Check out A&W’s public art installation in Toronto commissioned by the burger chain. Reading “Change is Good,” the typography is made from the last of the company’s plastic straws. A&W switched from plastic to compostable straws last year – helping to keep out about 82 million pieces of single-use plastics from landfills each year.
CTV Reveals the 30 Aspiring Artists Featured on Season 2 of Hit Music Series, THE LAUNCH
CTV officially unveils today the 30 artists vying for their chance to record an original song on the upcoming second season of CTV’s smash-hit music series, THE LAUNCH, premiering January 30. Handpicked from thousands of applicants, these widely gifted artists represent some of the best talent that Canada has to offer across a variety of musical genres, including pop, rock, country, soul, folk, and more.
The six-episode second season of THE LAUNCH kicks off Wednesday, Jan. 30 at 8 p.m. ET/PT in super simulcast on CTV, VRAK, and the CTV app. Weekly episodes of THE LAUNCH will also air day-and-date with CTV on VRAK, subtitled in French. Encore presentations of THE LAUNCH air Saturdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CTV and Sundays at 11 a.m. ET on Much (visit CTV.ca and Much.com to confirm local listings).
Guiding artists through the audition, performing, and recording process are Scott Borchetta, world renowned music executive and CEO/Founder of Big Machine Label Group, and new permanent mentor Marie-Mai (STAR ACADÉMIE, LA VOIX), who join a weekly rotating panel of music industry powerhouse celebrity mentors and producers. Fan favourite entertainment reporter Liz Trinnear (ETALK) also joins Season 2 in a new hosting role.
See below for a list of artists, airdates, and corresponding celebrity mentors and song producers. To learn more about each artist and to watch a Season 2 preview, visit @CTV_PR and click here. Viewers can catch up on Season 1 of THE LAUNCH on CTV.ca, the CTV app, and the all-new Crave.
Episode 1 – Airing Wednesday, Jan. 30 at 8 p.m. ET/PT
Celebrity Mentor/Producer: Ryan Tedder
Amber J, Trail, B.C. – Pop, R&B
Cassiøpeia, Burnaby, B.C. – Alt-Pop
Dey, Toronto – Soul
NOA, Richmond Hill, Ont. – Pop
Vi, Ottawa – Alternative, Dark-Pop
Episode 2 – Airing Wednesday, Feb. 6 at 8 p.m. ET/PT
Celebrity Mentor: Sarah McLachlan
Song Producer: Alex Hope
Alexandra Porat, Mississauga, Ont. – Pop, R&B
Avery Florence, Montréal – Soft-Soul, Low-Key R&B
T. Thomason, Halifax – Indie, Pop-Rock
Trevor LaRose, Mississauga, Ont. – Alt-Pop
Phé, Vancouver – R&B
Episode 3 – Airing Wednesday, Feb. 13 at 8 p.m. ET/PT
Celebrity Mentor: Max Kerman (Arkells)
Song Producer: Jon Levine
Charlie The Kid, Toronto – Confetti-Folk
James Clayton, Montréal – Singer-songwriter, Alternative Folk-Rock
Old.Soul.Rebel, Vancouver – Soul, Rock-n-Roll
Polina Grace, Montréal – Power-Pop
Saveria, London, Ont. – R&B, Neo-Soul
Episode 4 – Airing Wednesday, Feb. 20 at 8 p.m. ET/PT
Celebrity Mentor: Jann Arden
Song Producer: Shaun Frank
Clancy Coulter, Princeton, B.C. – R&B, Alternative-Pop
Jayde, Peterborough, Ont. – Alternative-Pop
Julia Gartha, Markham, Ont. – Singer-Songwriter, Pop
Nick Babcock, Kingston, Ont. – Pop
Olivia Lunny, Winnipeg – Alternative-Pop
Episode 5 – Airing Wednesday, Feb. 27 at 8 p.m. ET/PT
Celebrity Mentor/Song Producer: Bryan Adams
Ben Cottrill, Vancouver – Acoustic-Rock, Soul
Jordane Labrie, Québec City – Folk Americana
Maddie Storvold, Edmonton – Country-Folk
Nate Daviau, Toronto – Country, Americana
The Faceplants, Vancouver – Pop-Rock
