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Bob Dylan, Business, Canada, Country, Country Music Hall Of Fame, Emmylou Harris, Gordon Lightfoot, In Memoriam, JUNO, Kate & Anna McGarrigle, Leonard Cohen, Los Angeles, Music Industry (Trade), Music Publishing, Nashville, New York, Producer, Record Labels, Robbie Robertson, The Band, Toronto, United States July 10, 2024

Remembering the Toronto music exec who helped shape the careers of Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen

Artists as diverse as Van Morrison, Thin Lizzy and the Marshall Tucker Band were touched by Mary Martin’s expertise. By Nick Krewen Special to the Star If the only thing Toronto’s Mary Martin had achieved during her extraordinary career was introducing Bob Dylan to the Hawks, it would have been enough to enshrine her place in music history. But Martin, who died July 4 in Nashville at the age of…

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Aubrey "Drake" Graham, Canada, Engineer, Grammy, Hip-Hop, JUNO, Justin Bieber, Los Angeles, Marshall "Eminem" Mathers, Mixer, Nicki Minaj, Producer, Songwriter, Toronto, United States July 20, 2023

Boi-1da reflects on his career — from being a Toronto kid rushing out to buy an Eminem album to a Grammy nominated producer

Boi-1da has produced for music superstars, including a long association with Drake. On Sunday, he’s up for Non-Classical Producer of the Year for the second time By Nick Krewen Special to the Star When the 65th Grammy Awards are held Sunday in Los Angeles, all Canadian eyes will be on the Non-Classical Producer of the Year category. That’s because Toronto’s Matthew Samuels – better known publicly as Boi-1da – has…

Adult Contemporary, Arranger, Bryan Adams, Business, Composer, Grammy, John Hiatt, Los Angeles, Mariachi, Music Industry (Trade), Music Publishing, Pop, Producer, Record Labels, Trumpet, United States May 10, 2023

Herb Alpert brings 60 years of hit-making to Toronto’s Queen Elizabeth Theatre

 By Nick Krewen Special To The Star You may remember him for his No. 1 smashes “This Guy’s In Love With You” and “Rise” – and for his signature “happy” trumpet sound fronting The Tijuana Brass –  but Herb Alpert has worked his way into your musical DNA probably more than you realize. Yes, there were the familiar ’60s instrumental hits like “The Lonely Bull,” “A Taste of Honey,” “Spanish Flea”…

Garage Rock, Grammy, Grunge, Guitar, Guns N' Roses, Hard Rock/Heavy Metal, Los Angeles, Metallica, Rock, Songwriter, United States April 13, 2023

Metallica’s Kirk Hammett loves Toronto – but he won’t be playing here anytime soon

Hammett and his metal band mates are limiting their time on the road but not the music itself. New album 72 Seasons is out Friday. By Nick Krewen Special to the Star Metallica fans, there is some good news and some bad news. First, the positive stuff: to support 72 Seasons, the San Francisco heavy rock band’s 11th studio album and first since 2016’s Hardwired…To Self-Destruct, the tandem of singer…

Arranger, Bob Dylan, Canadian Music Hall Of Fame, Composer, Emmylou Harris, Engineer, Grammy, Hamilton, JUNO, Los Angeles, Neil Young, Producer, Québec, Robbie Robertson, Songwriter, Soul, The Band, The Tragically Hip, Toronto, United States, Willie Nelson March 16, 2021

Choir Director Johnny Shepherd Brings Gospel-Infused Soul to Daniel Lanois Project Heavy Sun

By Nick Krewen Special to the Star For his new,  brilliant gospel-flavoured soul album Heavy Sun, seven-time Grammy winner Daniel Lanois had to convince a Shepherd to leave his flock. Describing himself as a “now-and-again” guitarist for the Hallelujah Train band at the Shreveport, Louisiana-based Zion Baptist Church run by Brady Blade Sr., the Hull, Québec-born artist and award-winning producer of blockbuster albums by Peter Gabriel, U2 and Robbie Robertson says…