawa, ON – New Sun Music is proud to announce the simultaneous release of “New Beginnings” and “Don’t Break My Heart,” the debut double single from Alicia Kayley, dubbed the “Indigenous Adele” by the Ottawa Citizen, out now. A rising voice in Pop/R&B and Blues/Soul, Kayley arrives fully formed on these first two offerings – together painting a vivid portrait of an artist fluent in both tender vulnerability and hard-won clarity. Produced in partnership with Crystal Shawanda’s celebrated Nashville-based label, the double release signals the arrival of a songwriter whose range, depth, and emotional intelligence are extraordinary from the very first note.
Alicia Kayley is a Pop/R&B singer-songwriter from the Algonquin and Tahltan Nation, raised and currently residing in Ottawa, Ontario. She holds a Bachelor of Music from Carleton University, where she specialised in classical voice and popular style songwriting – a foundation that gives her artistry both technical precision and genuine emotional immediacy. Her powerful, warm vocals have graced some of Canada’s most prestigious stages, including the Harbourfront Luminato Festival, Canada Day’s 150th Anniversary main stage event on Parliament Hill, and the Site Selection Ceremony for the Residential Schools National Monument. In 2024, she brought that same commanding presence to the Indigenous Day Festival in Whitehorse, Yukon, and Vancouver Indigenous Fashion Week.
“New Beginnings” is a deeply personal conversation with herself – a reckoning, and ultimately a resolution. Kayley conceived the song while standing at a crossroads, weighing the value of a relationship against her own sense of worth and the wisdom of those closest to her. Rather than framing the experience as something to undo or leave behind, she recast it as the foundation for something entirely new. “I hated the idea of starting over,” she has shared. “So I chose new beginnings instead – not erasing the past but carrying forward everything it taught me.” That distinction – subtle but transformative – gives the song its emotional weight and its universal resonance.
Where “New Beginnings” arrives at peace, “Don’t Break My Heart” captures the tender, hopeful tension of a heart still open and still willing to trust. Together, the two singles showcase the full emotional spectrum Kayley brings to her songwriting – the courage it takes to love, and the strength it takes to know one’s own worth. Releasing both tracks simultaneously is a deliberate artistic statement: this is an artist who holds complexity with ease, and who understands that the most honest storytelling lives in the full arc of an experience, not just its conclusion.
Both tracks bear the hallmarks of Kayley’s classical training and her instinct for popular songcraft. Her voice – rich, warm, and precisely controlled – moves through each song with a naturalness that only comes from years of dedicated study and an innate emotional intelligence that no conservatory can teach. The productions, shaped within the New Sun Music family in Nashville, provide a sonic home that is at once intimate and expansive, giving Kayley’s storytelling the space it deserves to breathe and resonate.
As a young Indigenous artist, Kayley brings a perspective to mainstream Pop/R&B that is both timely and essential. Her partnership with New Sun Music – founded by Grammy-nominated country and blues artist Crystal Shawanda, herself a proud Odawa First Nation member – reflects a shared commitment to amplifying Indigenous voices across the broader musical landscape. Kayley has spoken openly about her intention to provide Anishinabe people with a visible, joyful presence in mainstream music, and today’s double release stands as the opening statement of that mission. The songs’ themes of self-worth, hope, and forward motion carry cultural dimensions that extend far beyond any single personal story.
The double single release arrives alongside a robust season of live performances that underscore Kayley’s growing momentum, including an appearance at Hard Rock Ottawa’s Council Oak Stage on May 23rd and a landmark slot at Ottawa Bluesfest on July 10th – one of Canada’s most celebrated summer music festivals. Both singles are the first taste of her debut album, set for release this summer via New Sun Music. With each new chapter, Kayley is building a body of work as musically ambitious as it is culturally meaningful – and the journey is already extraordinary.
Tour Dates:
May 23, 2026 Hard Rock Cafe Ottawa – Council Oak Stage Ottawa ON
May 30, 2026 Hard Rock Cafe Ottawa Ottawa ON
July 10, 2026 Bluesfest Ottawa ON
For more information, please contact:
Eric Alper
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XOXO Entertainment Corp. Signs Producer JASON “JHOT” SCOTT, Expanding Its Global Multi-Genre Production Powerhouse
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New York, NY + Vancouver, BC — XOXO Entertainment Corp. continues its aggressive expansion in the global music space with the signing of producer, songwriter, and engineer Jason “JHOT” Scott to its management division.
A proven force behind a wide range of records across R&B, hip-hop, pop, and Afrobeats, JHOT brings a deep and versatile catalog shaped alongside industry leaders including Akon, Teddy Riley, Keith Sweat, Blackstreet, Dru Hill, and Eric Bellinger. Known for his signature talkbox sound and advanced musicality, he has established himself as a high-level creative capable of delivering across genres without compromising authenticity.
JHOT’s early breakthrough came through his work with Akon and Interscope Records on the Billboard Hot 100 record “Girl Got a Girlfriend,” setting the tone for a career built on both commercial impact and creative consistency. His long-standing partnership with Keith Sweat includes multiple key contributions, including the #1 adult R&B hit “Good Love,” as well as extensive work across full-length projects.
Continuing to expand his global reach, JHOT recently contributed production to Keith Sweat’s Afrobeats-influenced single “Working” featuring Lil Wayne, further highlighting his ability to operate fluidly across evolving musical landscapes.
As part of the partnership, JHOT will be co-managed by XOXO Entertainment Corp. alongside Blackstreet’s Chauncey Black, aligning him directly within one of R&B’s most influential creative ecosystems. He is already a key producer on Blackstreet’s upcoming 2026 album, a project generating strong global anticipation.
“JHOT is the real deal,” said Adam H. Hurstfield, CEO of XOXO Entertainment Corp. “He’s actively creating at a high level across multiple genres, and that combination of musical instinct, technical ability, and real relationships is extremely rare. This is a meaningful addition to what we’re building.”
“JHOT understands the foundation of the music, but more importantly, he knows how to evolve it,” said Chauncey Black of Blackstreet. “That balance is what separates good producers from the ones who actually move the culture.”
