This article originally appeared in the May/June 2017 issue of Canadian Musician magazine.   

By Michael Raine

Two related themes have dominated music industry discussions and reporting over the last couple of years. From industry conferences at Canadian Music Week and South by Southwest to reports by the BBC and New York Times, there has been jubilation over revenue growth. Subscription streaming services like Spotify are credited with fueling a 5.9 per cent worldwide growth for the recorded music industry in 2016, which is the largest year-over-year increase since IFPI began tracking the market. In Canada, the growth was even more dramatic at 14.8 per cent thanks to streaming revenues more than doubling. On the flip side, though, is fretting and even outright anger over the paltry royalties the largest online service, YouTube, pays music rights holders.

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This article originally appeared in the March/April 2017 issue of Canadian Musician.

By Michael Raine

These are interesting and potentially transformative times for women’s rights. January’s Women’s March was the largest protest in American history, with sister marches in cities and towns around the globe – including 60,000 people in Toronto – while things like pay discrepancies, misogynistic corporate cultures, and equal opportunity hiring practices are now part of the mainstream conversation.

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