Canadian Music Week is pleased to welcome the following industry members to the CMW 2015 Co-Chair Committee:
CO-CHAIR COMMITTEE
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DARRYL BALLANTYNE – CEO, LyricFind
Darryl Ballantyne originally conceived LyricFind with Mohamed Moutadayne and Chris Book at Ontario’s University of Waterloo to be the largest, most accurate destination for lyrics on the Internet. Officially launched in 2004, the company pioneered the licensed digital lyrics space, successfully negotiating the first-ever mass lyrics licensing deal with EMI Music Publishing in 2005. Since then, Darryl has grown LyricFind to be the largest legal, licensed lyrics database in the world, with millions of licensed tracks available and thousands of lyrics sublicensing clients. LyricFind is also the exclusive third party licensor of lyrics for Universal Music Publishing Group. As CEO, Darryl has overseen the bootstrapped growth from a dorm room to an international leader, currently supplying millions of tracks in seven languages to 30 countries around the globe.
LyricFind has established licensing and content relationships with over 3,000 music publishers, and many societies around the world. The company now delivers services to hundreds of web sites and mobile applications that want to enhance their music products with lyrics, including Pandora, Amazon, Microsoft, iHeartRadio, HTC, Nokia, Lyrics.com, Shazam, SoundHound, LyricsMode, SongMeanings, and CBS.
As an authority on licensing and digital content, Darryl has spoken at industry events including Midem, SF Music Tech, Canadian Music Week, Digital Music Forum, CMJ, New Music Seminar, SXSW, Music & Media Finland, and more. Before launching LyricFind, Darryl was Manager of Digital Development & Distribution at EMI Music in Los Angeles, where he was involved in deals with companies such as MusicMatch, Napster, and iTunes. Darryl earned a Bachelor of Mathematics with a Business minor from the University of Waterloo.
DAVE CARR – VP of Programming, Central Ontario Broadcasting
Dave Carr recently celebrated twenty years in the radio industry after embarking on a successful career at CFJB – Rock 95 in Barrie in 1994.
Dave joined the station as creative director and has since experienced a hands-on diversity of positions including promotions, production manager, and account executive before being promoted to program director.
From there, he broadened his horizons to becoming programming consultant for a network of stations in St. Petersburg, Russia in a joint venture with Central Ontario Broadcasting (COB). He also added Barrie’s Kool FM to his programming roster.
In 2013, Dave was promoted to V.P. programming of COB. He worked closely with a new team in the ground-up build for the launch of Toronto’s newest station, Indie 88.1 in the summer of 2013.
DERRICK FUNG – CEO, Tunezy
Derrick Fung is a technology entrepreneur, music enthusiast and former capital markets professional. Derrick graduated from the University of Toronto where he earned a BBA (High Distinction / Summa Cum Laude) and was awarded the Gordon Cressy Leadership Award for outstanding extra-curricular involvement. In January 2014, Derrick was awarded the Top 30 Under 30 for Music by Forbes Magazine for his influence in the music industry. Other recipients include Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga and Avicii.
He is the CEO and founder of a music start-up called Tunezy which was the winner of Billboard’s Innovator’s Showcase in San Francisco in November 2012. Tunezy has been featured in TechCrunch, Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal, Yahoo! Music and more. Tunezy was acquired by SFX Entertainment (NASDAQ: SFXE) in November 2013. SFX Entertainment is the largest promoter of electronic music culture and owns large festivals including Tomorrowland, Electric Zoo, Sensation and more.
Prior to Tunezy, Derrick worked in Institutional Equity Derivative Sales at CIBC World Markets and was previously also a Foreign Exchange trader. Derrick has also worked at large multi-national corporations including Merrill Lynch (Sales & Trading), BNP Paribas (Derivative Sales) and Microsoft (B2B marketing). Derrick also spent time working at the Clinton Foundation, a not-for-profit founded by former U.S. President Bill Clinton, where he helped plan the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) in New York City.
RON KITCHENER – President, RGK Entertainment Group
Launched in 1992, Ron Kitchener established RGK Entertainment Group as a concert promotion and event marketing company. By early 1994, RGK had evolved into an artist management driven company, with Kitchener managing then up-and-coming country star Jason McCoy. Since that time, he has led his team to all new heights as a multi-faceted company.