JHOT added, “I’ve always approached music without limits. R&B, hip-hop, pop, Afrobeats — it’s all about the feel and the record. Partnering with XOXO is about growth, vision, and being part of something that’s building at a high level.”
Under XOXO’s management, JHOT will focus on expanding his production footprint across major releases, developing emerging talent, and contributing to high-impact projects spanning both legacy and contemporary artists.
With multiple projects already underway, the partnership underscores XOXO’s continued evolution into a vertically integrated creative powerhouse operating at the center of global music culture.
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Eric Alper
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Montréal Pop Artist Jordyn Sugar Drops « Oops, » a Playful Throwback-Inspired Anthem Packed with Confidence and Hooks
The Creator of Empowered Pop Channels Early 2000s Energy and No-Regrets Confidence Into Her Catchiest Track Yet
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MONTRÉAL, QC. Jordyn Sugar, the 22-year-old Montreal-based singer, songwriter, drummer, and creator of Empowered Pop, today releases “Oops,” her bold and irresistibly fun new single, out now on all major platforms. A guitar-driven, hook-laden pop anthem about a spontaneous one-night connection told entirely from a place of confidence and zero regret, the track arrives on the back of over 500,000 views across pre-release teaser content and 55 million total social media views in the past three weeks alone. Early listeners have one consistent note: it is stuck in their heads.
The song began with a single word. Jordyn and her collaborators, songwriter Bayla and producer Lucas Liberatore, were working through a list of potential song titles when Jordyn offered “oops,” and it clicked immediately for everyone in the room. “I realised that no artist has really revisited the word in a modern pop context,” she says, “so it felt like the right time to bring it back.” The title carries a deliberate nod to Britney Spears’ iconic “Oops!… I Did It Again,” a gesture that signals from the outset that “Oops” knows exactly where it comes from and precisely where it is going. From that spark, the song came together across three four-hour sessions, quickly and naturally, with a flow that is fully audible in the finished recording.
Sonically, the track is rooted in early 2000s pop: bright, guitar-forward, and built around melodies that embed themselves after a single listen. The lyrics capture the night with vivid, scene-setting economy: “No lights your body was my focus / making me lose control / Felt right caught up in the moment / We just went with the flow.” And when the chorus lands, it lands with the kind of shameless, anthemic confidence that defines the whole song: “Oops, I woke up in your bed / I don’t know your name / But you’re stuck in my head.” Rather than reaching for apology or regret, Jordyn plants her flag squarely on the side of self-awareness and fun. “I know I’m insane, but I got no regrets” is not a confession. It is a declaration.
That emotional confidence is the hallmark of what Jordyn calls Empowered Pop, the genre she has been building since her debut single “Leaves Me” in 2021. Where much contemporary pop about one-night connections reaches for complexity or shame, “Oops” flips the narrative entirely, choosing humour and self-possession over hand-wringing. It sits squarely in the lane of Sabrina Carpenter, cheeky pop attitude wrapped in production clean enough for radio and irresistible enough for playlists. Recorded at Planet Studio in Montreal and 100% CanCon, the single was co-written by Jordyn, Bayla, and Lucas Liberatore, with Liberatore also producing.
The momentum surrounding the release speaks for itself. Since her debut, Jordyn has opened for Gloria Gaynor, performed for CeeLo Green at the Mandalay Bay Hotel in Las Vegas, and shared stages with Kardinal Offishall. She now commands 315,000 TikTok followers, 132,000 on Instagram, and more than 5 million Spotify streams, with over 110 million total social media views to her name and 30,000 new followers gained in the past 21 days alone. With collaborations with Canadian artists including Tyler Shaw in the pipeline and new music scheduled throughout 2026, “Oops” is the clearest, most confident introduction yet to an artist who has been quietly building toward exactly this moment.
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Eric Alper
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Hey everyone,
If you’re planning to cover one of the best music festivals in North America this summer, this one’s for you.
Osheaga Music & Arts Festival has officially opened media accreditation requests for its 19th edition, taking place July 31 to August 2, 2026 at Parc Jean-Drapeau in Montreal. This year’s lineup includes Twenty One Pilots, Tate McRae, and Lorde, and if past years are any indication, it’s going to be an incredible weekend.
The deadline to apply is Monday, June 1 at 5:00 p.m. ET. A few important things to keep in mind before you submit:
Even if you’ve covered Osheaga before, accreditation is not automatically guaranteed. The festival will not accept late or incomplete requests, so make sure you answer every single question on the form before you hit submit.
Also, if you want to make sure you’re on the list to receive press releases and accreditation forms from evenko going forward, sign up at www.evenko.ca/media and select Festivals so nothing slips through the cracks.
Eric Alper
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Asthma Kids Release Abbey Road-Mixed « The People United and Strong, » The Punk Rallying Cry To Tax Billionaires
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KAWARTHA LAKES, ON. Asthma Kids are angry. They have always been angry. But on their ferocious new single “The People United and Strong,” that anger has been alchemised into something even more dangerous: hope. This is not a soft pivot. This is a band that has looked at billionaires hoarding the planet’s resources, looked at the boot on the neck of the working class, looked at a world on fire, and decided that the most radical thing they can do right now is demand that we stand together. “The union united and strong / the people united and strong / all the genders united and strong / the poor united and strong.” Go ahead and try to get that out of your head.
The song was born in the studio on the day Trevor Hutchinson became a grandfather. His twenty-year-old daughter gave birth while the band were mid-session, and that eruption of new life cracked something open in the writing. “We had a musical structure and I was working on lyrics that matched the anger of our recent releases,” Hutchinson says. “But that life news got me to frame our message in a positive light that promotes unity.” Make no mistake, the fury is still there and fully intact. “I’m still beyond angry,” he adds. “It’s time for us to tax billionaires out of existence and end the psychopathic distribution of wealth. But that is going to take unity, harmony and love.” A grandchild entered the world. A punk anthem came out with him.
The lyrics do not flinch. “The rich are getting richer, the poor are getting poorer / Now I know what I’m fighting for” sits alongside “I believe in welfare, but I prefer taxes / Or any other measure that evens out the classes.” This is not protest music that hedges. Asthma Kids, composed of Trevor Hutchinson and JP Gill, have never heard a genre they won’t gleefully subvert, repurpose, and rebuild from the wreckage, and “The People United and Strong” is a punk earworm that refuses to stay inside any lines at all. They are famously genre-agnostic, stating plainly that they leave labels for soup cans. Adjacent to punk, freak folk, country, and power pop, they are ultimately something else altogether: seemingly nice neighbours living next door to musical convention, until they burn down every house on the street.
