Technology

Business, Canada, Music Publishing, Record Labels, Songwriter, Technology August 17, 2024

Can Canadian songwriters survive? As their income plummets to poverty levels, many find themselves making tough choices

Can Canadian songwriters survive? As their income plummets to poverty levels, many find themselves making tough choices By Nick Krewen Special to the Star What do the Beluga whale, the wolverine and the full-time Canadian songwriter have in common? They’re all on the endangered species list. While humans may be contributing to the extinction of the first two, it appears that for the third, digital streaming is hastening the demise…

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Business, Canada, Education, Hip-Hop, Marshall "Eminem" Mathers, Songwriter, Spoken Word, Technology, Voice February 20, 2021

‘To be a rapper, you really have to be genuine’ – Duane Gibson on motivation, perseverance and connecting with youth

Nick Krewen Special To the Star “Stay driven.” For 20 years, that message has been the underlying theme of Toronto hip-hop veteran Duane “D.O.” Gibson’s presentations at over 1000 schools across Canada.  Offering four programs that focus on the topics of anti-bullying, self-confidence, leadership, peer pressure, literature and Black history, to name a few, Gibson estimates he’s delivered more than 2500 of his empowering speeches and workshops to hundreds of…

Adult Contemporary, Arranger, Composer, Detroit, Funk, Grammy, Harp, Jazz, JUNO, Motown, Piano, Pop, Producer, R&B, Reggae, Rock 'N Roll Hall Of Fame, Songwriter, Spoken Word, Synthesizer, Technology, United States, Voice October 13, 2020

Stevie Wonder releases two songs at the same time in a bid ‘for the world to get better’

Nick Krewen Special to the Star Stevie Wonder has had his kidney transplant and is doing very well, thank you. In the first public acknowledgment that he had experienced the surgery since he announced his intention to undergo the knife last July, the Detroit-born Motown legend said during a virtual press conference from Los Angeles Tuesday afternoon that he was feeling  fine and in good post-surgery health.  “Let everybody know that…

Frank Dukes at Regent Park School Of Music

Abel "The Weeknd" Tesfaye, Arranger, Aubrey "Drake" Graham, Business, Canada, Composer, Engineer, Experimental, Grammy, Hip-Hop, JUNO, Lorde, Los Angeles, Marshall "Eminem" Mathers, Mixer, Music Industry (Trade), Music Publishing, Nicki Minaj, Piano, Pop, Producer, R&B, Rock, Songwriter, Soul, Taylor Swift, Technology, Toronto, United States July 22, 2019

Meet Frank Dukes – the go-to producer for superstars like Rihanna and Drake

Nick Krewen The Toronto Star July 12, 2019 He’s the go-to guy when you’re a pop music superstar looking for a hit – and he’s from Toronto. Frank Dukes may not be a household name to the general populace, but the 35-year-old songwriter and producer is on the speed dial of everyone who is anyone in pop music these days. Lorde, J. Balvin, Post Malone, Rihanna, Eminem, Travis Scott, Camila…

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…