Episode 6 – Airing Wednesday, Mar. 6 at 8 p.m. ET/PT
Celebrity Mentor: Bebe Rexha
Song Producer: Nile Rodgers
Adrian Chalifour, Victoria – Indie-Rock, Folk-Rock
Del Hartley, Toronto – R&B/Soul
Michelle Treacy, Ottawa – Pop
Sarah Carmosino, Aurora, Ont. – Indie-Pop
WILL, Toronto – R&B, Pop
As announced last fall, the exciting second season of THE LAUNCH features A-List mentors and producers, including Grammy® Award-winning singer/songwriter Sarah McLachlan; Grammy® Award-winning music legend Bryan Adams; frontman for four-time JUNO-Award winning rock band Arkells, Max Kerman; celebrated multi-platinum award-winning singer-songwriter Jann Arden; chart-topping singer-songwriter Bebe Rexha; and recording/producing superstar Ryan Tedder, who produced the Season 1 certified platinum hit single “Ain’t Easy” by Elijah Woods x Jamie Fine, returns.
Additionally, some of the most successful producers working in music today join Season 2 to produce fresh hit songs including Nile Rodgers (Madonna, David Bowie, Diana Ross); Jon Levine (Avril Lavigne, Drake, Bebe Rexha); Alex Hope (Carly Rae Jepsen, Troye Sivan, Tove Lo); and Shaun Frank (The Chainsmokers, Steve Aoki, Dragonette).
Based on the success of the first season, THE LAUNCH secured an exclusive worldwide distribution deal with Sony Pictures Television (SPT). In addition, the inaugural season delivered a series of consecutive #1 hit songs amassing more than 30 million streams internationally to date, including “Ain’t Easy” by Elijah Woods x Jamie Fine, which also has accumulated more than 342 million radio audience impressions to date. The pop/hip-hop duo won the iHeartRadio MMVA for Best New Canadian Artist in August, and recently dropped their latest single “Better Off.”
Niagara Wine Country’s Oscar Peterson International Jazz Festival Is Set For February 15-17, 2019
The 2nd annual Oscar Peterson International Jazz Festival, with artistic director Renee Rosnes at the helm, will feature top jazz artists from both Canada and the United States in collaborative, once-in-a-lifetime performances in Niagara Wine County. The festival runs from Friday, February 15, 2019 through Sunday, February 17, 2019.
This year’s lineup includes Kenny Barron, Bill Charlap, Niki Haris, the Christine Jensen Jazz Orchestra, Ingrid Jensen, Joe Lovano, Kirk MacDonald, Russell Malone, Lewis Nash, Jeremy Pelt, Renee Rosnes, Reg Schwager, Neil Swainson and Peter Washington.
The Oscar Peterson International Jazz Festival (OPIJF), one of Canada’s most anticipated winter music events, is named for the internationally renowned Canadian jazz giant. It was created to present the essence of jazz and the sound of swing. Oscar Peterson dedicated his life to music with intense vitality: music which encompasses the entire living history of jazz, and the OPIJF represents the same unshakable excellence and integrity for which he was known. It is the mission of the OPIJF to showcase and celebrate world-class Canadian talent performing alongside American and international artists, thereby ensuring the future of jazz in Canada. Under the expert guidance of Artistic Director Renee Rosnes and Artistic Producer Kelly Peterson, this annual festival provides a unique opportunity to hear rare combinations of musicians and individual stars, in performance. The OPIJF is produced by Bravo Niagara! Festival of the Arts in partnership with The Estate of Oscar Peterson. Celebrate the past, the present, and the future — all at the same time.
All of the events are here and you can watch the video for the festival below.