The production matches the ambition. Hutchinson produced the track himself at Jack Cade Studios in Lindsay, Ontario. Adam Haggart mixed it at the Reverie Recording Studio in Peterborough. Then it went to Abbey Road in London, where mastering engineer Alex Wharton put the finishing edge on it. A punk song about taxing billionaires out of existence, mastered at the most storied studio on the planet. That is exactly the kind of move Asthma Kids make.
The single arrives on the heels of their 2025 EP ‘The Meek Are Getting Ready,’ named one of the best EPs of 2025 by PunkNews.org and distributed via Dammit Distro across the EU and UK, and 2 Bar Town Records across North America. The track has already been added to both WARM and Earshot. A summer tour launches in Toronto in late August and pushes westward from there. Asthma Kids are not waiting for permission to be heard, and they are not asking nicely. The people are united. The people are strong. The song says so.
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Eric Alper
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TORONTO TRIO PHANTASIA RELEASE “KING OF ALL MY DREAMS,” THE DEBUT SINGLE FROM THEIR BRAND-NEW ALBUM ‘I’VE BEEN HERE BEFORE’
A Song Nine Years in the Making, Recorded Live Off the Floor in Two Days
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TORONTO, ON. There is a particular kind of song that a band carries with them for years, one that survives set-list cuts and line-up changes and the ordinary pressures of making music, and keeps insisting on being heard. For Phantasia, the Toronto indie rock trio of Ethan Flynn (vocals/guitar), Mario Prifti (bass), and Michael Colangelo (drums), that song is “King Of All My Dreams.” Written by Flynn nearly nine years ago, it is the debut single from their brand-new album ‘I’ve Been Here Before,’ out now on all major platforms, and the opening statement of a band that has spent the better part of two years earning every note.
The song carries the weight of its subject with a kind of clear-eyed grace. It is about waiting for someone who may never come back. “There’s a kind of stubborn hope in it,” Flynn says, “even though it might not be healthy.” That tension lives in the lyric itself: “I just don’t know what to do / when my dreams, they all come true / but I’m nothing without you.” The arrangement makes space for that recognition through verses built on an unsettled 7/8 time signature that opens, at the chorus, into an emotionally direct 4/4. The music and the lyric resolve together into something both honest and hard to shake.
To understand what makes the recording sound the way it does, you have to understand how Phantasia prepared for it. Before a single note was committed to tape, the band spent a full year performing, auditioning over 40 songs in front of live audiences, rewriting and retitling tracks through dozens of shows around Toronto and the GTA, letting the chemistry between three musicians develop in the one place it actually counts: on a stage, in real time, in front of people. By the time they walked into RHC Music with engineer Jon Savard, they were not a band trying to find their sound. They already had it.
That preparation made possible the way the album was recorded: instrumentally, live off the floor, across just two days, with no click tracks, no metronome, and no locked tempo. Three musicians in a room, listening to each other and reacting, the interplay between Flynn, Prifti, and Colangelo captured exactly as it sounds when the band is firing. “It lets the song breathe in a more human way,” Flynn explains. The result is a recording that carries the energy of a live performance without sacrificing clarity. Guitar, bass, drums, and vocals, nothing more, mixed and mastered by Taraz Yazdani with the same commitment to directness that shaped every other decision the band made.
Phantasia came together in March 2024 when Prifti reached out to Flynn with the idea of turning his solo work into something collaborative. Colangelo came on board, and the three of them simply never stopped, writing, performing, refining, and eventually funding the album entirely themselves, with no label and no outside budget. “After lord knows how many gigs, rehearsals, and a chunk of studio time, I’m proud of what we’ve done,” Prifti says. “This is the first ever album that I was part of writing, conceptualising, and releasing. First of many more, I should hope, but it may always be the most memorable.” ‘I’ve Been Here Before’ is the sound of a band that has done the work. “King Of All My Dreams” is where it begins.
Eric Alper
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Howdytoons, The Toronto Band With 1.5 Billion YouTube Streams, Releases Ferocious New Single « Smilodon » And Debut Album ‘Megafauna Metal’
The World’s Most Popular Dinosaur Rock Band Recruits Metal Royalty – Including Marco Minnemann, Billy Sheehan, and Rody Walker – For Its Most Ambitious Record Yet
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TORONTO, ON – Howdytoons – the Toronto-based band behind the most-streamed dinosaur music on the planet, with over 1.5 billion YouTube streams and more than 50 million Spotify plays to their name – today release “Smilodon,” the lead single from their debut full-length album ‘Megafauna Metal,’ out now. Written by Mike Whitla and his son Jake, the track is a prowling, snarling portrait of the prehistoric sabre-toothed predator – delivered with the kind of riffing intensity that has earned Howdytoons a place on Spotify’s editorial Hard Rock playlist and the respect of some of the biggest names in metal.
“Smilodon” arrives as the culmination of a creative evolution that began with a one-man recording project and has grown into something far larger. “My eyes are burning bright / I’m the prowler in the night / Listen and you’ll hear my song / Sabertooth tiger, is the Smilodon,” the track opens – before the song builds through a chase sequence of escalating ferocity, each verse tightening the coil until the kill is complete. It is a master class in narrative heavy metal, and a showcase for Jake Whitla’s emergence as a formidable songwriting force in his own right. “Smilodon is Jake’s fantastic contribution to this album,” says Mike. “He’s a jazz prodigy now turning his talents to metal – and he relishes this chance to live out his boyhood dream of making rockin’ dinosaur music with his dad.”
