Toronto Caribbean Newspaper’s First Appearance at Canadian Music Week

BY SELINA MacCULLUM

This was an exciting week for the Toronto Caribbean Newspaper as we were invited to be involved in one of the largest musical events of the year. This past week has exposed Toronto, to artists from all over the world. Now in its 37th year, Canadian Music Week is recognized as one of the premier entertainment events in North America focusing on everything from the business, production and performance ends of music,

The week featured musical performances, conference, summit, and an award ceremony. The Canadian Music Week festival spans seven nights of performances, and hundreds of bands at more than thirty live music venues in downtown Toronto. All convention functions take place at the Sheraton Centre Toronto Hotel. This year Canadian Music Week held a one of a kind Spotlight on South Africa, and all the great work coming out of there.

Organized by the Department of Arts and Culture for The Republic of South Africa in conjunction with their Canadian counterparts, over twenty delegates traveled to Canada; their first official mission to promote why South Africa – the world’s 31st largest market for recorded music – is the place to be.

Billy Domingo, Festival Director of Cape Town International Jazz Festival opened the panel discussion by saying, “We’re open for business.” Moderated by Alan Cross of Brain Dead Dog Productions, the panelists answered varied questions about government collaboration with festivals, visa requirements, to the usual, “Describe the music scene in South Africa.” Antos Stella, CEO of Content Connect Africa expressed, “The live scene is very robust in terms of international artists but there is a need to discuss the reciprocity for SA artists.”  Theresho Selesho, CEO of HilltopLive/Oppikoppi, a company that organizes various festivals and concerts, including Black Coffee’s “Music Is King,” stated that, ”South Africa can produce any large scale event; however the most exciting space for me is exporting our artists and seeing them work with other international artists.”

With a population that is 11 times greater than Canada, it’s not unusual that the panelists of market specialists, record labels executives, publishers, managers, and industry decision-makers have set their sights on expanding the brand. The 45-minute panel discussion closed with a question and answer period from members of the audience. It was during this engagement that Michael Moeti of Africa Digital Media City dropped a bombshell announcing that South Africa will be hosting their very own Music Week in 2020. This will be another first for this beautiful nation, which has seen an increase of 89% of streaming revenues in 2017.

Along with conferences, individual artists were appearing in venues across the city. One such artist is Naya Ali, an upcoming female Hip-Hop artist from Montreal, Quebec. She performed on May 11^th at Sneaky Dee’s. This was her first time performing in Toronto. Ali tells us that her love for writing verses started when she was a teenager. “Music has always been a part of my life, especially when I was a teenager. I wrote poetry, and then I slowly got into rhythmic poetry and then rap.”

Ethiopian born Hip Hop artist Ali has seen success in just a year. She burst onto the scene last year, with her debut single ‘Ra Ra’, which was won over by VICE media. On Spotify, she was featured on ‘New Music Friday’ and appeared on the Canadian Viral Chart. Apple Music also highlighted Ali on their ‘Hip-Hop Quebec’ playlist. Ali is in awe of what she has accomplished in a year just from following her dreams. “It’s crazy. It’s lifechanging. It changes your whole mindset and spirit. You’re not always in a rush and running after something for someone. You’re after something for yourself,” said Ali.

She has also shocked many of her family and friends with her early success.

“They have shown me complete support. They have always known that I’ve loved music, but I really took it seriously a year and a half ago. So, when they saw everything happening in a year, it was just like, “Wow! How is that possible?” “Timing, that’s what it is,” said the Montreal hip-hop artist.  Ali is back in full force with her powerful brand new single titled ‘Out The Dirt’. It is a gritty pure rap track, which sees Ali in a new state, as she raps about not only trusting the process, but also falling in love with it, and completely committing herself to Hip Hop music.

Her new album is about timing, as she feels everything is falling into place. “I just try to stay as true to myself as possible, so my music has always got to be honest, and my style is always going, to be honest,” said Ali. “I’m never going to put myself in an uncomfortable situation just to please others. The hip-hop community in Montreal is mostly French, so it’s a little bit harder as an English artist. As a woman, it’s a little harder as well because it’s a male-dominated industry but at the end of the day, I’m not in competition with women or men, I’m just in competition with myself. I’m striving to be the best that I can be.”

We thank the organizers of Canadian Music Week for giving us the opportunity to experience the industry at its finest and allowing us to showcase personalities, stories, and music.