The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) was formed in 1975 as an umbrella not-for-profit organization for The JUNO Awards – Canada’s Music Awards, MusiCounts, Canada’s music education charity associated with CARAS and the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.
CARAS’ mandate is to promote and celebrate Canadian music and artists. The JUNO Awards is Canada’s premier awards show, which encompass a week-long celebration of Canadian music, culminating in The JUNO Awards Broadcast where Canadian artists are recognized for excellence of achievement in music.
YouTube Originals will premiere The Gift: The Journey of Johnny Cash, from director Thom Zimny (Elvis Presley: The Searcher, Springsteen on Broadway), on Monday, November 11. The film, which was created with the full cooperation of the Cash estate and rich in recently discovered archival materials, brings Cash the man out from behind the legend. Taking the remarkable Folsom Prison recording as a central motif and featuring interviews with family and celebrated collaborators, the 90-minute documentary explores the artistic victories, the personal tragedies, the struggles with addiction, and the spiritual pursuits that colored Johnny Cash’s life.
Jim Henson made this as part of a pitch reel to showcase the Muppets’ sense of humor. Ultimately CBS passed, but The Muppet Show later went on to be one of the most successful TV shows of all time.
Paula Abdul’s “Under My Spell Live” was filmed during live performances at Yokohama Arena in Japan and released on VHS video and laserdisc formats in 1993. The concert also aired numerous times on the Disney Channel in 1993.
Noel Gallagher is a rock ‘n’ roll legend formerly of the band Oasis, and currently with Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds—”This Is The Place” is their newest single and EP. But how is he with spicy food? Find out as the Manchester-born musician faces off against the wings of death and unleashes his no-holds-barred wit on a whole host of topics: the rise of Manchester City Football Club, Kanye West interviews, meeting Hulk Hogan, the state of UK hip-hop, and much more. Don’t miss out on a very rock ‘n’ roll Hot Ones!
In just 20 minutes, Queen’s performance at the 1985 Live Aid concert changed everything for them. Held at Wembley on 13 July 1985, in front of the biggest-ever TV audience of 1.9 billion, Queen performed some of their greatest hits. The show’s organisers Bob Geldof and Midge Ure, other musicians such as Elton John, Cliff Richard and Dave Grohl, and journalists writing for the BBC, CNN, Rolling Stone, MTV, The Telegraph among others, described Queen as the highlight. Mercury’s powerful, sustained note during the a cappella section came to be known as “The Note Heard Round the World”, and band were revitalised by the response to Live Aid – a “shot in the arm” Roger Taylor called it – and the ensuing increase in record sales.
K-pop all-star group SuperM will launch its first series of live shows on November 11th, 2019 at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, TX. The first leg will include a November 19th show at New York City’s Madison Square Garden. Kicking off on January 30th, 2020 at Viejas Arena in San Diego, the second leg will include a February 1st, 2020 concert at The Forum in Los Angeles – one of four West Coast dates. The U.S. outing will conclude at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, BC on February 6th, 2020. See below for itinerary.
Tickets for the live shows, which are being produced by Live Nation, go on sale Saturday, October 5th, 2019 at 10am local time at SuperMofficial.com. In celebration of the band’s first series of live dates, the majority of tickets at all shows are priced at $50.00 (plus fees) with a limited number of premium tickets available through VIP Packages and Platinum. Every online ticket purchased for the run will include a CD of the band’s debut EP – The 1st Mini Album ‘SuperM’ – set for release on October 4 via Korea’s largest entertainment company, SM Entertainment, in partnership with Capitol Music Group and Caroline.
Its seven members – Taemin from SHINee, EXO’s Baekhyun and Kai, NCT 127’s Taeyong and Mark, and Ten and Lucas of Chinese band WayV – have sold more than 14 million adjusted albums combined globally and amassed nearly four billion online video views worldwide. With their respective bands, they’ve performed for over seven million people around the globe.