With a global focus, RGK Entertainment Group has become a highly regarded and innovative force in today’s competitive entertainment industry. The umbrella of RGK Entertainment Group includes: Open Road Recordings, Canada’s #1 country record label; publishing companies Roots Three Music and Rogue 11, DART Events, a touring events planning company, TopCountry.ca, Canada’s premier music news source and RGK One Shot Productions, a television development company.
RGK remains strongly focused on artist management, having won Management Company of the Year from 2009 to 2013 and Manager of the Year nine times at the Canadian Country Music Awards (CCMA). Kitchener’s management style and business acumen has built his roster to include International GRAMMY winning group The Mavericks, JUNO winners Doc Walker, Dean Brody, The Road Hammers and Corb Lund, in addition to newcomers Tim Hicks, Steven Lee Olsen and Madeline Merlo. Previously, RGK has managed multi-Platinum selling artist Johnny Reid.
Open Road Recordings, also founded by Kitchener, has won Canadian Country Music Association (CCMA) Award for Record Company of the Year from 2009 to 2013. It is home to JUNO and CCMA Award winning artists Doc Walker, Dean Brody, Emerson Drive, The Road Hammers (certified Platinum in Canada), High Valley, Tim Hicks, One More Girl, Madeline Merlo and Blackjack Billy. Open Road’s catalogue includes Prairie Oyster, Tara Oram, Ridley Bent and Johnny Reid. The label represented Big Machine and The Valory Music Co. in Canada for over seven years and included Taylor Swift (certified six times Platinum in Canada), Reba, Rascal Flatts, Justin Moore and Brantley Gilbert. Open Road is distributed by Universal Music Canada.
Roots Three Music, co-ventured with ole music in 2006, is a song publishing company dedicated to developing song writing talent both domestically and internationally. Roots Three Music has a diverse catalogue with cuts by Montgomery Gentry, Craig Morgan, Blackjack Billy, Tim Hicks, The Judds, Mark Wills, Dean Brody, The Road Hammers, Doc Walker, UK super group Westlife, Howie Dorough (Backstreet Boys) and 98 Degrees, as well as sync placements on Oprah, Good Morning America, ESPN, NASCAR, Fox, MuchMusic, CBC and more. Rogue 11 is RGK’s exclusive new publishing division, having signed Dan Swinimer and Madeline Merlo.
RGK One Shot Productions is the television development division of the company. Meet The Wilsons, the company’s first official production, debuted in September 2009 on CMT. The show has aired on CMT in Canada and the US.
DART Events has produced three national CMT tours, including the most recent CMT Hitlist Tour, which featured Doc Walker, Emerson Drive and Aaron Pritchett. 2011’s tour included Dean Brody, Aaron Lines and Deric Ruttan – and the inaugural CMT On Tour supported some of the hottest new stars of Canadian country. DART Events is gearing now up to produce the Bands On The Run tour, crossing Canada this Fall, 2014.
An entrepreneur and an innovator, Kitchener embraces the future of today’s business. He combines professional business strategies with a grass-roots philosophy, creating the best all-around opportunities and atmosphere for his artists. In 2008, 2009 and 2011 Kitchener was named CCMA Record Company Person of the Year. With all of his professional successes, it is no surprise that Kitchener was nominated and elected to sit on the board of the Country Music Association (CMA), as International Director in November 2009. In addition, he has held positions on the MMF (Music Manager Forum) Canada Board and the CCMC (Contemporary Coalition of Country Music) board based in Sydney, Australia. He is a class of 2008 (Nashville) Leadership Music alumni and served as co-chair for Leadership Touring Day. He is currently the Chair of the Canadian Country Music Association. (CCMA)
Kitchener is married with two children, and splits his time between his offices in Nashville and Toronto.
