Manitoba Music Heads to Cannes for 44th Annual MIDEM Conference

Representatives from the Manitoba music community will be in Cannes, France next week to attend MIDEM, the world’s biggest music business conference. Ten local industry professionals will head overseas from January 23-27.

MIDEM allows the opportunity for members of our local music industry to expand their presence across the globe, as the conference hosts over 10,000 international music industry bigwigs. Artists, labels and record companies attend the conference to wheel, deal, and get exposed to the hottest, newest music through trade shows, networking events, and live music showcases.

This year, the diverse Manitoba delegation of labels and industry professionals attending MIDEM includes: Aboriginal production company Rising Sun Productions’ Vince Fontaine, Aboriginal label Arbor Records’ founder Brandon Friesen, Ukrainian folk label Olesia Records’ owner Alexis Kochan, Songs4Media.com creators Chris Burke-Gaffney and Jewls Dengl, electronic record label Balanced Records’ co-founder Adam Hannibal, David Kennedy from Manitoba Trade and Investment, Sean McManus from Manitoba Music, and Manitoba Film & Music’s Jason Smith and Carole Vivier. Attendance is funded in part through Manitoba Trade and Investment—which allows for smaller Manitoban businesses to strengthen their visibility in international markets—as well as Manitoba Music’s and Manitoba Film & Music’s jointly-funded Market Access Program.

Balanced Records’ Ottawa-based nu-jazz artist Rise Ashen will be at club Le Sun 7 to showcase his work on January 26. He will share the stage with artists from Greece, Germany, and France. This is the fifth year that Balanced Records has attended MIDEM, and the second time that the label will showcase an artist. Balanced's past MIDEM experiences have successfully led to an expansion of its digital and physical distribution across the world, in countries such as the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Greece, Germany, and Japan. Two Manitoban artists have showcased at MIDEM in the past: Solidaze in 2009, and Eagle & Hawk in 2006.

Representatives from Manitoba Music and Manitoba Film & Music will also be hosting their third annual networking dinner at La Pizza on January 26, to give the chance for more intimate networking with international music industry professionals. This is integral in supporting the efforts of Manitoba’s rich music companies to grow their businesses beyond our borders.