SuperM – LIVE
2019
November 11th Fort Worth, TX, Dickies Arena
November 13th. Chicago, IL, United Center
November 15th Atlanta, GA, Infinite Energy Arena
November 17th Washington, DC, EagleBank Arena
November 19th New York, NY, Madison Square Garden
2020
January 30th San Diego, CA, Viejas Arena
February 1st Los Angeles, CA, The Forum
February 2nd San Jose, CA, SAP Center
February 4th Seattle, WA, ShoWare Center
February 6th Vancouver, BC, Pepsi Live at Rogers Arena
Multi-award winning — plus New York Times and Billboard Magazine charting — Canadian world music collective Sultans of String deliver to the world stage their powerful, evocative new single “I Am A Refugee” — available now.
Featuring esteemed poet, multimedia artist, and Somali refugee Ifrah Mansour, the gorgeous and heart-gripping track is part of a larger cross-collaboration release, Refuge. Set for Spring 2020, this their seventh and most historic album features talents that arrived to Canada and the U.S. as immigrants and refugees — many of whom are GRAMMY and JUNO Award winners.
“Each one of us in the world has a remarkable story to tell…” says Sultans of String co-founder, Chris McKhool (Jesse Cook, Pavlo). It’s his bold, fiery fiddle — melded seamlessly with founding guitarist Kevin Laliberté’s (Jesse Cook) rumba rhythm — that lead the group’s distinctly signature sound.
Added to this rich foundation are bass master Drew Birston (Chantal Kreviazuk), guitar wizard Eddie Paton, and Cuban percussion master Rosendo Chendy Leon (Alex Cuba). Together, their musical synergy strikes inimitable, explaining their three JUNO Award nominations, and four Canadian Folk Music Awards, plus many more.
“We are excited to share the beauty of these collaborations that feature special guests from First Nations, Turkey, Somalia, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Greece, Syria, Mexico, Portugal, Cuba, and Sudan.”
The five-piece recently marked their 12th anniversary as a band, which includes a dizzying series of award-winning releases, international touring at notable venues (including JUNOFest, Glasgow’s Celtic Connections, NYC’s Birdland, and selling out Koerner Hall several times over), plus appearances on BBC, CBC, Irish National Radio, NPR, SiriusXM, and then some.
“This is a project that is centred around the positive contributions of refugees and new immigrants,” McKhool offers, recalling his own grandfather who stowed away on a Lebanese ship bound for North America a century ago. “We are bringing in special guests that are newcomers to this land, as well as global talents that have been ambassadors for peace. We wish to celebrate the successes of those who make the journey here, and bring their extraordinary talents with them.
“We hope the kinds of conversations we can have as musicians can provide a model for peace that our politicians and citizens find inspiration from.”
For her part, Mansour’s tireless work and advocacy complement the mission.
“I wrote the poem for me, for my community, and for those yearning for change or to deepen their empathy,” Mansour details. “I wrote it because I was so frustrated with so many people sending me emails, and asking what I thought about (the United States) travel ban.
“A lot of times, those that are surviving are busy surviving… It is very hard for them to voice their pain. Those that have an ounce of empathy, and that have experienced something similar, have that responsibility to share.
“Writing the poem was a way to unleash some pain that I could name finally.”
Born in Saudi Arabia, Ifrah Mansour’s family attempted to return to their native Somalia only to be met with a civil war and collapsed government. Her parents and five siblings soon left for a refugee camp in Dadaab, Kenya — one of the oldest and largest in the world — before settling in Dallas, Texas, where the only African-American they knew was the mailman. “The whole family would run to the door when he came,” she recalls. “We asked him, ‘where are all the brown people?’”
