Music Industry (Trade)

Alt. Rock, Business, Canada, Folk, Indie pop, Music Industry (Trade), Rock, Stratford, Toronto April 20, 2019

PledgeMusic troubles hit Canadian musicians like Dayna Manning and Amanda Rheaume

Nick Krewen Special to the Star Thursday, March 28, 2019 After singing the PledgeMusic blues, independent recording artist Dayna Manning is breathing a sigh of relief. Like too many other artists — L7, Fastball and Jesus Jones, to name a few — Manning is owed money donated by fans via the nine-year-old U.K. crowdfunding platform, which has all but suspended operations due to financial woes. Delayed payments dating back to…

Read More

Business, Canada, Gordon Lightfoot, Music Industry (Trade), Neil Young, Rush, Toronto October 3, 2018

Massey Hall’s Massive Revitalization

Story by Nick Krewen | December 13, 2017 The Grand Old Lady is not only getting a facelift, but a makeover. Massey Hall, originally built in 1894 by Canadian industrialist and philanthropist Hart Massey at a cost of $152,000, is in the midst of a $139 million revitalization that will see the iconic, downtown-Toronto, 2,765-seat music venue shutter for a little over two years, starting July 30, 2018. When it…

Aubrey "Drake" Graham, Business, Canada, Hip-Hop, Los Angeles, Music Industry (Trade), Technology, Toronto, United States December 29, 2017

Want to buy a piece of a Drake song? Track’s rights sold via pioneering digital currency scheme

Vezt lets investors and fans purchase a share of future revenues from ‘Jodeci (Freestyle)’ and many more to come. Nick Krewen, Music  Sun., Dec. 10, 2017 For a man who is at the top of his game, Drake can’t seem to stop making money — even when it’s for other people. Only this time, it’s a different kind of money, one that could have far-reaching implications as the music industry…

Alt. Rock, Business, Country Rock, Cracker, Music Industry (Trade), Record Labels, Songwriter, Technology, United States July 18, 2017

David Lowery, the singer who made Spotify pay, calls settlement a ‘good first step’

Lowery’s band Cracker is hitting Danforth Music Hall on Tuesday in wake of conclusion of vocalist’s class action. Nick Krewen Music, Tues., July 18, 2017   Meet the man who made Spotify blink and scored a major victory for songwriters in the process. On May 26, David Lowery, the chief singer and songwriter of California rockers Cracker, appearing at the Danforth Music Hall on Tuesday with Soul Asylum, claimed victory…

Business, Montréal, Music Industry (Trade), Pop, Québec, Technology June 14, 2017

Maya Kodes is a new kind of virtual pop star

Nick Krewen Music, Wed. June 14, 2017 You may not have heard of Maya Kodes, but over the past year, the slender blond singer has released a dance pop song on iTunes, recorded an EP set for release in June, performed 30 concerts and amassed 5,500 Facebook followers. Pretty impressive for a hologram. Billed as the world’s first interactive real-time virtual pop star, Kodes is the creation of Montréal’s Neweb Labs….