Producer

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…

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Canada, Guitar, JUNO, Music Industry (Trade), Pop, Producer, Record Labels, Songwriter, Therapeutic, Toronto, Voice March 12, 2021

Serena Ryder on touring, living hard and the mistakes that aren’t mistakes

By Nick Krewen Special To The Star        Serena Ryder knows all too well about the art of falling apart.        As a recording artist who used to tour relentlessly, the six-time Juno Award winner found the incessant grind of the road personally damaging, as she relied on a steady diet of drink, drugs and cigarettes to cope and carry on. “Being a touring musician can be one of the most draining…

Arranger, Australia, Business, Composer, Dance, EDM, Electronic, Electronic, Pop, Producer, Songwriter, Synthesizer, Voice April 28, 2020

How ‘Dance Monkey’ took Toni Watson on a ‘roller-coaster’ ride

 Nick Krewen Special to the Star Toronto, Toni Watson feels your pain. The Australian native professionally known as Tones And I, the originator of the impossibly irresistible chart-topping smash “Dance Monkey,” was really looking forward to entertaining you at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in April when COVID-19 interrupted her plans. “Toronto was meant to be my biggest show of the whole tour, so that was really exciting,” said Watson last…

Arranger, Canada, Composer, Education, Indie pop, Pop, Producer, R&B, Songwriter, Soul, Therapeutic, Toronto, Voice February 19, 2020

From opera trainee to sex worker to Juno-nominated artist: Storry’s tale isn’t ordinary

Nick Krewen Special to the Star   There aren’t many concept albums about working in the sex industry, but Storry is no ordinary singer and songwriter. So, when the Juno Award-nominated, Toronto-born, Mississauga-based artist debuts the performance of her new 11-song, R&B-flavoured album CH III: The Come Up at the Lula Lounge on February 20, it will come from a position of triumph. However, the adversity that Storry surmounted has…

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…