Renee Rosnes is one of the premier jazz pianists and composers of her generation. Upon moving to New York City from Vancouver, Canada, she quickly established a reputation of high regard, touring and recording with such masters as Joe Henderson, Wayne Shorter, Bobby Hutcherson, J.J. Johnson, James Moody, and legendary bassist Ron Carter. She was a charter member of the all-star ensemble, the SFJAZZ Collective, with whom she toured for six years. Ms. Rosnes has released 17 recordings, and has appeared on many others as a sideman. In 2016, Written in the Rocks (Smoke Sessions) was named one of ten Best Jazz Albums of the Year by The Chicago Tribune, one of the Best Albums in all genres of music by The Nation, and was awarded a 2017 Canadian Juno (her fifth Juno award). JazzTimes wrote, “Ms. Rosnes delivers conceptual heft, suspenseful compositions and mesmerizing performances,” and DownBeat praised it as “an exceptional achievement” stating “Rosnes is a virtuoso composer.” The band’s most recent session, Beloved of the Sky (2018) draws inspiration for the title track from Canadian painter Emily Carr, and features master musicians Chris Potter, Steve Nelson, Peter Washington and Lenny White.
Setting Up the Top-Notch Audio System at Home
Having the sleek home audio system is a dream of the most audiophile. Find the components and connection solutions for your home sound on theirishcurse.
For building your own perfect audio system, you need to get straight with the following issues.
Using Area
Having large powerful speakers forming the surround sound, a huge turntable is great for a professional studio or a vast hall. And is overkill (in the physical terms as well) for a middle-sized living room. Meanwhile, a well-balanced middle-priced 2.1 setup might produce highly detailed and rich sound not causing any problems with the neighbors or other members of the household.
Purpose
If you need an audio system for listening daily to your favorite CDs and streaming the music from your smartphone, you might go off with the simple middle-class setup (a pair of speakers and, probably Wi-Fi-powered receiver). For the vinyl collection, you should consider a need for preamp and the presence of the liner inputs on your components. Setting a multifunctional system would require building the more developed and sophisticated set like 5.2.1 with AV-receiver and ability to connect to your 4K TV and the gaming console.
Components and Connections
The perfect sound is the product of all components working together. Below we list the must-have components for any home audio system and the parameters one must consider when assembling and setting it up.
- Speakers
This is the core element, the basis determining all the other components. Good speakers can revive even the most outdated sets and bring a new life to any of your recordings. When picking the speakers, do not get mislead by the high wattage labels. Remember that they don’t guarantee the loud and clear sound but require the powerful amplifier. So will the low impedance speakers — for the initial set, choose the popular models having 8 Ohms on their specs. Consider the number and character of connection ports – HDMA is preferable for the digital sound, but you will definitely need the linear inputs for your vinyl player. Finish and driver quality will ensure the low or zero resonance and superb sound. When considering the size of the speakers, make sure to allow 10-inch space between the speaker and the wall or another object.
2. Player
The source is a part of the audio system that makes sense of the whole idea. Other components are installed to amplify the sound from the source. That one being high-level, it will be easier to get a top-quality performance. The source can demand additional equipment (e.g. a preamp for the turntable) to be integrated into the system, or specific compatibility (like old-time CD-player with the fancy outputs). Streaming technologies create new virtual sources that exist as playlists or separate tunes on your smartphone, PC, or Chromecast.
3. Amplifier / AV-Receiver
Most of the speakers and sources produce barely audible signal. To make it loud and clearer, the amplifier is introduced into the audio system. It can be a separate amp, a preamp, or a multifunctional AV-receiver (dealing with video signal as well). While powering the sound, the amplifier adds to its performance, making it louder, more spacious, adding warmth or some cooling notes.
Billy Idol And Steve Stevens Announce Their First Ever Duo Tour
Billy Idol and Steve Stevens, one of rock’s most iconic and enduring duos, will hit the road this March for their first ever tour performing as a duo: Turned On, Tuned In and Unplugged.
Now their fans across North America will have an opportunity to enjoy their hits, deeper album cuts and songs that influenced them both in a new and intimate setting. Plus, hear spoken word interludes from Billy Idol adding color to the stories behind the songs and career of one of rock’s most compelling survivors.
