“There’s not enough 500-seater rooms around. To see a new one opening is important for the music scene in general,” says Bear Witness. By Nick Krewen Special to the Star On Friday, downtown Toronto will welcome a brand new venue with a concert headlined by The Halluci Nation: TD Music Hall. Located on the fourth floor of the Allied Music Centre building and complex that connects to the revitalized Massey…
Nick Krewen Special to the Star John McHugh remembers the time he accidentally became Joni Mitchell’s matchmaker. McHugh, who owned the Yorkville-era clubs The Penny Farthing and The Half Beat back in the ‘60s, recalls meeting “Joanna Anderson” when she came around to one of his venues around 1963-64. “It was at the Penny Farthing that (singer) Cathy Young brought this young lady in with her,” McHugh recalled recently…
Nick Krewen Special to the Star It’s an ugly truth, but racism is more prevalent in Canada than we’d like to admit, say two Black Canadian artists who are illuminating the issue in their current and powerfully candid works. “There’s definitely a problem in Canada,” says Ruth Berhe – better known as Ruth B. – who recently wrote and recorded the moving ballad “If I Have A Son” in the wake…
Nick Krewen Special to the Star Spotify, YouTube and streaming services in general: It’s time to step up. For way, way too long — Spotify, it’s been 14 years for you and 15 for YouTube — you have ridden on the backs of recording artists, musicians and songwriters that have provided you with content and, in turn, billions of dollars in profits, without offering them much in return. How much…
Nick Krewen Special to the Star There seems to be a light at the end of the pandemic-stricken concert tunnel. As reported by several publications, Michael Rapino, President and CEO of Live Nation Entertainment, during a first quarter earnings call with shareholders on May 7, indicates that his company is gearing up for concert ticket sales “in the third and fourth quarters for 2021 at full scale.” While it seems…
