| Canadian Music Week (CMW) is pleased to announce the 2018 Canadian Music & Broadcast Industry Awards will be hosted by Jessi Cruickshank, “One of the funniest women on TV today, period”. The annual gala and award show is to take place on Thursday, May 10th at Rebel Nightclub in Toronto, ON. Tickets are on sale now here.
The Canadian Music and Broadcast Industry Awards will celebrate the best and brightest in all fields of the Canadian music and broadcast industries. Previously announced honourees to be inducted into the Hall of Fame include: The Legendary TooTall (CHOM FM), Patti-Anne Tarlton (Ticketmaster), Jeff Craib (The Feldman Agency), and David Farrell (FYI Music). Jessi Cruickshank is the Canadian Screen Award-nominated host of Canada’s Smartest Person, and The Goods on CBC. Hailed as “one of the funniest women on TV today, period” by The Province, Cruickshank grew up in Vancouver, where she broke into comedy as the only girl in an all-male improv troupe alongside Seth Rogen. She soon became a household name as the face of MTV, hosting the daily show MTV LIVE and smash hit The Hills After Show; which became the first series in Canadian television history to be live-simulcast to the US. Soon after she re-located to Los Angeles to host Live from E!, Oh Sit! Fashion Fail, Jerseylicious, and recently wrapped 6 seasons as the L.A. host of Canada’s #1 entertainment show, eTalk. Jessi earned rave reviews as the host of the 2015 & 2016 CCMA Awards and can currently be seen as a guest-anchor on E!’s Daily Pop. She splits her time between Toronto and Los Angeles. |
Canadian Music Week Announces Jessi Cruickshank as Host of the 2018 Canadian Music & Broadcast Industry Awards
Compton Music Students Release Cover of “Stand Up For Something”
Music students from the Compton Kidz Club today unveiled a new music video—funded by Need to Impeach founder Tom Steyer and directed by arts education advocate Fred Martin—covering Andra Day and Common’s Stand Up For Something to empower and help youth across the country rise up against political oppression and social pressures.
The video features young Black and Latina women who attend the Urban Entertainment Institute, an after-school program in the Compton Unified School District, which is one of the many school districts across the country that would be impacted by the current administration’s agenda against public funding for arts education and after school programs. Filmed throughout Compton, CA, the video includes scenes inspired by real political issues, including Trump’s recent “shithole” remark and its impact on youth, as well as social issues such as drug use, domestic violence, and sexual abuse.
“These young people are a beacon of hope for our future,” said Steyer, who makes a cameo in the video and whose involvement with the Urban Entertainment Institute, a group started by Martin, has helped keep the arts alive for youth in the Compton community. “Despite attacks on funding that further hurt our youth, young people continue to rise up—becoming role models not only for their peers, but for everyone else, including myself. As a country, we must prioritize and invest in our youth by giving them opportunities to maximize their futures.”
Said Martin: “Tom is a prime example of why you should never judge a book by its cover. He is as authentic as anyone can be, and as we say in Compton: ‘he keeps it real!’ It takes a unique person to relate to today’s youth and Tom does it effortlessly. Why? Because he genuinely loves this country and all people in it and truly believes we are all created equal and have certain unalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
The song, written by Grammy-award winning songwriter Diane Warren, was featured in the 2017 movie “Marshall” and has been nominated for several awards, including a Grammy Award. Steyer and Martin collaborated on the idea for the video to empower young people, while highlighting social issues and giving them a platform to speak their truth on the attacks on communities across the country.
In October 2017, Steyer launched the Need to Impeach campaign through television and social networking ads calling on supporters to sign a petition and demand that Congress remove Trump from power. More than 4.2 million people have since signed the petition, creating a digital army of supporters that many political strategists call one of the most formidable and powerful political tools in the Democratic party. Learn more about Need to Impeach at www.NeedtoImpeach.com.
Oprah Winfrey’s Acceptance Speech At Golden Globes Awards Is Now On Spotify
Oprah Winfrey’s amazing – and possibly pre-presidential – acceptance speech for the Cecil B. DeMille award at Sunday’s Golden Globes Awards is available for streaming on Spotify.