‘Megafauna Metal’ is the first full-length album from the Prehistorica series, the Howdytoons project co-written since 2017 with guitar virtuoso James Reid. The album is a genuine all-star achievement: Marco Minnemann – the drummer of choice for Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, and Nuno Bettencourt – plays on every track from 2020 on, having first joined Howdytoons for the recording of “Megalodon.” Billy Sheehan, the legendary bassist from Mr. Big and David Lee Roth’s band, adds his unmistakable authority to “Mastodon.” And Rody Walker of Protest the Hero – who discovered Howdytoons while listening with his young son and reached out to collaborate – delivers a performance on “Quetzalcoatlus” that Sleeping Village Reviews describes as possessing “a certain pedigree,” noting that “the kinetic songwriting itself sucks you in.”
The album also functions as a tribute. “Mastodon” is an explicit homage to the metal band of the same name – a gesture of respect toward a group that has inspired Howdytoons deeply and that speaks to the seriousness with which this band approaches its craft. That seriousness is everywhere on ‘Megafauna Metal:’ in the scientific accuracy woven through every lyric, in the animation created in close collaboration with Kolkata-based artist Soujoy Kumar Bhowmick, and in the album’s ambition to deliver prehistoric natural history through the most electrifying vehicle available – heavy metal.
The Howdytoons story began in 2011 when Mike Whitla released Dinostory: The Ultimate Dinosaur Rock Opera, a song-cycle following Terri the Triceratops that would eventually spawn billions of streams and millions of subscribers across multiple YouTube channels. What started as a solo project has grown into a three-person songwriting ensemble – Mike Whitla, James Reid, and Jake Whitla – with a live debut planned for 2027 that will bring the full energy of these recordings to the stage for the first time. ‘Megafauna Metal’ is their most powerful statement yet: proof that kids’ music and genuine metal credibility are not opposites – and that the prehistoric world has never sounded this alive.
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Carla Muller Shares Two Personal New Songs « That Tree » and « Everything’s Gonna Be Alright » Honouring Her Sisters
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WOOLWICH, ON – Carla Muller has always written from the heart, and with the release of two deeply personal new songs – « That Tree » and « Everything’s Gonna Be Alright » – the Woolwich, Ontario singer-songwriter invites listeners into the most sacred corners of her life: her relationships with her sisters. Both tracks are available now via Canterbury Music Company, and together they form an extraordinary emotional diptych – a celebration of resilience, devotion, and the fierce, unbreakable bonds of sisterhood.
« That Tree, » co-written with the late Sean Cunnington, is a song born from a true story that has lived rent-free in Muller’s memory for decades. Her older sister Erika once climbed a towering oak tree as a young girl, fell thirty feet, and – in a feat of sheer, breathtaking grit – got up and walked home. Then, just four months later, when her bicycle was stolen, she jumped onto Carla’s bike – flat tires and all – and chased the adult thief down the street until she returned with both bicycles in tow. « I still remember how proud Erika looked, walking our two bikes back to where I sat waiting, stunned, » Muller recalls. The song distils that lifelong awe into something luminous and universal, transforming one girl’s extraordinary stubbornness into a roadmap for anyone who has ever stared up at an impossibly high branch: « I know that branch / Seems out of reach / But you’ve gotta try / If you’re gonna climb that tree. »
« Everything’s Gonna Be Alright, » co-written with Scott Metcalfe, carries a weight that is both joyful and heartbreaking in equal measure. Muller wrote it in 2008, when her younger sister lay in a coma for nineteen days, and Carla sat beside her, singing it again and again into the silence. The doctors suggested that Francine likely couldn’t hear her. She woke up and immediately asked what that beautiful song was. « So, I’ll stay and watch you while you sleep / Here in the darkness of this night / But I know this must be true / God is watching over you / And everything’s gonna be alright » – these words, first sung in a hospital room, ultimately became her own, a song she knew by heart and carried with her always. Francine passed away suddenly in October 2024 from a heart condition, and Muller played the song at her funeral, singing her baby sister to sleep one final time. The story behind this recording – completed while Francine was still alive and thrilled it had made the album – is the kind of profound, human detail that transcends music journalism and speaks to anyone who has ever loved someone fiercely and imperfectly.
Produced at Canterbury Music Company by Muller and Scott Metcalfe, in collaboration with veteran engineers Jeremy Darby and Julian Decorte, both songs carry the warmth and craftsmanship that have defined Muller’s creative home for the past five years. Working alongside an extraordinary roster of Canadian musical talent – including Jason Fowler, Rob Piltch, Burke Carroll, Drew Jurecka, Sam Clarke, Ross MacIntyre and many others – Muller has developed a singular sound rooted in acoustic intimacy and cinematic storytelling. The co-writing relationship with Sean Cunnington, whose memory also inspired « Beautiful Day » on ‘Paper Stars,’ lends « That Tree » an especially poignant dimension, honouring both the sister who inspired it and the collaborator who helped bring it to life.
For Muller, these songs represent the fullest expression of her artistic philosophy: she writes for the people she loves, drawing on the specific and the lived-in to illuminate something far larger. Where many artists reach for the universal by stripping away detail, Muller doubles down – a ten-speed Schwinn bicycle, a rose-coloured velvet rocking chair, a girl who didn’t know her name after a fall but walked home anyway. These are the textures of real life, and in Muller’s hands they become something extraordinarily moving. Both tracks sit within her landmark dual album release – ‘In Between’ and ‘Paper Stars’ – available now via M.I.C. Music Productios, a body of work that announces her as one of Canada’s most compelling and authentic voices in the singer-songwriter tradition.
Carla Muller lives in Woolwich, Ontario with her husband Tom and their three children, and writes with the conviction of someone who knows exactly what – and who – matters most. « I write from my heart, for the people I love, and for myself – past and present, » she says. « It’s a good place to be. » « That Tree » and « Everything’s Gonna Be Alright » are out now. Both songs are destined to find the people who need them most.
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Rising Pop Star Supertrendt Soundtracks America’s Most Dreaded Day With « Tax Day » Out April 10
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Every year on April 15, millions of Americans file their taxes. Some dread it. Some dodge it. Nobody has ever celebrated it. Until now.
Tax Day just got a soundtrack. “Tax Day,” out April 10, is a chic, danceable retro-swing pop track by Dutch independent artist Supertrendt that turns April 15 into something worth putting on the calendar. Think Caro Emerald meets Dua Lipa: sophisticated, ironic, and impossible not to move to. It acknowledges the dread, celebrates what taxes pay for — “Streetlights still shining / Bridges that hold / Classrooms and clinics / Heat in the cold” — and makes the whole thing feel like a party rather than a punishment.