Idol and Stevens’ undeniable chemistry and seemingly limitless energy, founded on a mutual love of punk, rockabilly and dance music, has produced decades of successful tours and iconic hits including Rebel Yell, White Wedding, Dancing With Myself, Eyes Without A Face, Flesh For Fantasy, Cradle Of Love and more.
The duo’s North American run begins on March 3 at the Vogue Theatre in Vancouver, BC and includes dates at San Francisco’s Palace of Fine Arts, Los Angeles’ Theater at The Ace Hotel and New York’s Town Hall. A full list of tour dates is below.
Watch Idol and Stevens perform “To Be A Lover” from Idol’s 1985 album Whiplash Smile, LIVE from Third Man Records on September 28, 2018 below.
Billy Idol, together with Steve Stevens at his side, was an early architect of the sound, style, and fury of punk rock. His lip- curling sneer and fist-pumping persona vaulted him into the mainstream as one of MTV’s first megastars, making him one of the most recognizable faces in pop music, while selling out arenas everywhere he played. He has sold 40 million albums while scoring numerous platinum albums worldwide, nine top forty singles in the U.S. and 10 in the U.K. including “Dancing With Myself, “White Wedding,” “Rebel Yell,” “Mony Mony,” “Eyes Without A Face,” and “Flesh For Fantasy.”
Billy is responsible for some of punk rock’s most memorable, literate, and evocative moments and created a pioneering new sound by bringing the spirit of ’77 to the dance floor, going on to fashion an immediately identifiable musical blueprint that integrates club-land throb, rockabilly desperation, and rock’n’roll decadence.
Steve Stevens is one of the most versatile guitarists & songwriters to emerge from the 80s rock scene, with influences spanning from classic rock to flamenco. In addition to his legendary career with Billy Idol, Stevens has worked with some of the biggest names in music, from Michael Jackson to Robert Palmer, Joni Mitchell to Pink. Stevens won a Grammy Award for his work on “Top Gun Anthem” and his songs can be heard on countless soundtracks including “Once Upon A Time in Mexico” and “The Matrix” Trilogy.
Billy Idol, together with Steve Stevens, returned to the spotlight in the fall of 2014 with two high profile releases that marked the latest chapter in the long and remarkable story of a musician, an inventor, a survivor, a father, a son, a man who returned from the brink, and a rebel whose yells made the mainstream sit up and pay attention.
Idol’s New York Times bestselling autobiography Dancing With Myself is an electric, intelligent, brutally honest and entirely self-written account of Billy Idol’s journey to fame, from his early days as front man of the pioneering UK punk band Generation X to a long and often decadent life lived loving sex, drugs, rock’n’roll, and motorcycles.
Idol’s most recent record releases, which all include work with Steve Stevens, are latest Billy Idol studio album Kings & Queens Of The Underground featuring production from 2017 and 2018 Grammy Award winning producer Greg Kurstin, a 2016 vinyl-only live album entitled BFI Live and the 2018 remix collection Vital Idol: Revitalized which debuted in the top ten of the Billboard Dance Chart.
BILLY IDOL & STEVE STEVENS:
TURNED ON, TUNED IN & UNPLUGGED
March 3: Vogue Theatre, Vancouver, BC
March 5: Moore Theatre, Seattle, WA
March 7: Palace of Fine Arts Theatre, San Francisco, CA
March 11: Golden State Theatre, Monterey, CA
March 13: Belly Up, Solana Beach, CA
March 15: Ace Hotel Theatre, Los Angeles, CA
March 19: Boulder Theater, Boulder, CO
March 21: Rialto Square Theatre, Joliet, IL
March 22: Firekeepers Casino, Battle Creek, MI
March 25: Queen Elizabeth Theatre, Toronto, ON
March 27: Town Hall, New York, NY
March 30: Xcite Center/Parx Casino, Bensalem, PA
April 1: Lincoln Theatre, Washington, D.C.