Ultimately, Mansour would move to Minneapolis around high-school age, and now lives among the largest Somali diaspora community America. Now 30, she notes she hasn’t followed the ‘Somali immigrant path’ that she — or anyone else — expected. “I was doing what everyone was doing, which was ‘go to college and seek a degree that will financially stabilize you and your extended family,’” she says. “I was on-track for ‘elementary ed’ and my life was set… I was going to be the ‘perfect kindergarten teacher.’”
It was then she discovered her penchant — and passion — for performance and artistry.
“A lot of times, you have the ‘feeling,’ but you don’t have the words,” she says. “I feel like, as an artist, I have these words…
“An artist’s job is to draw that hope, especially in a time of deep hopelessness,” she continues. “There is an increase of refugees around the world… An increase in homelessness… There is a deep need for people to hear a message of hope, but also a message of pain.
“As an artist, I have to keep holding on to hop in days where it feels that there is nothing left to hold onto. It helps to keep creating because now I have a metaphor for anyone who is experiencing some kind of injustice, homelessness, forced migration, and their rights are being taken away.”
“I Am A Refugee” is co-produced by McKhool and John “Beetle” Bailey. The beds were recorded on First Nations land at the renowned Indigenous-owned Jukasa Studios; founded by Ohsweken’s, Kenneth Hill & Jerry Montour, Jukasa Studios is a multi-million dollar studio created for world-class and developing artists to make music in surroundings rich in spirit and tradition. (Fun fact: the legendary 8072 G Series Vintage Analog Console — which spent 12 years of its life in Studio Three at Abbey Road Studios in London England — was purchased and moved to Jukasa Studios in 2009.) Overdubs and mixing was done at The Drive Shed with John “Beetle” Bailey, and mastering by Harry Hess at HBomb Mastering.
“I Am A Refugee” is available now. Refuge is set for release Spring 2020.
Sultans Of String Tour Dates
September 28 @ Festival of Small Halls – St. John’s United Church, Brockville ON
September 29 @ Burlington Performing Arts Centre, Burlington ON
w/ Guest Anwar Khurshid & the Burlington Symphony
September 30 @ Burlington Performing Arts Centre, Burlington ON
Special Performance for Younger Audiences
November 8 @ OMEA Showcase, Toronto ON
November 23 @ Fergus Grand Theatre, Fergus ON
November 28 @ Banff Centre for the Arts, Banff AB
Christmas Caravan w/ Guest Rebecca Campbell
November 29 @ Fish Creek Concerts, Calgary AB
Christmas Caravan w/ Guest Rebecca Campbell
November 30 @ Festival Place, Sherwood Park AB
Christmas Caravan w/ Guest Rebecca Campbell
December 1 @ Beneath the Arch Concerts, Turner Valley AB
Christmas Caravan w/ Guest Rebecca Campbell
December 5 @ Wolf Performance Hall, London ON
Christmas Caravan w/ Guest Rebecca Campbell
December 6 @ Live Wire Music, Kingston ON
Christmas Caravan w/ Guests Rebecca Campbell & Lynn Miles
December 8 @ Concert Hall at Victoria Hall, Coburg ON
Christmas Caravan
December 13 @ Sanderson Centre, Brantford ON
Christmas Caravan w/ Guests Rebecca Campbell, Donné Roberts & Ken Whiteley
December 14 @ Oakville Performing Arts Centre
Christmas Caravan w/ Guests Rebecca Campbell, Lynn Miles, Donné Roberts & Ken Whiteley
December 15 @ Kingston Road Village Concert Series
Christmas Caravan w/ Guests Rebecca Campbell, Lynn Miles, Donné Roberts & Tamar Ilana
December 19 @ Shenkman Arts Centre, Ottawa ON
Christmas Caravan w/ Guests Rebecca Campbell, Lynn Miles, Kellylee Evans & Kristine St-Pierre
February 8 @ Living Arts Centre, Mississauga ON
w/ Mississauga Symphony Orchestra
March 7 @ Classic Theatre, Cobalt ON
May 2 @ Gravenhurst Opera House, Gravenhurst ON
