November 28, 2024
CMAOntario Artiste du mois: Michel Lalonde Originaire de l’Est ontarien, Michel Lalonde est bien plus qu’un musicien : il est une figure incontournable de la musique franco-canadienne. Que ce soit à travers son groupe légendaire Garolou ou ses projets en solo, Michel a marqué la scène musicale avec sa voix chaleureuse et ses textes profondément humains. Dans son nouveau spectacle, “De Glen à Garolou”, Michel déroule, tel un conteur, le fil de ses souvenirs, nous invitant à revivre les étapes marquantes de son parcours. Ce voyage musical mêle souvenirs, anecdotes et chansons emblématiques, de ses débuts modestes avec Glen aux succès retentissants de Garolou. À travers ce spectacle, Michel incarne la mémoire vivante d’une culture, un lien entre le passé et le présent, où chaque […]
September 6, 2022
Nick Hedden is a Windsor, Ontario native who first picked up the guitar at just five years old. Participating in talent shows and school musicals immersed him in a world of music from a young age. Taking time away from music to focus on school, he returned to music after seven years to pursue his education. He holds a Masters Degree in Criminology. The “aha” moment for Nick happened during his first writing session, surrounded by seasoned writers from Nashville. During this session, he and his co-writers wrote one of Nick’s favourite songs; in that moment, he realized that he could do this for a living as well. Leaning in as a performer and songwriter, Nick started to invest in his career as an artist […]
August 4, 2022
What makes outstanding talent – nature or nurture? Kelly Prescott is an example for considering a balance of both as the optimum recipe. Kelly’s parents, Tracey Brown and Randall Prescott, are highly respected Canadian country royalty, so Kelly has had quality music in her life since before birth. Kelly and brother Kaylen inevitably teamed up to form the duo “Prescott”, and even though Kelly went on to forge her own career with the 2016 solo EP “Hillbilly Jewels”, Kaylen teamed up with Kelly again to produce her “Love Wins” release – a six song collection with co-writes from venerable songwriters Donovan Woods and Patricia Conroy. “Love Wins” also featured guest vocals from Shawn Austin and Jessica Mitchell, but one listen to Kelly’s rich voice will […]
June 21, 2022
2022 CMAOntario Rising Star nominee, Graham Scott Fleming, has been making waves with his current single, “Better Man”. Written by Fleming, “Better Man” has been featured as a Stingray Radio Trending Track, a Rogers Radio “One To Watch”, and as of writing this, is sitting at #36 on the Mediabase Canadian Country chart. Fleming is no stranger to the stage and performing. The Elmvale, Ontario, native has been honing his performance skills for the past nine years, working as a theatre and film actor in Toronto and on Broadway in New York City. It wasn’t until midway through high school that Graham learned he could actually sing. In 2011, he took first place in the North of Nashville Star Competition hosted by KICX 106 Pure […]
May 10, 2022
Owen Riegling has been picking away at a guitar since he was eleven years old. Growing up on a 100-acre farm outside of Mildmay, Ontario, Owen’s childhood consisted of playing hockey, riding dirt bikes, and a life written about in country songs. Country music didn’t really cross his radar until it hit the mainstream. He was more into rock music, and the Best of Steve Miller Band. It was Eric Church and Tyler Childers that captured Owen’s attention and drew his creative mind to the country genre. It was from artists like these that he learned he could bring together the elements of both rock and outlaw country that he loved and give them a modern spin that would resonate with listeners today. […]
April 12, 2022
(English version follows) Avril étant le mois de sensibilisation à l’Autisme, il était impensable de ne pas parler de Vincent Bishop. Ce jeune auteur-compositeur-interprète trace son chemin dans l’industrie musicale loin des sentiers battus. Ses paroles sensibles et intelligentes, sa pédale « loop » qui ne chôme pas et son charisme qui sourit à travers chaque composition lui créent un style autant envoutant qu’accrocheur. Multi-instrumentiste, Vincent fait souvent appel à de rythmes entraînants et des mélodies légères pour transmettre des messages importants sur la différence et la discrimination dans ses chansons, ayant lui-même été diagnostiqué comme atteint du syndrome d’Asperger, un trouble du spectre autistique (TSA). Il est également très impliqué dans les écoles, où il offre des ateliers et des conférences pour sensibiliser les jeunes. Son […]
March 11, 2022
