This week: after pulling out of SXSW, CIMA's Canada House mission returns to Nashville, dates for the 2025 Nova Scotia Music Week are announced and the Country Rising artist discovery program opens applications.
Owen Riegling
The Country Music Association of Ontario (CMAOntario) has announced the nominees for the 13th annual CMAOntario Awards. Leading the way with six nominations is fast-rising singer-songwriterOwen Riegling, followed by Andrew Hyatt, Elyse Saunders, and Tebey with four nods each. Taking place Sunday, June 1 at The Music Hall in Hamilton and presented by Cowbell Brewing Co., the CMAOntario Awards Show will close out the CMAOntario Festival & Awards Weekend from May 30-June 1, 2025. The Awards hand out trophies in 17 categories plus special awards. Tickets for the CMAOntario Awards Show are on sale now. More info here.
– Nova Scotia Music Week (NSMW) 2025 will take place in Yarmouth/Kespukwitk from Oct. 23-26. Music Nova Scotia has opened showcasing applications and award nominations for this year’s event, with an April 10 deadline. More info and eligibility requirements here
The Canadian Independent Music Association (CIMA) made news last month for pulling its Canada House programming from SXSW amidst tensions with the U.S., but the trade org is returning to Nashville for the 2025 edition of the Americana Music Festival & Conference, running Sept. 9-13. CIMA will again present a full afternoon of Canada House. The Canada House showcase will take place on Friday, September 12, 2025 at InDo, featuring 6-8 Canadian bands performing to festival delegates and attendees. The deadline to register here is May 16.
– Starseed Entertainment and Cottage Springs have teamed up to present Country Rising, an artist discovery program for Canadian country hopefuls. Submissions are now open, and the winning artist will receive $10K, a record deal with Starseed, an opening slot for The Reklaws at Kee to Bala, ON, on Aug. 1 and 2, and an extensive development program. Apply here by April 20.
– The Yorkton Film Festival has announced the first round of nominees for the 2025 Golden Sheaf Awards, with Ultramagnetic Productions’ new documentary Play it Loud! How Toronto Got Soul earning a nomination for Best Arts/Culture Film. The TVO Original doc explores the fascinating life and music of legendary vocalist Jay Douglas. Play it Loud! has been enjoying a surprisingly successful theatrical run with sold out screenings in Toronto (re-opening the Hot Docs Ted Rogers Theatre), Vancouver, Hamilton, Waterloo and Whitehorse.
– The recent passing of hardworking veteran Toronto musician Teddy Hawkins leaves a hole on the local scene. The fact there are two Celebrations of Life for him testify to his popularity. The first, held last week at one of his regular haunts, Castro's, was sold out and it raised $1070 for the Unison Benevolent Fund. A larger memorial gathering is set for Smokeshow in Toronto, on May 10. Hawkins' visitation is set for Sunday, April 6, 12-3 at Scott Funeral Home, West Toronto Chapel, 1273 Weston Rd, Toronto. Read Billboard Canada's obituary here.
Canadian folk-rock quintet Foxwarren have announced the release of their second album, 2, on May 30, via Arts & Crafts. The follow-up to 2018's Juno-nominated eponymous debut, it is described as adventurous in its approach. The group formed over a decade ago, but its career was paused as member Andy Shauf took a solo path, to major success. In August, the group plays four U.S. shows in support of roots music sensation Waxahatchee. Here is the album's lead single and video.
– Swiss-Canadian electro-pop force artist Camilla Sparkssshas just released a music video for her latest single, "Backflip," taken from her forthcoming album, ICU RUN, arriving on Sept. 12. It will be accompanied by a short film, ICU RUN: The Movie. Since releasing a debut album, For You The Wild, in 2014, Sparksss has toured with the likes of The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion and A Place to Bury Strangers and has made quite a splash in Europe.
– Platinum-selling, Juno-winning East Coast singer-songwriter David Myles is poised to undergo a major career change, as he recently announced he'll be running as a candidate for the Liberal Party in the upcoming federal election. The Telegraph-Journalreported that Myles was hand-picked by the Liberals to be their candidate in the Fredericton-Oromocto riding, one currently held by Liberal MP Jenica Atwin.
– With an expected win, David Myles will fill a musical void in Parliament left by the departure of another noted singer-songwriter, Charlie Angus. He has been a leading NDP MP for 20 years (he came second to Jagmeet Singh in a federal leadership race), but is not running in the next election. Instead, he'll concentrate on writing (he has just published a memoir, Dangerous Memories) and leading the Grievous Angels, an acclaimed and Juno-nominated folk/roots band he has fronted for nearly 40 years, releasing nine albums along the way.