JESSE KUMAGAI – VP of Talent, Live Nation Canada
Jesse Kumagai is the Vice President of Talent for Live Nation Canada, based in Toronto. Jesse served as the Director of Programming for Massey Hall & Roy Thomson Hall for more than a decade before joining Live Nation in February of 2014. There he oversaw booking for the two iconic venues, and launched artist & audience development programs that saw the organization promoting concerts in a variety of smaller venues. Jesse is also an active volunteer and advocate for Canada’s music community, having served on many boards and advisory groups including the Unison Benevolent Fund, Yonge Dundas Square, Canadian Arts Presenting Association, Canadian Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, the Ontario Media Development Corporation, City of Toronto Music Industry Advisory Council, and the Province of Ontario’s Music Advisory Committee.
PAUL LARCHE – President, Larche Communications Inc.
Paul Larche is the President of Larche Communications Inc. (LCI), owner of 104.1 The Dock, based in Midland, KICX 106, based in Orillia, KICX 91.7, based in Sudbury, and 92.3 The Dock, based in Owen Sound.
He has been working in radio broadcasting for 39 years.
Paul is originally from Timmins, Ontario where he started his radio career at CKGB and CFTI FM at the age of 15. Within a few years, he moved from announcing to program director, sales representative and eventually station manager.
Paul moved to Sudbury in 1986 as General Manager for CKSO and CIGM FM.
In 1990, Paul moved south to Toronto and became general manager of Telemedia Network Radio, who provided radio stations across the country with entertainment and sports programming, including live play-by-play of the Toronto Blue Jays and Toronto Maple Leafs. During this time, Paul worked extensively with some of Canada’s top advertisers and advertising agencies.
In 1996, Paul finally set out on his own and purchased KICX 104 from Telemedia.
In the past 18 years, LCI stations have won 25 industry awards, including the Ontario Association of Broadcaster’s Station of the Year and their Community Support award. KICX 106 has been named the Canadian Country Music Association Station of the Year eight times, including 2013.
Paul is the past president of the Ontario Association of Broadcasters, which represents radio and television stations across the province. He is also on the board of directors of the Canadian Association of Broadcasters. Paul is also on the advisory board of the Salvation Army.
In 2009, the Orillia Business Association chose Paul of Business Leader of the Year.
Paul, his wife Lawrene and five children live in Barrie, Ontario.
JULIEN PAQUIN – President, Paquin Artists Agency
Raised in an environment infused with music, creativity and entrepreneurial values, Julien Paquin displayed an inherent wisdom for the live entertainment business from an early age. In 1993, he joined his father Gilles as an agent at Paquin Entertainment Group. Julien’s instinctive knack for discovering new artists has helped shape the company’s Agency division into an industry leader, cementing his reputation as one of the premier agents in Canada.
Under his direction as President of the Agency division, the company’s roster has steadily grown to over 150 acts spanning a broad spectrum of musical styles. Julien represents such notable artists as Randy Bachman, Tegan & Sara, The Sheepdogs, Serena Ryder, Old Crow Medicine Show, Coeur de Pirate, Josh Ritter and K’NAAN. The diversity of these acts reflects his vision for the Agency: a people-oriented organization, providing distinguished service to its artists and thereby fostering their careers.
Julien currently serves on the boards of the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS), an organization whose main focus is the exploration and development of opportunities to showcase and promote Canadian artists and music; the Unison Benevolent Fund, an assistance program for music industry personnel; and the Canadian Arts Presenting Association (CAPACOA), a national arts service organization for Canada’s presenting and touring sector.
Julien’s contribution to the industry continues to be widespread; he has been recognized as “Agent of the Year” at CAPACOA and at six Canadian Country Music Awards.
KAREN STEELE – Program Director, Kiss 92.5 (Toronto)
She has programmed 97.7 HTZ-FM in St. Catharines, MIX 99.9 in Toronto and is currently the programmer of the Rogers-owned Top 40 radio station, KiSS 92.5 in Toronto.
Karen has been involved in Marketing and Promotions for HTZ, MIX, Energy Radio and 98.1 CHFI and also as the Director of Publicity and Promotions for Warner Bros Theatrical – Canada working on film launches like The Hangover, Terminator Salvation and Harry Potter.
She’s organized Toronto festivals including; Musicfest, Beachfest, Wham Bam, and the Kiss Haus Party featuring artists like Bruno Mars, Avril Lavigne, Train, Blue Rodeo, Ke$ha, LMFAO, Robin Thicke and Carly Rae Jepsen.