Newsletter

The 56th Annual Grammy Awards have come and gone, and we’ve got Canadian winners: Michael Buble took home Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album for his “To Be Loved” CD; Quebec’s Jennifer Gasoi walked away with the Grammy for Children’s Album for “Throw A Penny In The Wishing Well”. Chilly Gonzales was nominated as a collaborator with Daft Punk on “Within” in the Album of the Year category and it also won. Many other Canadians were nominated for Grammys but didn’t win: Drake, Robin Thicke, The Weeknd and Mychael Danna, among others. But there was an Ontario Country Artist we were all rooting for – Deric Ruttan – for co-writing Blake Shelton’s Country Song of the Year nomination, “Mine Would Be You”. Deric shared the writing […]

DemoRama LIVE rocked a full house in Tillsonburg on Sun. Feb 2nd at host venue My Bar & Grill. GREAT performances starting off the top when the CMAO’s special guest performer and panelist Rob Kirkham & Neon Rain opened the event with a few originals that are playing on sponsoring radio station Country 107.3 FM. Other panelists included Country 107.3’s Randy Owen, who co-hosted the show with CMAO Director & Music Mentor Productions President, Peter Linseman. Everyone in attendance saw the depth of talent from Tillsonburg and surrounding areas with highlights coming from the “Best Of” DemoRama LIVE Showcase winners Augusta Campoli and Grace Wall; 14 & 15 yr olds who unanimously scored highest marks of the day! The next DemoRama LIVE will be in […]

Dear Members: Happy New Year! Let this New Year be the one where all your dreams come true. 2013 was a very successful year for the CMAO due to the passion and commitment shown by our members and the country music community. I want to thank our members and all our supporters and volunteers. With your continued support, we hope to continue to build on our success and make 2014 an even greater success. Don’t forget that our 2014 awards show submissions are open until February 4, 2014. We have two new awards in 2014: Roots Artist or Group of the Year and Record Producer(s) of the Year. If you haven’t put forward an application, please do so before you miss your chance to get […]

IN THE COUNTRY WITH DAVE WOODS Country music can make us feel empowered. Feel inspired. Feel comforted. Indeed, Country music can make us feel. Some would say it’s the genre’s greatest strength. Look no further than the lyrics of Michelle Wright’s recent single Strong for evidence of this. She’s strong as steel, forged in the fire, fighting through the scared and the tired, set on moving on. Strong enough to bend but never breaking, strong in the face of the battle raging, till all the weak is gone, she’s strong.  Just imagine the many listeners who have embraced this song as an anthem and felt strengthened by its message. I asked several Ontario Country artists (Riki Knox, Tianna Woods, Elyse Saunders, Cory Marquardt & Brea […]

Jane Harbury is one of the top publicists in this country. With a client list that reads like a who’s who in the international music business, Jane has been at her work for more than 40 years. She slaves away for her clients to make sure their latest release, their new video, their award nomination, their story … gets out to the public. Her job … to promote, publicize, and sing the virtues of each client. To do a job like that you have to believe in your clients. As Jane repeatedly states, “They’re not ‘acts’. It’s not ‘product’. It’s artists and music!”.  In fact, Jane feels the best piece of advice she ever got was “Believe in what and who you work with. And […]

by Stephanie Brooks With the ushering in of a new year, many people look to the time as a fresh start – a chance to reflect upon the previous one and plan for the upcoming. Many vow to change their health habits in January, while others focus on their relationships or attempt to learn a new skill. So what better time to embrace positive change for your music? If what you were doing for your music career wasn’t working last year, now’s the time to revamp it. And goal setting is where the transition from dreams to reality starts. From small-scale – like learning to tune your own instruments – to life-altering — like moving your family to Nashville to pursue a record deal – […]

by Patrice Whiffen This month our feature video from Patrice Whiffen at Country Music Junkies is with Ontario’s own Kerosene Creek. Nominated for a CMAO Award last year, this group has built its brand playing a jam-packed schedule of cover shows featuring both a male and female lead vocalist. Through hard work on the stage they’ve grown their fan base and exposure, and last year they released their first original radio single as a group – “Girls Get In Free”. Watch to learn more!

GREAT performance opportunity for singer/songwriters, up & coming artists and established artists…with great prizes too! The next DemoRama LIVE will be in Tillsonburg (my back still hurts…) with sponsoring radio station Country 107 and host venue My Bar & Grill on Sun. Feb 2nd at 1pm, Our Special Guest & Expert Panelist is Rob Kirkham & Neon Rain. Other Expert Panelists include Country 107.3’s Randy Owen, CMAO Executive Director, Bruce Good from the Good Brothers and hosted by CMAO Director, Peter Linseman. The CMAO want to wish you a prosperous and preposterous New Year and we’d like to tell you in person; so the DemoRama LIVE hits the road running in 2014 with another 3 or 4 destinations before the CMAO 2014 Award Show in May 2014! Although the dates have not […]