“Every country has its version of Tax Day,” says Richard van den Boogaard, the Dutch artist and composer behind Supertrendt. “But America made it a cultural moment. It deserved a soundtrack. Nobody had written one yet, so I did.”
The song arrives at a moment when the conversation about who pays taxes and who doesn’t have never been louder. “Tax Day” doesn’t take sides. It takes the floor. The chorus — “Call it a celebration / Circle it and pay / Do the math, sign your name / Yay, it’s Tax Day” — carries the whole irony of the song in a single word. “The ‘yay’ was deliberate,” says van den Boogaard. “That one word carries the whole irony.”
Supertrendt is a Netherlands-based studio project crafting narrative pop without a fixed identity. Each release reshapes genre to serve the story, moving fluidly between deep house, alternative electronic textures, reggae warmth, noir minimalism, and introspective pop. The catalogue unfolds across four evolving series — Transformations, Observations, Reimaginations, and Celebrations — exploring reinvention, perception, and cultural reflection through emotionally precise writing. “Tax Day” lands in the Celebrations series. Van den Boogaard produces all music independently, treating the studio as a instrument in the tradition of Quincy Jones, Jean-Michel Jarre, and the producers who built entire sonic worlds.
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THE CELTIC TENORS RELEASE ‘LIVE AT THE EMPIRE THEATRE’- IRELAND’S CELEBRATED VOCAL TRIO DELIVERS THEIR FINEST HOUR
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Ireland’s internationally acclaimed vocal trio The Celtic Tenors — founding member Matthew Gilsenan, Daryl Simpson BEM, and dynamic new tenor George Hutton — have released their highly anticipated live album, The Celtic Tenors: Live at The Empire Theatre, out now through Slammin’ Media and Believe Distribution. Captured in a single electrifying evening at The Empire Theatre in Belleville, Ontario, the 16-track record documents a trio at the very peak of their powers, delivering a breathtaking blend of Irish folk, opera, classical, and pop in their signature, harmony-rich style.
The album arrives on the heels of an extraordinary period of momentum for the trio. Their PBS television special — showcasing Matthew Gilsenan, George Hutton, and Daryl Simpson performing opera, classical, Irish traditional, and pop music in their signature harmony-rich style — is available to stream on PBS.org and the free PBS App across multiple platforms. The special has significantly expanded their American audience, airing on stations from WNET in New York to KVCR in Los Angeles.
Critical reception to the album’s lead singles has been enthusiastic. Reviewing the trio’s bilingual rendition of Ed Sheeran’s « Perfect Symphony, » ATV Today called it « less a cover than a re-framing: a contemporary pop ballad recast as something intimate, almost devotional, » adding that the performance « carries the faint electricity of a room holding its breath. » The review concluded that the recording demonstrates not commercial endurance but artistic patience — proof that crossover need not mean compromise, but simply means conversation between genres, languages, and past and present.
The Celtic Tenors: Live at The Empire Theatre is a dynamic crossover concert that redefines the traditional Irish music experience, featuring a diverse repertoire blending iconic Irish folk songs with operatic and melodic reinterpretations of global hits by Guns N’ Roses, Coldplay, and Ed Sheeran. The full 16-track album spans the heartfelt intimacy of « Grace » and the rousing energy of « Galway Girl » to stunning interpretations of « Sweet Child O’ Mine » and « Viva La Vida, » alongside timeless Irish staples « Danny Boy, » « Whiskey In The Jar, » and « The Impossible Dream. »
Supporting the trio throughout are music director Colm O’Regan at grand piano, Darren Bell on guitars and mandolin, John O’Brien on pipes, whistles, and bouzouki, and Cecilia Leahy on violin. Together they create what ATV Today described as a performance where the supporting ensemble resists flourish in favour of texture — leaving space for breath, for phrasing, and for the kind of dynamic shading that studio polish often smooths away.
Matthew Gilsenan, the Kells, County Meath native whose emotive tenor has captivated audiences from New York to Shanghai, brings his characteristic storytelling warmth throughout. Daryl Simpson BEM — whose British Empire Medal recognises his dedication to peace and reconciliation through music — adds operatically trained power and nuanced artistry. George Hutton, the Derry-born tenor whose collaborations have ranged from Hozier to legendary Irish composer Phil Coulter, infuses the trio with fresh energy and contemporary sensibility. Together, they have earned their place among Ireland’s most successful classical-crossover acts while maintaining a rare balance of skill and personality — and over two decades and more than one million albums sold worldwide, their appeal, as the critics confirm, remains gloriously undimmed. A tour of Ireland is planned for later this fall, with the trio returning to North America for their celebrated Celtic Christmas 2026 tour.
The Celtic Tenors: Live at The Empire Theatre is out now on all major streaming platforms and available for purchase through Slammin’ Media and Believe Distribution.
2026 TOUR DATES:
June 26, 2026 — Ceili at the Castle, Hillsborough, UK
Play It Loud! How Toronto Got Soul’ Puts Jay Douglas and Reggae History Where They Belong
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CBC Radio: “Jay Douglas finally gets his flowers!”
Exclaim:« An entertaining celebration of one of the key architects of the Toronto sound”
JAZZ FM: « Beloved Toronto music legend Jay Douglas is finally getting his flowers! Proud to see his story come to life through this film!”
Reggae North: “A landmark event in Canadian music history!”
Sly Dunbar: “The Lou Rawls of Jamaican music”
Play It Loud! — How Toronto Got Soul, the feature documentary documentary, directed by Graeme Mathieson, produced by Andrew Munger (Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and The Band), and Executive Produced by Clement Virgo (Brother, The Wire) has been nominated for 2026 Canadian Screen Awards for Best Biography or Arts Documentary Program or Series.
