September 3, 2024 – October 5, 2024: Liss Gallery, 112 Cumberland Street, Toronto

If you’ve ever thumbed through a music magazine or gazed in admiration at a poster of a legendary rock star, the chances are good you were looking at the work of Bob Gruen. From his iconic portraits of John Lennon in New York to his seminal studies of the punk explosion of the late 1970s, Gruen has been at the forefront of capturing our culture heroes on camera for over half a century. And now the public gets to see the proof up close via a retrospective exhibit of his absolutely electric rock photography at Toronto’s Liss Gallery.

Nostalgia has a poignant way of folding in upon itself. That’s what’s happened with “Summer Dreams,” the 2013 duet between Canadian guitar icon Liona Boyd and Australian pop superstar Olivia Newton-John.

When it was first released 11 years ago, the song was a simple, heartfelt ode to weekend vacations past. Now that it’s been rereleased in a remixed and updated production, the record has taken on the extra dimension of a moving tribute to a friendship not even death could dim. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juDUrvK4Op0

“Back in 2013, I asked my dear girlfriend of many years, the late Olivia Newton-John, to be my guest on a song for an album I was releasing that year,” Boyd says. “She happily agreed, and I flew down with my producer, Peter Bond, to record her near her home in Jupiter, Florida.

Marie-Mai to Host Star-Studded Event Being Held on September 28 at Massey Hall in Toronto

AHI, Dallas Smith, Tenille Townes, Whitehorse, William Prince to Perform in Honour of Inductees Tom Cochrane, Jim Cuddy and Greg Keelor, Sarah McLachlan and Diane Tell.

The Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame (CSHF) is pleased to announce the host and initial lineup of artists confirmed to perform at the 2024 CSHF Induction Ceremony presented by Amazon Music, at Massey Hall in Toronto on September 28, 2024. Among the performers is Gary LeVox, the legendary vocalist and frontman of Rascal Flatts, one of country music’s most influential bands. Rascal Flatts famously recorded Cochrane’s iconic chart-topper “Life Is a Highway” in 2005, reviving the song’s popularity for a new generation.

Lilla By Festivalen, the festival located in the small village of Rinkaby, Sweden is entering its 4 year and this year looks to be their most successful one ever.

Rinkaby, a small village (Lilla By is Swedish for just that) is located close to Lake Hammarsjon and 12 kilometres from Kristianstad.

The event is the creative dream of Rinkaby residents Malin Osth and Jonas Tancred, who wanted to have a festival for the local village people to gather and for the folks in the vicinity to have an easily commutable destination and has now evolved into a global event, gathering the legendary Canadians as well as up and coming talent.

"We, as well as most other people, had our calendar basically erased during the COVID pandemic so when the restrictions were opening 2021 we thought we just had to create our own little festival. We thought, how hard can it be!? And when we got the opportunity to host our festival together with the music industry professionals showcasing ourselves and other fellow musicians we just had to go with it," explains Malin and Jonas.

Contemporary roots-folk singer-songwriter Howard Gladstone releases the first new single "Crazy Talk" (Sonic Peach Music) from his upcoming album of the same name, to-be-released in September, 2024. This will mark Gladstone’s eighth album to date. He is also publishing a book of his collected lyrics titled "Timepieces." The song is available now on all major platforms.

"Crazy Talk," the title track of Howard Gladstone's upcoming album, is a lighthearted, lazy, jazzy shuffle that pays lyrical homage to Patsy Cline, The Beatles, and Robbie Robertson. The song features delightful backing vocals from JAZZ-FM radio host and musician Laura Fernandez; a mellow bass solo from Bob Cohen; and a sprightly electric guitar solo from the great Tony Quarrington – who co-wrote the song (and four others on the album), and also produced the LP. Says Quarrington, "'Crazy Talk' is a loping, good-natured ramble through various topics: country music, love, revolution, and lots besides."

"I can think of no better gift that I could give to everyone to help me celebrate my birthday". June 15th was a response to the overwhelming feelings developed as the record started to take shape, and with the final mixes. graphics, mastering including the new hidden tracks and EDM dance mixes it took on a persona of its own.... THE CHAMPION

CHAMPION JUST FEELS SO EXCEPTIONAL NOW, SO PHENOMENAL for me- that there would be no better gift I could give to celebrate this time in my life.

