United States

Arranger, Big Band, California, Canada, Composer, Drums, In Memoriam, JUNO, Perspective, Progressive rock, Rock, Rock 'N Roll Hall Of Fame, Rush, Songwriter, Toronto, United States January 11, 2020

Remembering Neil Peart, whose jaw-dropping talent inspired a generation of musicians and wannabes

Nick Krewen Special to the Star January 11, 2020 He was closer to our hearts than we even realized. Make no mistake, the depth of anguish with which the music world  – especially Canadians – regards the unexpected passing of Neil Peart, 67,  on January 7 from glioblastoma, is immeasurable. Arguably the greatest and most influential drummer of his generation,  the Hamilton-born Peart – one third of progressive power trio…

Award Winners, Canada, JUNO, Miami, Perspective, Producer, R&B, Songwriter, Soul, Toronto, United States, Video, Voice October 14, 2019

U.S. immigration crackdown inspires Jessie Reyez’s charged new music video

Nick Krewen Special to the Star Oct 07, 2019 In the visually compelling video for her latest song “Far Away,” Toronto’s Jessie Reyez pulls no punches when depicting immigrant persecution in Trump’s America. During the two-minute-and-50-second scenario directed by Peter Huang, Reyez’s character and her male love interest are dancing at a party that is suddenly stormed and tear-gassed by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, who end up…

Aubrey "Drake" Graham, Canada, Children's Music, Country, Education, Grammy, Nashville, Pop, Songwriter, Taylor Swift, Toronto, United States August 26, 2019

Regent Park School of Music is glad to have a friend in Taylor Swift

By Nick Krewen Special to the Star August 26, 2019 The Regent Park School of Music has discovered that it’s nice to have a friend in high places – especially if that friend is named Taylor Swift. It turns out that several Regent Park School of Music students between the ages of nine and 18 appear on the Nashville-based Swift’s latest album Lover, released last Friday: specifically on the sample…

Murda Beatz is in the House

Arranger, Aubrey "Drake" Graham, Canada, Composer, Ed Sheeran, Engineer, Grammy, Hip-Hop, JUNO, Justin Bieber, Marshall "Eminem" Mathers, Producer, Songwriter, United States July 31, 2019

How did hip hop producer Murda Beatz connect with Migos, Cardi B and Drake? Lots and lots of networking

Fort Erie record producer Shane Lee Lindstrom has made a name for himself in hip-hop circles as Murda Beatz. By Nick Krewen Special to the Star July 31, 2019 Raw talent is one thing, but how does a budding producer from the Canadian border town of Fort Erie become a top dog in hip-hop and work with the likes of Migos, Cardi B., Drake,  Nicki Minaj, Chance The Rapper and…

Folk, Pop, United States July 29, 2019

Singer Maggie Rogers on letting her location inspire her and getting clear of ‘money and sexism’

By Nick Krewen Special to the Star July 29, 2019 Maggie Rogers hears music in colours. As a person who was born with synesthesia – defined by Wikipedia as “a perceptual phenomenon in which stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway leads to automatic, involuntary experiences in a second sensory or cognitive pathway”  – the 25-year-old singer and songwriter from Easton, Maryland known for such hits as “Alaska,” “Light On”…