A who’s who of the Canadian music industry gathered last night in Toronto to honour Canada’s most talented “Born to Be” songwriters, composers, lyricists and music publishers at the 26th SOCAN Awards.
SOCAN is a member-based organization that represents the Canadian performing rights of more than four-million Canadian and international music creators and publishers. SOCAN is proud to play a leading role in supporting the long-term success of its more than 130,000 Canadian members, and the Canadian music industry overall. SOCAN licenses more than 125,000 businesses in Canada, and distributes royalties to its members and music rights organizations around the world. SOCAN also distributes royalties to its members for the use of their music internationally in collaboration with its peer societies.
Sponsored by Gowlings, KPMG, RBC and HMV, and hosted by CMT Canada’s Paul McGuire, the SOCAN Awards recognize the lifetime and more recent achievements of Canada’s music creators, honoured in a host of categories, including Pop/Rock, Dance, Urban, Country, Jazz, Folk/Roots, Classical, and Film & Television.
Recipients of SOCAN’s major achievement awards this year were the legendary Randy Bachman (Lifetime Achievement), Dallas Green (National Achievement), MAGIC! (International Achievement), music industry pioneer Bernie Finkelstein (Special Achievement), and “Born to be Wild” songwriter Mars Bonfire, who accepted SOCAN’s first-ever Cultural Impact Award. All accepted their honours in person, as did R&B chart-toppers The Weeknd and Belly, rising country stars Brett Kissel and Tim Hicks, and film and TV composers Keith Power and Andrew Lockington, among many others.
Performers included soulful young sensation Francesco Yates, who sang “Better to be Loved”; heavy metal rockers Anvil, who honoured Mars Bonfire with a thundering rendition of “Born to be Wild”; Kristian Alexandrov, Olena Kilchyk, Calvin Beale and Doan Pham, who played a medley of film and TV themes; “doom soul” singer-songwriter Cold Specks, who re-defined Warren Pash’s SOCAN Classic Award-winning song “Private Eyes”; and Randy Bachman, backed by Toronto rockers Big Sugar, who closed the show with a thrilling medley of “American Woman” and “Takin’ Care of Business” – accompanied by the audience of more than 600 guests playing cowbells.
“Canadian-made music is essential to Canada’s culture, pride and economy,” said SOCAN CEO Eric Baptiste. “SOCAN’s members are creating music that reaches millions of people at home, and touches hearts and minds worldwide. And our music publisher members are crucial to bringing those songs to the marketplace to expand the reach of great Canadian music around the country, the continent and the world.”
SOCAN will also recognize outstanding Francophone music creators and publishers at an awards gala in October 2015 at Métropolis in the heart of Montreal.
26th Anniversary SOCAN Awards – Toronto – Winners List
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Randy Bachman
INTERNATIONAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
MAGIC!
NATIONAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Dallas Green
SPECIAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Bernie Finkelstein
CUTURAL IMPACT AWARD
Mars Bonfire
Universal Music Publishing Canada
DANCE MUSIC AWARDS
“Goodbye”
Performed by Glenn Morrison/Islove
Jeremy Francis (Islove)
Glenn Morrison
Matthew Lange (BMI)
Sony/ATV Music Publishing Canada
“Hideaway”
Performed by Kiesza
Kiesza
Rami Samir Afuni (BMI)
Elephant Eye Publishing
EMI Blackwood Music Canada Ltd.
POP/ROCK MUSIC AWARDS
“Rude”
Performed by MAGIC!
Nasri Atweh
Adam Messinger
Mark Pellizzer
Ben Spivak
Alex Tanas
BMG Rights Management Canada
Kobalt Music Group
Sony/ATV Music Publishing Canada
Universal Music Publishing Canada
COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS
“3-2-1”
Performed by Brett Kissel
Brett Kissel
Marvin Green (BMI)
Tim Nichols (BMI)
Bouncy Bear Music
O’Reilly International Inc.
“Got a Feeling”
Performed by Tim Hicks
Jeff Coplan
Tim Hicks
Noll Billings (BMI)
ole
Roots 3 Music Inc.
