In Canada: Paul McCartney Opens Oak View Group’s $300 Million Venue in Hamilton

The hard hats came off for the first official concert at TD Coliseum in Hamilton, Ontario last Friday night (Nov. 21) — and it started with a bang.

The first show at the former Copps Coliseum and FirstOntario Centre arena since its nearly $300-million transformation by American sports and live entertainment company Oak View Group was one of the most prominent music legends still playing today: Sir Paul McCartney. That’s a big flex for a venue aiming to prove itself as both a relief valve for the red-hot Toronto live music touring market and a destination in its own right, as well as Oak View Group’s new flagship venue in Canada.

McCartney has a discography packed full of some of the most immortal songs of all time from the Beatles to Wings to his solo career, and the multigenerational crowd that packed the sold-out 18,000-capacity venue showed their appreciation by shouting and singing along with every song. 

Partway through the set, the 83-year-old artist took an informal poll: “How many of you here are actually from Hamilton?” he asked, before repeating the question asking how many are not. Judging by the cheers, it sounded like 60-40 out-of-towners to Hamiltonians. It’s been nearly 10 years since McCartney last played the city, and he made it count with a marathon 36-song setlist that lasted close to three hours.

The arrival of TD Coliseum may be described as an upgrade of an existing arena, but that tag seriously underplays the significance of what is a genuinely dramatic $300 million transformation of the 18,000-capacity venue. 

The ribbon cutting on Nov. 20 was attended by Ontario Premier Doug Ford (taking time out on his birthday), several of his provincial cabinet members, the mayor of Hamilton, Andrea Horwath, and high-level representatives from Oak View Group, the Denver-based international venues giant in charge of the project, and its partners, including TD Bank and Live Nation Canada.

Nick DeLuco, senior vice president and general manager of TD Coliseum, launched the event by recalling that “749 days ago, we were here, talking about a vision, a dream of what this venue was going to become, and now it’s real.”

Read more on the opening McCartney concert here and the opening of TD Coliseum here. — Richard Trapunski and Kerry Doole

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Macklam Feldman Management Celebrates 30th Anniversary

Macklam Feldman Management (MFM) is celebrating 30 years.

As the Canadian-born international talent agency embarks on its third decade, the company is welcoming new team members and a bevy of emerging talent.

Founded in Vancouver in 1995 by industry titans Stephen Macklam and Sam Feldman, the partnership initially emerged to manage Irish folk band The Chieftains. The success of the group proved their joint prowess — and Macklam Feldman Management was born.

Since then, the management company — a subsidiary of Feldman’s A&F Music Ltd. — has overseen and guided the careers of some of the biggest artists in the world including Joni Mitchell, Norah Jones, Leonard Cohen, Bette Midler, Tracy Chapman and James Taylor alongside a roster that today includes legends Sarah McLachlan, Diana Krall, Elvis Costello, Colin James and more.

“We’ve been fortunate to work with some of the most iconic artists in the world, and this recent momentum marks the most concentrated period of investment in artist development since the company was founded,” Feldman tells Billboard Canada.

While working with icons like McLachlan and Costello, Macklam and Feldman are music industry legends in their own right. (The latter also founded The Feldman Agency, one of Canada’s biggest booking agencies, before selling the namesake company to his executive team in 2019.) Recently, however, MFM has increasingly invested in artist development.

Over the last two years, MFM has expanded its team with four new staff members — Samuel Chadwick, Sam Hughes, Connor Macklam and Wesley Attew — who are dedicated to artist development and digital marketing. They will work with artist managers Scott Oerlemans and Kyle Kubicek to strengthen MFM’s artist development and digital marketing operations for their growing roster.

Over the past year, they have welcomed a new wave of artists, including American singer-songwriter aron!, rock band Tommy Lefroy, U.K. post-punk band YAANG and country singer Dawson Gray. They join 2022 signees, emerging folk-pop trio Tiny Habits, who recently opened for McLachlan on her 30th anniversary Fumbling Towards Ecstasy tour. Each brings a fresh musical perspective and global prospects to the agency.

Read more here. — Heather Taylor-Singh

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New National Report Calls for Boost to Indigenous Music ‘Discoverability’ in Canada’s Streaming Era

As Canada updates its rules for how streaming platforms support local culture, a key opportunity is emerging to strengthen the visibility of Indigenous music at home and abroad.

The Indigenous Music Office (IMO) has released a new study that sheds light on the challenges affecting Indigenous artists and music companies accessing international markets.

Pathways to International Markets: A Strategy to Increase Export Capacity for Indigenous Music is the music organization’s first major research project. The study establishes four key strategic directions that identify the roles that funders, music industry organizations and partners play in increasing financing, professional development and discoverability for Indigenous artists and industry professionals.

In the study, the IMO highlights that export activities generate significant career development opportunities for Indigenous music artists. However, most funds available to the Canadian music industry lack a strategic focus on assisting the development and export of Indigenous music.

“A strategy to increase the export capacity of the Indigenous music sector is timely as demand for Indigenous music is growing in Canada and around the world,” the report reads.

This includes financing the growth of a domestic Indigenous-owned and led music ecosystem, strengthening export readiness of Indigenous artists, prioritizing international showcasing, touring and networking and promoting discoverability of Indigenous music on streaming and broadcasting platforms.

The study calls for promoting “discoverability of Indigenous music on streaming and broadcasting platforms” as the most specific pathway for Indigenous artists and organizations to reach larger audiences.

In addition to working closely with the CRTC on the implementation of Online Streaming Act, the IMO has assisted in the development of the commission’s new Indigenous Broadcasting Policy, in partnership with First Nations, Métis and Inuit broadcasters, along with Indigenous content creators and audiences.

The study was developed amidst the implementation of the Online Streaming Act, a once-in-a-generation update to CanCon regulations, and ongoing Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) hearings. In September, various Canadian music orgs voiced their opinions on the changes, one of which highlights the importance of artist discoverability for Indigenous musicians.

An important part of the hearings was last year’s CRTC decision to enforce major foreign-owned streaming services with Canadian revenues over $25 million to pay a now-paused 5% of revenues into Canadian content funds, like the Indigenous Music Office and FACTOR.

Read more here. — HTS