For much of the late 1960s and early 1970s, the Caribbean, Jamaican and reggae music scene in Toronto was almost unrivaled in North America in terms of quality and performers. Jay Douglas, lead singer of The Cougars and one of the biggest and brightest talents of that time, is the subject of this fantastic TVO Original documentary from Toronto’s Ultramagnetic Productions. Play It Loud! – How Toronto Got Soul enjoyed its World premiere at Toronto’s The Royal Theatre in October 2024, drawing a lineup around the block, before opening the Hot Docs Doc Soup season in December. Play it Loud! has gone on to play theatrically and in festivals across Canada, the U.S. and the U.K., winning laurels at the Yorkton Television Fest, New Orleans Black Film Festival, the U.K.’s Windrush Film Festival in Liverpool and the Los Angeles Pan African Film Festival.
Play It Loud! – How Toronto Got Soul traces Douglas’ life from his childhood in Jamaica to immigrating to Canada in his teenage years and residing in Toronto with a host of other Jamaica-born artists such as Jackie Mittoo, Leroy Sibbles and Wayne McGhie among others. With Toronto becoming a hotbed of Jamaican music, Douglas established himself as the lead singer of The Cougars, a fabulous group who performed a collage of genres (reggae/Caribbean/soul/ska/
Featuring appearances by Sly Dunbar, vocalist Jackie Richardson, Cadence Weapon (Rollie Pemberton), Lillian Allen, Adrian Miller, former MuchMusic host Michael Williams and many others, and the music of Bob Marley, Bo Diddley, James Brown, The Cougars and Wayne McGhie, Play It Loud was financed by TVO, Canada Media Fund, Telefilm, Ontario Creates, Rogers Documentary Fund, Knowledge Network BC and the Hot Docs–Slaight Family Fund.
Canada’s High Commission in Kingston, Jamaica is sponsoring the film’s Jamaican premiere on April 15, Canadian Film Day.
Ultramagnetic is in development on multiple projects including The Correspondent: Getting the Story is Half the Battle which examines the contemporary threat facing journalism through the life and career of legendary British/Canadian foreign correspondent Michael Maclear. The Correspondent is being developed with Ontario Creates and NHK Japan, with Takahiro Hamano, ex NHK exec as co-producer. Other projects include the series Sound Check: Tales From the Musical Underground. Equal parts Netflix’s Song Exploder and Parts Unknown, co-creator, Polaris Prize winning rapper Rollie Pemberton (Cadence Weapon) in the Anthony takes us on an immersive, intimate journey into the world of Canadian independent music. Also on the slate are Decrypted: Cybercrime, in development with true crime veteran Barbara Shearer, the “Untitled Science Project”, a top secret follow up to 2018’s successful Toxic Beauty, and Michael’s Wars, a scripted feature film.
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Eric Alper
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Canadian Blues Music Awards Crown First-Ever Winners at Landmark Toronto Gala
TORONTO, ON — The Canadian Blues Music Awards made history Monday night at The Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto, crowning the first-ever winners of Canada’s new national blues recognition programme across 16 competitive categories. The inaugural gala brought together the finest performers in Canadian blues for a landmark celebration that was more than an awards show. It was a statement about the depth, diversity, and resilience of blues music in this country.
The evening’s biggest winner was Brandon Isaak, who took home Electric Blues Recording of the Year, Blues Song of the Year for « Walkin’ With The Blues, » and Blues Guitarist of the Year, all for his album ‘Walkin’ With The Blues.’ Steve Marriner claimed Blues Producer of the Year for his work on three recordings: ‘Hear My Heart,’ Big Dave McLean’s ‘This Old Life,’ and David Gogo’s ‘YEAH!’ Sue Foley won Acoustic Blues Recording of the Year for ‘One Guitar Woman, A Tribute to the Female Pioneers of Guitar.’ Crystal Shawanda took Female Blues Vocalist of the Year for ‘Sing Pretty Blues,’ while Marcus Trummer claimed Male Blues Vocalist of the Year for ‘From The Start.’ Kenny « Blues Boss » Wayne won Blues Keyboard Player of the Year for ‘Ooh, Yeah!’, and Ollee Owens was named Emerging Blues Artist or Group of the Year for ‘Nowhere to Hide.’
The Canadian Blues Music Awards is a fully independent, incorporated national not-for-profit organization built from the ground up with a mandate to govern, develop, and operate Canada’s premier blues recognition programme. Initially formed in spring 2024 by Brant Zwicker and Cindy McLeod, the CBMA Governing Committee spent more than a year in extensive research, national consultation, and programme development before incorporating as an independent organization. All artist category awards are decided exclusively by a jury panel of industry professionals drawn from a national pool spanning radio, print, labels, engineering, production, promotion, academia, associations, festivals, and venues. « The Canadian Blues Music Awards represents a complete overhaul, » said Quisha Wint, Chair of the Toronto Blues Society. « A whole new programme created to serve the Canadian blues community with greater transparency, fairness, and unity from coast to coast to coast. »
Lifetime Achievement honours were presented to five foundational contributors to Canadian blues: Amos Garrett, Bobby Dean Blackburn, Kenny « Blues Boss » Wayne, Russell Jackson, and Tim Williams. The gala also featured live performances from Steve Marriner, Crystal Shawanda, Kenny « Blues Boss » Wayne, Brandon Isaak, and Dana Wylie of Secondhand Dreamcar, with host Danny Marks opening the evening. The after-party featured sets from emerging artist nominees Glenn Marais and The Mojo Train, Ollee Owens, JP LeBlanc, and Secondhand Dreamcar.
The Canadian Blues Music Awards are now established as the gold standard of blues recognition in Canada, a programme built on transparency, coast-to-coast representation, and a genuine commitment to the music and the people who make it.
2025 Canadian Blues Music Awards Winners:
Emerging Blues Artist or Group of the Year
Ollee Owens (Ollee Owens: Nowhere to Hide)
Blues Song of the Year
Brandon Isaak: Walkin’ With The Blues (Walkin’ With The Blues)
Acoustic Blues Recording of the Year
Sue Foley: One Guitar Woman, A Tribute to the Female Pioneers of Guitar
Electric Blues Recording of the Year Brandon Isaak: Walkin’ With The Blues
Blues Producer of the Year
Steve Marriner (Steve Marriner: Hear My Heart; Big Dave McLean: This Old Life; David Gogo: YEAH!)