Listen on Spotify here: open.spotify.com/album/7nlTROOz1Wx9iwkGl2ZtC5

Centre in the Square, Kitchener, Ontario is elated to announce a transformative lineup of new programs and community engagement initiatives, set to enrich the local arts scene and provide diverse entertainment experiences for all. These initiatives include the launch of a spectacular international series lineup, a dynamic comedy series, and the reopening of the Studio Theatre as an accessible rehearsal and performance space.

International Series: Our international series features a rich tapestry of global talent, including:

Mariza – October 22, 2024 * Portugal
The queen of Fado music, Mariza, will mesmerize audiences with her soulful voice and captivating performances.

Gipsy Kings Ft. Nicolas Reyes – November 4, 2024 * France
Experience the vibrant rhythms and passionate melodies of the Gipsy Kings, led by the legendary Nicolas Reyes.

Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo – November 18, 2024* Monaco
This all-male ballet troupe will deliver a humorous and technically masterful performance.

What do sappy Hallmark holiday movies, bellybutton odor, and “basic Canadian girl energy” have in common? They’re all hilarious joke fodder in Windsor, ON-born, Toronto, ON-based Connie Wang’s new YouTube comedy special Canadian Famous.

Though the show takes many comical twists and turns through an exploration of being “Canadian famous” – i.e., starring in TV series, commercials and, yes, even Hallmark holiday movies without ever being fully recognized – Wang uses the end of the hour-long standup to poignantly focus on her mother’s determination to learn English.

Emmylou Harris, Killer Mike, Fitz and The Tantrums, Matt Andersen & The Big Bottle of Joy, The War and Treaty, and Charlotte Day Wilson to headline TD Halifax Jazz Festival Plus Jill Barber, Eliana Cuevas & Jeremy Ledbetter, Julian Lage, Emmet Cohen Trio and more as part of the full festival line up.

The 38th edition of the TD Halifax Jazz Festival (HJF) will take place throughout Halifax, Nova Scotia from Tuesday, July 9 to Sunday, July 14.

Since 1987, the TD Halifax Jazz Festival - originally JazzEast Rising - has been a non-profit organization promoting music and education. Organizing the oldest and largest summer festival in Atlantic Canada, the event also hosts diverse activities, including Jazz Labs and the Creative Music Workshop, contributing to Halifax’s vibrant cultural scene. With a commitment to diversity and cultural celebration, the festival showcases talented musicians, fosters community engagement, and provides unforgettable musical experiences for all.

Exhibition revisiting when Beatlemania swept across the nation, runs at Studio Bell from July 10, 2024 to January 5, 2025.

Shake it up. Twist and shout. It’s time to celebrate the 60th anniversary of The Beatles' arrival in Canada. On July 10, the National Music Centre (NMC) in Calgary will open a new exhibition, From Me to You: The Beatles in Canada 1964-1966, which offers a nostalgic tribute to the band's transformative years upon arriving in Canada for the first time.

The display captures the cultural landscape of Canada in the 1960s, and the frenzied excitement of Beatlemania that swept across the country. Adorned with rare photographs, memorabilia and audiovisual treasures, the exhibition will transport visitors to the landmark moment when The Beatles invaded Canada’s consciousness and ignited a nation's fervour.

This past April, the personal odyssey of Indigenous Canadian musician Tom Wilson Tehoháhake hit a new milestone when his 2017 novel, Beautiful Scars: Steeltown Secrets, Mohawk Skywalkers and the Road Home—which had already been adapted into a 2022 film documentary—was presented as a stage musical at Hamilton’s Theatre Aquarius. Now, Wilson’s own take on one of the big numbers from that show, “Death Row Love Affair,” is being released as a single, adding yet another chapter to his perpetually captivating story of healing while acting as a tantalizing preview of a new album he’ll be delivering later this year.

In the show - co-conceived by Wilson and writer/actor Shaun Smyth - the song provides a powerful closer to Act One. Wilson’s own rendition is an achingly honest rumination, with a hovering ominousness that perfectly befits its depiction of a human soul at a reckoning point:

Who’s kiddin’ who about where love goes
Some speed away
Some are going down slow
Oh I’m going nowhere in this death row love affair