“I want all the girls watching to know a new day is on the horizon,” Winfrey said. “And when that new day finally dawns, it will be because of a lot of magnificent women, many of whom are right here in this room tonight, and some pretty phenomenal men, fighting hard to make sure they are the leaders to take us to the time where nobody has to say ‘me too’ again.”
Bob Ross Pop! Vinyl Figure
Funko’s officially-licensed Bob Ross figure is ready to paint happy little trees and keep you calm and centered.
Robin Williams, Gene Wilder and Bill Murray Gets Animated For PBS Short Film
Comedians are masters at making people laugh. But there’s often more that lurks beneath the jokes. Legends like Robin Williams, Gene Wilder, and Bill Murray can not only bring humor to the stage, they can tap a depth of emotions and inward thought that can make an audience stop and think.
These lost tapes from the Blank on Blank were recorded between 1988 and 2007 thanks to Lawrence Grobel, the 92Y, and T.J. English.
I Wish I Played Bass So I Can Own The Beatles’ Yellow Submarine Guitar
Truly amazing in every way, this original concept from The Painted Player puts the legendary ‘Yellow Submarine’ quite literally in your hands! Beautifully hand crafted, this stunning bass guitar utilises a combination of a fully hand-crafted Alder body with Precision Bass influences while featuring hand-painted artwork that brings the whole piece to life. A musical icon as well as an animated legend, the ‘Yellow Submarine’ Bass is a must for the dedicated Beatles fan and the avid bass player alike, those who dare to stand out on stage. This enigmatic guitar is also accompanied by its own custom made, artworked and fitted “Lord Admiral” Hardcase!
The BBC News Report In 1981 On The New Romantic Scene Follows Spandau Ballet and Nightclubbers
Spandau Ballet’s first single had been in the UK chart for 11 weeks and their second was launching January, 1981. They were the house band for a London clubland cult variously called the Blitz Kids and the New Romantics. Few journalists had paid much attention to this massive underground following, but Robin Denselow, a savvy music writer for The Guardian, had also been recruited by the BBC’s new nightly current affairs strand, Newsnight. He recognised a Pop Moment if ever there was one and took his camera crew to Le Kilt, the coolest club-night of the month. We see him given the full New Romantic manifesto by half a dozen of its 21-year-old exponents who were all on the brink of showbiz and media careers. This package triggered the tabloids to flock into clubland and make stars of the most stylish kids – the story of the 80s Pose Age was in lift-off.
Watch The Rarely-Seen But Oscar-Winning Animated Video For “Tom Waits for No One”
Tom Waits for No One is a rotoscoped short film starring Tom Waits, singing “The One That Got Away” to an apparition. Directed in 1979 by John Lamb of Lyon Lamb, it was among the first music videos of its kind, and nearly two years before the advent of MTV. The film, inspired by a performance of Waits at the Roxy in May 1977, captured a first place award at the first Hollywood Erotic Film and Video Festival in 1980. The film never saw commercial release and sat in obscurity for 30 years, when it went quietly viral on YouTube. Filmed live at the La Brea Stage in Hollywood in six takes and edited down to five and a half minutes, the live frames were then traced using a “video rotoscope” and then converted by hand into animation. This particular combination of rotoscoping and pencil test, originally developed for Ralph Bakshi’s American Pop, was considered innovative at the time, and assisted in winning Lyon Lamb a 1980 Academy Award for Scientific and Technical Achievement.
Square Peg Round Hole Plays Ringing Rocks
Ringing Rocks Park is a 128 acre park located in Upper Black Eddy. Inside the park is an 8 acre field of boulders that, when struck with a hammer, sound resonant and reverberant; almost like a metal pipe. When The percussionists of Square Peg Round Hole discovered Ringing Rocks Park, they knew that it would be an inspiring place for them to write and play music. As percussionists, they’re always searching for unorthodox sound sources, and are often finding new instruments in unexpected places. The group traveled to Ringing Rocks Park with filmmaker Kevin Eikenberg and documented the writing process of a song played solely on boulders.
Battle of the Strings: Guitarist Joe Bonamassa takes on cellist Tina Guo
Guitarist Joe Bonamassa takes on cellist Tina Guo in an epic speed battle for the applause of the audience. They begin with Flight of the Bumblebee and then into Woke Up Dreaming. If you dig this, check out Joe’s Live at Carnegie Hall – An Acoustic Evening.