April 3: The Lynn Auditorium, Lynn, MA
April 4: Count Basie Theatre, Red Bank, NJ
Bikini Kill Reunite for Select Shows in New York City and Los Angeles
Legendary 90’s Riot Grrrl pioneers, Bikini Kill will be regrouping to play shows in NY and LA this spring. They will perform with their iconic line-up of Kathleen Hanna on vocals, Tobi Vail on drums, and Kathi Wilcox on bass — along with guitarist Erica Dawn Lyle.
Active from 1990 to 1998, Bikini Kill is a feminist punk band that started in Olympia, WA, and later moved to Washington, DC. Billy Karren joined Kathleen, Kathi and Tobi on guitar after the band had played several shows as a three-piece. Credited with instigating the Riot Grrrl movement in the early ’90s via their political lyrics, zines and confrontational live shows, Bikini Kill encouraged women and girls to start bands as a means of cultural resistance. They used touring as a way to create an underground network between girls who played music, put on shows and made fanzines. This informal network created a forum for multiple female voices to be heard.
Bikini Kill started touring in June 1991, serving up their radical feminist punk rage to crowds across the US several times, as well as making their way through Europe, Australia and Japan. The band recorded and released a demo tape, two EPs, two LPs and three singles which are available via their independent label Bikini Kill Records. The band uploaded their entire catalog on streaming services last Fall. Now available for streaming on Spotify, Tidal and Apple Music, the catalog includes landmark releases from 1991’s Revolution Girl Style Now to 1998’s The Singles, which features production, guitar and vocals from Joan Jett.
Bikini Kill 2019 Shows
April 25: Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Palladium
May 31: Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Steel
June 1: New York, NY @ Terminal 5
Anne Hathaway Does An Awesome Matthew McConaughey Impression
Anne Hathaway talks with Jimmy Kimmel about her new movie Serenity, working with Matthew McConaughey, and she does a fantastic impression of him.
“A Bowie Celebration” Tour Launches Overseas Before Touching Down In North America February 6
Following last year’s critically acclaimed tour, A BOWIE CELEBRATION: The David Bowie Alumni Tour has returned in 2019. It just launched last week in Europe – and will touch down in North America with 33 shows starting February 6 and wrapping March 22.
This unforgettable evening of David Bowie’s songs features keyboardist and band leader Mike Garson and fellow key alumni musicians of Bowie’s bands from across the decades. Expect powerful performances from Garson, Earl Slick, Carmine Rojas, Charlie Sexton and Mark Plati (performing on the tour’s first five shows), plus world-class vocalists such as Bernard Fowler and Corey Glover, with additional guest vocalists on various dates including Bowie alum Emm Gryner, Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated Evan Rachel Wood, Grammy nominee Gaby Moreno and many more.
Garson heads up the alumni as the longest-standing member of Bowie’s bands, performed with David at his first and last concerts in the United States as well as 1,000 concerts together around the globe in between. The band also features legendary guitarist Earl Slick, who worked on landmark Bowie albums such as Diamond Dogs, Young Americans and Reality; and Bowie’s Let’s Dance/Serious Moonlight Tour bassist Carmine Rojas. Between them, they have over 30 years experience of recording, writing and playing live with Bowie.
During last year’s trek, Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated actress (“Westworld”) and singer (Rebel and A Basketcase) Evan Rachel Wood joined the all-star band to sing a variety of songs at the Los Angeles and Atlanta shows and was seen on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” in April raving about the tour. As Wood explained to Fallon, “It’s not a cover band, it’s the band! It’s the actual band, so when you’re there it sounds as close as you’re going to get to Bowie.” Other special guests who joined the 2018 run included Perry Farrell, Joe Sumner, Fantastic Negrito, Mark Plati, Mr Hudson, David Liebman, Gaby Moreno and Sass Jordan.