When any artist or band can list Garth Brooks and Asleep at the Wheel’s Ray Benson among their many fans, they must be hitting a lot of home runs. Easily Canada’s premier Western Swing group, The Western Swing Authority’s pedigree is overflowing with the talent of its A-list members – some of the country’s finest touring and studio musicians. Celebrating their 13th year of swinging this April, it’s truly a labour of love for this crew and it shows if you’ve ever witnessed a live WSA gig. If you haven’t, order their DVD The Western Swing Authority – LIVE in Full Swing – A High Brow Hootenanny, settle into your couch and be prepared to book therapy for sore cheeks the next day. That might […]
February 7, 2022
Jason Blaine may sing about being “Born to Love”, but he really was born to entertain and has a track record to prove it. Growing up in Pembroke, Ontario, Jason and his family moved to Nashville in 2006, where he got to work as a songwriter. His single “Rock In My Boot” would be released just one year later and would thrust him into the spotlight as his first number one song. It’s also one of 25 Billboard charting tracks for Jason to date. His love for country music has solidified his role in the industry as a top songwriter, artist and entertainer. Countless CCMA, SOCAN, and CMAOntario awards, over 10 million streams across DSPs, and seven albums (soon to be eight) round out Jason’s […]
January 12, 2022
Anyone who follows Genevieve Fisher would probably notice that she doesn’t use the brakes much. Nope. Her foot’s on that long skinny pedal most of the time, taking some corners on two wheels. If you’re counting, you will notice that Genevieve has charted 9 top 50 singles, with “Take It On Home” and “You Me We” climbing into Canada’s Top 20 and Top 30 respectively. She even invaded the Top 40 with two singles simultaneously: her duet with David James, “Then There’s You” and her solo release, “Playing Favourites”. London-born and raised, her Indigenous heritage qualified her to register three number one hits on the North American Indigenous Music Countdown chart. Genevieve has carefully built a creative team around her, writing with some of country […]
December 17, 2021
If it looks like Nate Haller has too much to celebrate, well… that’s all his fault. OK, let’s do a little inventory: Nate’s debut track, “Lightning in a Bottle”, released earlier this year, invaded the Top 10 at Canadian country radio; he was named as iHeart Radio’s Future Star; his current tracks have amassed over three million global streams; he was featured on Spotify’s RADAR program; then he signed a management deal with Starseed Entertainment (James Barker Band, The Reklaws, Jade Eagleson). If we stopped there, wouldn’t that be more than enough to pop some champagne? You would think so, but the story gets deeper. “Lightning in a Bottle,” was actually the #2 most added track in its week of release (week of 04.20.21) at […]
November 22, 2021
Brothers Cory and Jeff Papineau have made a life out of turning lemons into lemonade and with that in mind, the Ottawa-born country music duo’s name, Lemon Cash, is perfect for them. The singer-songwriters come together with a lifetime of musical pursuit, shared experiences (good and bad), and a love of everything they put into their music. The brothers hail from a musical family – singing, writing and performing together (even for the answering machine) years before forming Lemon Cash, initially as an alt rock cover band. At the urging of their family, Cory and Jeff made the move to country (keeping some of the rock edge where it’s needed). With artists like Patsy Cline, George Jones, George Strait, Dolly Parton, Tim McGraw and Garth […]
October 13, 2021
What happens when three experienced country music voices come together to try a new vibe and sound? New Moon Junction happens. Barb Doran, Tamara Maddalen and Matt Rogers came together to create the new country music trio, offering something new to fans and listeners who may have already known them on their own. And that was intentional. “That was the idea right from the start. Typically, my music is quite serious – even depressing at times – but the great thing about the three of us together is that we very much focus on being positive and upbeat.” said Doran about the group’s sound and mission statement. In 2021 (so far) the trio has released their first 2 singles. Real Good Kinda Thing came first […]
September 14, 2021
From small-town Shelburne, ON and ready to make waves in country music, Jessica Sole has arrived. Her new single, Think Of Us, was released to digital platforms and country radio in mid-August, and is already picking up steam through playlists, streams, and spins. The track has landed on curated playlists at Amazon Music, and made it to Sirius XM CBC Country, cracking the Top 40 on the CBC chart just two weeks after its digital release. With inspirations like Kacey Musgraves, Miranda Lambert and Taylor Swift, Jessica Sole has dug into her songwriting and sound, carving out her space and building her audience as she goes. Those inspirations shine through in Think Of Us, with early Swift-esque storytelling and charm from beginning to end. On […]