Female Blues Vocalist of the Year
Crystal Shawanda (Crystal Shawanda: Sing Pretty Blues)
Male Blues Vocalist of the Year
Marcus Trummer (Marcus Trummer: From The Start)
Blues Guitarist of the Year
Brandon Isaak (Brandon Isaak: Walkin’ With The Blues)
Blues Keyboard Player of the Year
Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne (Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne: Ooh, Yeah!)
Blues Harmonica Player of the Year TIE
Guy Bélanger (Guy Bélanger: Postcards from London)
Steve Marriner (Steve Marriner: Hear My Heart; Big Dave McLean: This Old Life; David Gogo: YEAH!)
Blues Horn Player of the Year
Jerry Cook (Wailin’ Walker: All Fired Up)
Blues Drummer of the Year TIE:
Jim Casson (Davis Hall & The Green Lanterns: Canboro Canborough)
Sylvain “Sly” Coulombe (Chambers DesLauriers: Our Time To Ride)
Blues Bassist of the Year
Jasmine Colette (Blue Moon Marquee: New Orleans Sessions)
Blues Video of the Year
The Harpoonist: Show Me The Green (Did We Come Here To Dance)
Blues Industry Person of the Year TIE:
Bruce Morel (Morel Music International)
Ken Simms (Think Tank Music Network)
Lifetime Achievement Recipient
Tim Williams
Fan Favourite Award for Blues Artist or Group of the Year
Blue Moon Marquee
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Tom Wilson (Tehoháhake) Releases New Video « We Live In Dreams, » Co-Written With Tanya Talaga, Featured in Documentary Ni-Naadamaadiz: Red Power Rising
« We’re all gonna shine one day / we’ll stand our ground and never stray / rising tall with love and pride / while we live in dreams »
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TORONTO, ON — Celebrated Canadian musician, author, and visual artist Tom Wilson (Tehoháhake) today releases his luminous new video for « We Live In Dreams, » co-written with award-winning Anishinaabe journalist, storyteller, and filmmaker Tanya Talaga. Produced by Tom Wilson and mixed by Gary Furniss at The Stonehouse, the song is a stirring and deeply felt anthem of Indigenous resilience, cultural pride, and the unshakeable power of community, and arrives as one of the most meaningful recordings of Wilson’s remarkable career.
« We Live In Dreams » serves as the emotional centrepiece of the powerful new documentary Ni-Naadamaadiz: Red Power Rising, directed by Shane Belcourt and produced by Talaga’s production company Makwa Creative. The film resurrects and restores the buried history of a pivotal 1974 land-back occupation led by Louis Cameron, an Indian Residential School Survivor and founder of the Ojibway Warriors Society, an act of extraordinary courage that drew members of the American Indian Movement and ultimately brought the Native Caravan to Parliament Hill. Belcourt, who also directed and shot the song’s music video, brings the same unflinching visual storytelling to the single’s release.
The song was born from the creative partnership between two of Canada’s most essential Indigenous voices. Wilson and Talaga, whose groundbreaking books Seven Fallen Feathers and All Our Relations and Canadian Screen Award-winning docuseries The Knowing have reshaped conversations around Indigenous truth-telling, channelled the documentary’s spirit directly into the music. « We are here to give everything we’ve got to honour the warrior hearts who have dodged bullets, cut through razor wire and thrown their lives on the line to free the spirit of our people, » Wilson has said. « We are here to create art to fight the hate and the violence towards our people. We are here to tell the truth. We are here to stand for love and we are here to win with love. »
A multi-JUNO Award-winning artist known for his work with Blackie and the Rodeo Kings, Lee Harvey Osmond, and Junkhouse, as well as his bestselling memoir Beautiful Scars, Tom Wilson has spent decades building a body of work that honours his Mohawk heritage and insists on the truth. « We Live In Dreams » marks a new chapter in that legacy, a song written with intention, recorded with love, and offered to the world as both art and advocacy.
Ni-Naadamaadiz: Red Power Rising premieres on CBC’s Channel 1 on Sunday, May 24, 2026 at 9pm ET, with both versions available on CBC Gem beginning June 1, 2026. « We Live In Dreams » is available now on all streaming platforms. The single is released with funding support from the Ontario Arts Council, an agency of the Government of Ontario.
ABOUT TOM WILSON (Tehoháhake): Tom Wilson is a multi-JUNO Award-winning musician, bestselling author, and acclaimed visual artist whose work reflects his Mohawk heritage and lifelong dedication to truth-telling through art, music, and story. He is known for his work with Blackie and the Rodeo Kings, Lee Harvey Osmond, and Junkhouse, and as the author of the bestselling memoir Beautiful Scars.
ABOUT TANYA TALAGA: Tanya Talaga is an Anishinaabe journalist, author, filmmaker, and storyteller and the founder of Makwa Creative. She is best known for Seven Fallen Feathers, All Our Relations, and the Canadian Screen Award-winning docuseries The Knowing.
Steve Holt received his first JUNO nomination back in 1984 for The Lion’s Eyes in the Jazz Album of the Year category, and launched an international career performing with artists such as Archie Shepp, Eddie Henderson, Larry Coryell and James Moody.
But like many jazz musicians, Holt’s recording career eventually slipped out of the spotlight. His last album appeared in 2002, and for more than two decades he released nothing new. To many listeners, he had simply faded from view.
Now, at age 71, Holt has come roaring back with a new album of original music titled Impact — and it has brought him full circle with a 2026 JUNO nomination.
The record features a powerhouse quintet of some of Canada’s top jazz players and a set of fresh compositions that reflect the long arc of a life spent in jazz. One moment that has already drawn attention is Holt’s improvised solo piano interpretation of O Canada. Writing in The Aquarian, critic Mike Greenblatt said that « …what Holt does with the anthem is akin to what Hendrix did to the Star-Spangled Banner at Woodstock.”
It’s an unusual story in Canadian music — a musician still creating vital work after half a century in the art form and receiving a JUNO nomination more than forty years after his first.
Let me know if you’d like to do an interview with Steve, and I’ll be happy to set it up here, and thank you – as always – for your time and consideration!
Steve Holt Jazz Impact Quintet Nominated for 2026 JUNO Award – Jazz Album of the Year
The nomination for Jazz Album of the Year marks a major milestone for the acclaimed Canadian pianist, composer, and bandleader Steve Holt.