Angus and his ace sextet played a stellar show at Clifford Brewery in Hamilton last Saturday, for a highly-appreciative full house, drawing upon eclectic material spanning their career. To nobody's surprise, Angus also delivered some passionate pro-Canadian sentiments that neatly complemented his strongly Canadian-themed songs. In recent months, he has become one of our most eloquent patriots in fighting back against Trumpian tariffs and threats of annexation (check out his popular Substack here). Expect that to continue as he does his key inspiration, Joe Strummer, proud.
Bryan Adams
Also announced this week, Pulp will be making a trip to Toronto, while Montreal Jazz Fest releases its full lineup.
Canadian rock icon Bryan Adams is playing across the country this fall.
The "Summer of '69" singer will play 19 Canadian cities on his 'Roll With the Punches' tour. He's already taken that show on the road to Australia and New Zealand this year, and hits the U.K. and Ireland in May.
He'll kick off his North American leg on September 11 in Kamloops, B.C., playing dates across the country all the way to St. John's, Newfoundland on October 15, before heading south of the border. Saskatchewan rockers The Sheepdogs will join Adams for the Canadian leg, with Amanda Marshall supporting in Calgary and Kelowna.
The tour accompanies his forthcoming album of the same name, which is set for release this summer on Adams' label Bad Records. Adams promises new tracks as well as "all the classics" for this tour. Presale begins Tuesday, April 29 and general sale starts Friday, May 2 at 10 AM local.
Thu Sep 11 – Kamloops, BC – Sandman Centre*
Fri Sep 12 – Vancouver, BC – Rogers Arena*
Sat Sep 13 – Victoria, BC – Save On Foods Memorial Centre*
Tue Sep 23 – Prince George, BC – CN Centre*
Wed Sep 24 – Kelowna, BC – Prospera Place+
Fri Sep 26 – Calgary, AB – Scotiabank Saddledome+
Sat Sep 27 – Edmonton, AB – Rogers Place*
Sun Sep 28 – Regina, SK – Brandt Centre*
Mon Sep 29 – Winnipeg, MB – Canada Life Centre*
Thu Oct 2 – St. Catharines, ON – Meridian Centre*
Fri Oct 3 – Toronto, ON – Scotiabank Arena*
Sat Oct 4 – Ottawa, ON – Canadian Tire Centre*
Sun Oct 5 – Windsor, ON – Caesars*
Tue Oct 7 – Peterborough, ON – Peterborough Memorial Centre*
Wed Oct 8 – Montreal, QC – Bell Centre*
Thu Oct 9 – Quebec City, QC – Videotron Centre*
Sat Oct 11 – Moncton, NB – Avenir Centre*
Sun Oct 12 – Halifax, NS – Scotiabank Centre*
Wed Oct 15 – St. John's, NL – Mary Brown’s Centre*
*with The Sheepdogs
+with Amanda Marshall
Also announced this week, two legacy English rock acts will be crossing the pond to play Canada's biggest city this fall.
Elvis Costello & The Imposters will perform at the historic Massey Hall on September 26 as part of the Radio Soul! tour, featuring Costello's early material. The show draws on material from Costello's breakout My Aim Is True to 1986's Blood and Chocolate, and gets its name from the first draft of the song "Radio Radio." Tickets go on sale April 25 at 10 AM.
Britpop outfit Pulp are coming to Toronto on September 16 to play the outdoor Budweiser Stage. The band are touring their first new album in two dozen years, More, set for release on June 6. The tour follows a North American run from last year, with frontman Jarvis Cocker promising this year's tour will have even more to offer. Tickets go on sale April 25 at 10 AM.
For music fans seeking summer activity, Montreal Jazz Fest has announced its full 2025 lineup. The longstanding festival will bring hip-hop hero Nas, funk master Thundercat, alt-rockers Violent Femmes and local indie stars Men I Trust to Montreal this summer. But that's just the tip of the iceberg, with over 350 concerts programmed, two thirds of which are free.
There will also be celebrations for Oscar Peterson's centennial; Montreal-born Grammy-winner Allison Russell; acclaimed Quebec composer Jean-Michel Blais; Americana guitarist Yasmin Williams; and much, much more. Check out the full program here; tickets are on sale now.
