Downtwon Yonge unveils urban music incubator as next phase of music strategy

DOWNTOWN YONGE UNVEILS URBAN MUSIC INCUBATOR AS NEXT PHASE OF MUSIC STRATEGY

Partners with Canada’s Music Incubator and Coalition Music to launchArtist Manager Program Downtown 

The Downtown Yonge BIA (DYBIA) will launch a pop-up music incubator this November as the next step of its Music Strategy by introducing a new Artist Manager program, in partnership with the not-for-profit Canada’s Music Incubator (CMI) and Coalition Music.

The DYBIA will bring this professional development program for artist managers into the heart of downtown at a temporary location at Yonge and Dundas, for three months from November through January.

“This is a key step towards establishing a permanent location for an urban music incubator in Downtown Yonge,” explains Garner.

“We’re testing the model with Canada’s Music Incubator (CMI) and Coalition Music, who have a trusted and established track record incubating artist entrepreneurs and industry professionals at their Scarborough location.”

The program provides an opportunity for emerging artist managers to broaden their knowledge and hone their trade by working with experienced professionals. Kicking off with a full-time, 10-week program, artist managers will be provided with customized, hands-on, long-term mentorship.

“An urban music incubator fits in with the City’s overall strategy to promote Toronto as ‘Music City’ and our own Music Strategy to build on Downtown Yonge’s tremendous music legacy.”

A full-fledged music incubator for emerging artists, providing studio space, mentorship, education, networking and collaboration, is the long-term goal of the Downtown Yonge BIA’s Music Strategy.

Launched in June, the Music Strategy is an ambitious, multi-pronged plan to re-establish the area as a central hub for Canada’s music industry.

The new Artist Manager program is a major step toward that vision. It will provide guidance from a globally successful team of artist managers and an opportunity to work alongside active industry professionals.

“The need to develop future generations of artist managers is well-recognized in the Canadian music industry,” said Vel Omazic, Executive Director, Canada’s Music Incubator.

“We are committed to delivering this much-needed support for working artist managers through access to our industry expertise and the opportunities available in Downtown Yonge.”

Interested artist managers can find more information or apply by visiting the CMI website. The program will be offered twice annually (November-January; April-June) and is limited to a maximum of 20 artist managers per session. There is a fee of $2,500 which also includes ongoing mentorship from CMI, a not-for-profit organization, which has been running Artist Entrepreneur and Tour & Tech professional development programs since 2011.

“When we started our careers over 25 years ago we basically knew nothing. We were essentially learning on the fly and it took us years to find an experienced and willing mentor,” said Eric Lawrence, co-founder of Coalition Music, an award-winning and globally successful artist management company (USS, Simple Plan, Our Lady Peace, Finger Eleven, Ben Caplan, Andee, and Justin Nozuka).

“We haven’t forgotten that and want to help as many artist managers as we can via our partnership with Downtown Yonge and CMI.”

The downtown music incubator concept has strong support from the City of Toronto’s economic development team. Collaborating with the Downtown Yonge BIA “to establish an urban music incubator program” is specifically cited as an action item in From Concept to Commercialization: A Startup Eco-system Strategy for the City of Toronto, which was endorsed by City Council on May 5, 2015.

Ultimately, it’s a concept with the potential to be rolled out across the City.

“Downtown Toronto has long been home to a vibrant, exciting music scene. We are thrilled to be taking this passion for music to a new level – culturally and economically,” Garner said.

For more information on the Artist Manager program, visitwww.canadasmusicincubator.com/cmiam.

About Downtown Yonge BIA

www.downtownyonge.com

The Downtown Yonge Business Improvement Area (DYBIA) is a catalyst for creating vibrant urban experiences and events in the heart of downtown Toronto. Representing more than 2,000 businesses and their employees, as well as the broader community of residents, students and visitors, the DYBIA champions attractive public spaces, popular events, safety and cleanliness. It plays an active role both at street level and in boardrooms, advocating for a thriving and diverse community of retailers, restaurants and services.

About Canada’s Music Incubator

www.canadasmusicincubator.com

Canada’s Music Incubator (CMI) is a federal not-for-profit incubator based in Toronto with a mandate to help artists, touring professionals and artist managers evolve from starter companies into sustainable businesses through customized hands-on mentoring, collaboration and networking. Originally founded by Coalition Music in 2012, CMI established itself as a distinct entity in November 2014.

About Coalition Music

www.coalitionmusic.com

Established in 1991, Coalition Music is one of Canada’s leading music management companies. Representing artists including internationally renowned Our Lady Peace, Finger Eleven, Simple Plan, Justin Nozuka and Ubiquitous Synergy Seeker (USS), the Toronto-based company operates on the core belief that the artist is the most important person in the music industry and should be empowered with the tools and knowledge to develop their own career. Coalition Music helps artists and industry professionals, at all levels, build sustainable careers within a trusted creative community of mentoring, collaborating, networking and education.

In 2010, Coalition Music introduced an incubator environment where musicians and industry professionals at all levels can build sustainable careers within a trusted creative community built upon mentorship, networking and collaboration.