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IMPACT was made with intention, honesty, and letting great musicians bring the music fully to life. Being nominated for a JUNO is an honour I truly didn’t expect.”
— Steve Holt
TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA – The Steve Holt Jazz Impact Quintet has received a 2026 JUNO Award nomination for Jazz Album of the Year for their latest release, IMPACT — marking a major milestone for the acclaimed Canadian pianist, composer, and bandleader Steve Holt.
The nomination recognizes IMPACT as one of Canada’s most compelling jazz recordings of the year. The album showcases Holt’s return as a leader and composer, supported by a powerhouse quintet featuring Perry White (saxophone), Kevin Turcotte (trumpet), Duncan Hopkins (bass), and Terry Clarke (drums) — five of the country’s most respected jazz musicians.
Released in 2025, IMPACT has drawn positive critical attention from around the world for its musical depth, high-level ensemble interplay, and Holt’s distinctive compositional voice. Jack Kenny, at All About Jazz (USA) described IMPACT as “An intense album bursting with creativity. FOUR STARS”. Gordon J ack, at Jazz Journal (UK) said “This is Canadian jazz at its finest.” And Thierry De Clemensat, from Paris Move (France) concluded “Impact stands as a vibrant new chapter in Steve Holt’s storied career, rooted in tradition, yet resonating firmly in the now.”
Steve Holt is a two-time JUNO-nominated pianist whose career spans more than four decades. He was McGill University’s first-ever Bachelor of Music program majoring in Jazz Performance and later studied in New York City with legendary pianist Kenny Barron. Holt released his JUNO-nominated debut album The Lion’s Eyes in 1983 and has since performed with jazz greats including Archie Shepp, Larry Coryell, James Moody, Eddie “Cleanhead” Vinson, Bob Mover, and Michel Urbaniak.
The JUNO nomination for IMPACT marks Holt’s return to national recognition as a leader and composer and further establishes Steve Holt as a leading force on today’s Canadian jazz sta ge.
< br>The 2026 JUNO Awards will be presented March 27th in Hamilton Ontario, celebrating excellence in Canadian music across all genres.
MARIO PUGLIA EARNS JUNO NOMINATION FOR LATIN MUSIC RECORDING OF THE YEAR
Bilingual Artist Recognised for Debut Album ‘‘He Sanado Varias Cosas’’ – A Layered, Soulful Exploration of Healing, Identity, and Growth
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TORONTO, ON – Bilingual indie-pop and Latin Urban artist Mario Puglia has received a JUNO Award nomination for Latin Music Recording of the Year for his debut album ‘He Sanado Varias Cosas’, released via ABC Music. The recognition marks a landmark moment for the Toronto-raised multi-instrumentalist, whose warm, genre-defying sound – built at the intersection of Indie-Pop, R&B, and Latin Urban – has quietly been winning hearts across both English and Spanish-speaking audiences. The JUNO Awards Gala Presented by Music Canada takes place on Saturday, March 28th in Hamilton, Ontario, with The JUNO Awards Broadcast airing live nationwide on CBC and CBC Gem, and globally on CBC Music’s YouTube channel, on Sunday, March 29th at TD Coliseum.
Self-taught on guitar, keys, and drums, Puglia brings a rare totality to his artistry: he writes, produces, and performs with the same fluid ease with which he navigates between Spanish and English. Born in Caracas and raised in Toronto, he carries both worlds in his music without choosing between them, building what he describes as a “refuge” for anyone who has ever felt like a citizen of nowhere and everywhere at once. His sound is warm and golden, impossible to pin to a single shelf – and ‘He Sanado Varias Cosas’ is its fullest expression yet.
The title of the album translates to “I’ve Healed Several Things” – and the deliberate incompleteness of that phrase is the point. ‘He Sanado Varias Cosas’ does not claim total healing. It acknowledges progress. Written across different cities and emotional seasons, the record documents a process rather than a conclusion, moving through anxiety, self-worth, presence, nostalgia, forgiveness, identity, and joy with the kind of honesty that requires both courage and humour. Sonically, the album blends organic textures with contemporary pop production, grounded yet expansive – reflective of a life lived between coastal calm and global cities. It is, as Puglia frames it, not a destination but a checkpoint: music for people who are growing in real time.
Two singles from the album offer a vivid window into the album’s emotional world. “Paz y Felicidad” was born at a writing retreat on a farm just outside Medellín – in a space owned by a manager who also worked with J Balvin – where Puglia gathered with producers Juan Cerro, Geogy Mills, and Pablo Melov. The song’s spark came from two Golden Retrievers on the property named Paz and Felicidad, who spent their days cheerfully chasing everyone with a tennis ball. “Peace and happiness are always chasing us, inviting us to play,” Puglia reflects. “Yet we often push them away, distracted or overwhelmed.” The song – and its video, filmed at Centro Ítalo, the Caracas soccer club where Puglia spent his childhood – became a joyful reminder to turn around and say yes.
The album’s second single, “vision board,” charts a quieter but equally resonant territory. Written in Ciudad de México during a period of relentless travel and emotional expansion, it captures what Puglia calls the duality of growth: “Nostalgia for where you come from and gratitude for where you are becoming.” Its lyrics carry that feeling with characteristic lightness: “Olvidar lo que me preocupa / me da chance para respirar / aunque esté lejos de casa / ¡qué bien se siente estar acá!” The video was shot in La Guaira, Venezuela – the oceanside neighbourhood where Puglia grew up – featuring archival footage of his parents and his younger self, surfing, yoga, and the intimate details of a life fully inhabited. It is, like the album itself, a love letter to presence.
With his JUNO nomination, Mario Puglia steps into a wider national spotlight as one of Canada’s most compelling emerging bilingual voices – an artist whose music speaks fluently to the complexity of the diaspora experience, and whose debut album stands as one of the year’s most emotionally generous records. ‘He Sanado Varias Cosas’ is available now on all streaming platforms. The winners will be revealed on stage in Hamilton, Ontario at The JUNO Awards Gala Presented by Music Canada on Saturday, March 28th, and The JUNO Awards Broadcast at TD Coliseum on Sunday, March 29th, live nationwide on CBC and CBC Gem and globally on CBC Music’s YouTube channel.
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