Catch A BOWIE CELEBRATION: The David Bowie Alumni Tour in the following North American cities:
2019 Tour Dates:
Wed 2/6 Mesa, AZ Mesa Arts Center
Thu 2/7 Los Angeles, CA Orpheum Theatre
Fri 2/8 Temecula, CA Pechanga Resort and Casino
Sat 2/9 Cerritos, CA Cerritos Center
Sun 2/10 Modesto, CA Gallo Center
Tue 2/12 Livermore, CA Livermore PAC
Wed 2/13 San Francisco, CA The Warfield
Fri 2/15 Seattle, WA Benaroya Hall
Sat 2/16 Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom
Sun 2/17 Portland, OR Revolution Hall
Tue 2/19 Denver, CO Paramount Theatre
Thu 2/21 Madison, WI Orpheum Theatre
Fri 2/22 Chicago, IL Vic Theatre
Sat 2/23 Detroit, MI Royal Oak Music Hall
Sun 2/24 Cleveland, OH Agora Theatre & Ballroom
Tue 2/26 Buffalo, NY Town Ballroom
Wed 2/27 Kitchener, ON Centre In The Square
Fri 3/1 Toronto, ON Danforth Music Hall
Sat 3/2 Montreal, QC MTelus
Sun 3/3 Boston, MA Wilbur Theatre
Tue 3/5 New York, NY Irving Plaza
Wed 3/6 Albany, NY Palace Theater
Thu 3/7 Syracuse, NY Palace Theater
Sat 3/9 New Brunswick, NJ State Theater
Sun 3/10 Philadelphia, PA Keswick Theatre
Tue 3/12 Louisville, KY The Brown Theatre
Wed 3/13 Nashville, TN Polk Theatre
Fri 3/15 Ponte Vedra, FL Ponte Vedra Concert Hall
Sat 3/16 Fort Lauderdale, FL Parker Playhouse
Sun 3/17 Clearwater, FL Capitol Theatre
Wed 3/20 Houston, TX Heights Theatre
Thu 3/21 Austin, TX Paramount Theatre
Fri 3/22 Dallas, TX Majestic Theatre
deadmau5 & MR. BILL Reveal Official Music Video For “10.8”
deadmau5′ label mau5trap have released the official video for deadmau5 & Mr. Bill’s mau5ville: level 2 collaboration track “10.8.” The video was created by the team of Funilab, Felix Steif and Sneekypops on a VR illustration and animation tool called Quill. The unique and design and aesthetic of the video contains tons of hidden messages and characters pertaining to the deadmau5 world.
“The idea for this video was to exploit the technical possibilities that Quill (a VR painting software) allows you to perform, like going from a very small object to something as big as the moon in a few seconds, are travelling through worlds nested into each others like Russian dolls,” says designer Simone Fougnier a.k.a. Funi. “deadmau5 and Mr. Bill’s tune was crazy enough to be the perfect soundtrack for this experiment, we rush from one section to the other only to realize, at the end, that all of those were just fiction, playing on screens while Bill and mau5 are half asleep in a messy room. Music makes you go anywhere, even if you’re in a pizza induced coma.”
“Joel and I connected through Twitch (funny enough, he was streaming about how to get that “Mr. Bill sound”), and now mau5trap has launched an Electrocado EP (another one is on its way), my score for the Nic Cage horror comedy MOM AND DAD, and my full-length, IDM album, Apophenia,” says Bill Day a.k.a Mr. Bill. “It’s great to be able to bring Funi, an artist, friend and close collaborator who I have been working with for a decade and who has been a major part of creating the Mr. Bill brand and the little potato Bill avatar into the mau5trap family with this incredibly detailed and immersive video pushing the boundaries of VR artistry. The Horde will be floored.”
Additionally, mau5ville: level 2 also includes “Drama Free” featuring LIGHTS. The song can also be found in the trailer for the upcoming Netflix release Polar which features original score by deadmau5. Look for mau5trap to release the film soundtrack on January 25 alongside the film.
Experience mau5ville: level 2 here.
Chad Smith Interviewing Charlie Watts
In this exclusive interview, get a first-hand look into Charlie Watts’ life experiences as he discusses everything with Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Charlie discusses what got him into drumming, his early influences and how important Jazz was to him.