Manitoba Music Poised to Break into L.A. Market

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Manitoba music will be making its mark in California next week. An unprecedented four bands will be hitting the stages to showcase for some of the music industry’s most influential players at MUSEXPO 2007, which runs April 29 – May 2 at the Bel Age Hotel in West Hollywood. MUSEXPO is one of North America’s most important music business conferences, attended by top international industry professionals, label execs, A&R big wigs, and major television and movie music supervisors.

Only 30 acts from around the world were chosen for coveted showcase spots. Two hometown acts, punk/rock outfit Sick City and alt.rock quartet Losing Focus, were chosen by MUSEXPO to join the line-up, which includes some of the hottest buzz bands from the U.S., England, Finland, China, and beyond. Manitoba bands count for two out of three Canadian acts showcasing at this year’s event. 

MARIA and MANITOBA FILM & SOUND will present a special luncheon on April 30 for all the conference delegates with acoustic performances by duo Keith and Renee (Easily Amused) and indie pop quintet Paper Moon on the Bel Age Hotel’s rooftop. The showcase takes place after the keynote panel with host Larry King of CNN’s Larry King Live and panelists Ron Fair (Chairman, Geffen Records), Martin Bandier (Chairman/CEO, Sony/ATV Music Publishing), Nic Harcourt (Music Director, KCRW Los Angeles), Chad Hurley (Co-Founder/CEO, YouTube), and Steve Schnur (Worldwide Executive of Music & Marketing, Electronic Arts). This year’s delegates include Tamara Conniff (Executive Editor/Associate Publisher, Billboard), Jason Flom (Chairman/CEO, Capitol Music Group), Seymour Stein (Chairman, Sire Records), Doug Frank (President Music Operations, Warner Bros. Pictures), J. Scavo (President, MySpace Records), and many more.

The Manitoba hospitality continues with performances by Keith and Renee and Paper Moon at the Manitoba Music Explosion luncheon showcase on May 3 at the prestigious Hotel Café, presented by MARIA, MANITOBA FILM & SOUND, Manitoba Trade and Investment, and Creative Control.

The Manitoba delegation will be joined by Sam Baardman and Sara Stasiuk of MARIA, Carole Vivier and Kevin Walters of MANITOBA FILM & SOUND, Jason Smith of Smallman Records, Chris Burke-Gaffney and Jewls Dengl of CBG Artist Development, Brandon Friesen of 441 Studios, Jack Shapira of Unison Studios, songwriter/producer Arun Chaturvedi, artist Kelly Fairchild, and David Kennedy of Manitoba Trade and Investment.

Breaking into the L.A. market is an important step for the Manitoba music industry, which has already seen phenomenal success in recent years with multiple Juno and Grammy nominations, song placements in film and television, and lucrative recording and distribution deals for local artists.

Since MARIA and MANITOBA FILM & SOUND brought Alicen Catron Schneider, VP of Music Supervision at NBC/Universal, to Winnipeg in October for a special showcase, workshop, and a series of meetings with local labels, Manitoba artists have made great strides towards the mainstream market south of the border. Impressed by the incredible talent coming out of this province, Schneider has championed a number of Manitoba acts resulting in song placements in popular television shows.

MARIA and MANITOBA FILM & SOUND presented two showcases with Juno-nominated roots quartet Nathan in L.A. in December, including a special performance for music supervisors and a concert at the Hotel Café. As a result of the relationships with L.A.-based music supervisors built by MARIA and MANITOBA FILM & SOUND, singer/songwriter Jaylene Johnson has had a track placed in new show The Black Donnellys for iTunes, Nathan has a song in hit drama Heroes, with more placements in the works for other local bands.

For more information about MUSEXPO, please visit www.musexpo.net.

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