“Friends of Mine”
Performed by Jason Blaine
Jason Blaine
Philip O’Donnell (BMI)
URBAN MUSIC AWARDS
“Higher”
Performed by Classified
Classified (a.k.a. Luke Boyd)
William Lobban Bean (BMI)
Gary Jackson (BMI)
Renard Miner (BMI)
Bobby Simmons (BMI)
Carl Smith (BMI)
“Wanderlust”
Performed by The Weeknd
Belly (a.k.a. Ahmad Balshe)
Da Heala (a.k.a.) Jason Quenneville
The Weeknd (a.k.a. Abel Tesfaye)
Sylhouette Musmin (BUMA)
Danny Schofield (ASCAP)
Joseph Bostani (ASCAP)
Albert Tamaela (BUMA)
CP Music Group Inc.
SONGS Music Publishing
Universal Music Publishing Canada
Warner Chappell Music Canada Ltd.
“Crazy for You”
Performed by Hedley
Jacob Hoggard
Brian Howes
Jason Van Poederooyen
8 Pack of Lucky
EMI Blackwood Music Canada Ltd.
Universal Music Publishing Canada
“Heaven in Our Headlights”
Performed by Hedley
Jacob Hoggard
Brian Howes
Nolan Winfield (ASCAP)
EMI Blackwood Music Canada Ltd.
Universal Music Publishing Canada
“We Are Stars”
Performed by Virginia to Vegas feat. Alyssa Reid
Jamie Appleby
Derik Baker (Virginia to Vegas)
Nathan Ferraro
Kevin Figs
Teddy Pena
Alyssa Reid
Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd. Canada
Third Side Music Inc.
Wax On Wax Off Publishing
“Chills”
Performed by Down With Webster
Tyler Armes
Boi 1da
Emerson Brooks
Zale Epstein
Patrick Gillett
Cam Hunter
Brett Ryan Kruger
Andrew Martino
Alyssa Veniece Chin
Smashterpiece
Sony/ATV Music Publishing Canada
Warner Chappell Music Canada Ltd.
DOMESTIC TV MUSIC AWARD – FICTION
Murdoch Mysteries
Robert Carli
Shaftesbury
Sony/ATV Music Publishing Canada
DOMESTIC TV MUSIC AWARD – NON-FICTION
Dragons’ Den
Andrew Cash
Josh Finlayson
Elmarush Songs
DOMESTIC TV MUSIC AWARD – ANIMATED
Johnny Test
Ian LeFeuvre
Ari Posner
Chris Tait
Cjar Music Publishing
ole
ACHIEVEMENT IN MADE-FOR-TV FILM MUSIC
The Riverbank
James Mark Stewart
ACHIEVEMENT IN FEATURE FILM MUSIC
The Expatriate
Jeff Danna
CEG Rights Canada
INTERNATIONAL FEATURE FILM MUSIC AWARD
Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters
Andrew Lockington
INTERNATIONAL TV SERIES MUSIC AWARD
Hawai Five-O
Keith Power
2015 SOCAN CLASSIC MUSIC AWARDS
“Burning in Love”
“New Girl Now”
“Wave Babies”
“What Does it Take?”
Performed by Honeymoon Suite
Derry Grehan
Don Valley Music Ltd.
peer International (Canada)
“Feel It Again”
Performed by Honeymoon Suite
Ray Coburn
Don Valley Music Ltd.
peer International (Canada)
“Private Eyes”
Performed by Hall & Oates
Warren Pash
Janna Allen (BMI)
Sara Allen (BMI)
Daryl Hall (BMI)
Almo Music of Canada
“Monday Morning”
“Wild Eyes”
Performed by The Stampeders
Rich Dodson
Open Wagon Music
Southern Music Publishing Company Canada Ltd.
INTERNATIONAL SONG AWARD
“Dark Horse”
Performed by Katy Perry
Henry “Cirkut” Russell
Lukasz Gottwald (ASCAP)
Jordan Houston (BMI)
Katheryn Hudson (ASCAP)
Sarah Hudson (ASCAP)
Martin Sandberg (STIM)
BMG Rights Management Canada
Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd. Canada
MOST PERFORMED FOREIGN SONG AWARD
“Happy”
Performed by Pharrell Williams
Pharrell Williams
FOLK / ROOTS MUSIC AWARD
The Strumbellas
2015 SOCAN LICENSED TO PLAY AWARD
The Calgary Stampede
2015 SOCAN BREAKOUT AWARD
DVVBS
Shawn Mendes
HAGOOD HARDY AWARD
Kirk MacDonald
JAN V. MATEJCEK NEW CLASSICAL MUSIC AWARD
Vivian Fung
