Canadian Musician - March/April 2017 | Page 12

CHANGES

Sunrise Records Announces Takeover of 70 Former HMV Locations
Ontario-based music retailer Sunrise Records has announced it will take over 70 previously-owned HMV brick-and-mortar locations in malls across Canada . The expansion takes Sunrise into all major markets coast-to-coast .
The news comes on the heels of HMV Canada going into receivership after recently announcing the closure of all of its stores nationwide . The first new Sunrise Records locations will open in April 2017 .
The music chain plans to carry over 2,000 vinyl titles in stock at all locations , as well as 50 per cent more CDs than the previous HMV locations did . Sunrise says it will also continue its tradition of supporting local independent artists by carrying their music for sale .
For more information , go to www . sunriserecords . com .
PHOTO : GOOGLE MAPS / PETER CICHOSZEWSKI
SOCAN Members Generate $ 330M in 2016 ; Streaming Revenue Jumps 460 %
2016 marked another record year for SOCAN , with its music creator and publisher members generating approximately $ 330 million in overall revenue for an eight per cent year-over-year increase . Included in that is approximately $ 13 million in Internet audio streaming revenues , an increase of more than 460 per cent over 2015 .
Distributions to SOCAN members exceeded $ 285 million for the first time ever and domestic revenue was nearly $ 265 million , up approximately eight per cent and also a new high for SOCAN . Foreign royalties of approximately $ 66 million are an increase of 30 per cent from three years ago . There was also 47 per cent growth for AV composers as more than $ 20 million was collected for streamed works in film and television .
The final year-end figures will be determined following the March 2017 meeting of the SOCAN board of directors .
For more information , go to www . socan . ca .
New Music Monday Anthem Unveiled
The Coalition for Music Education ( CME ) will commemorate Canada ’ s musical heritage with a new Music Monday anthem for 2017 . Commissioned by the CME , the new anthem was co-written by JUNO-winning songwriters Marc Jordan and Ian Thomas . Entitled “ Sing It Together ,” the new anthem is available in various languages and arrangements for use in this year ’ s Music Monday celebrations , which take place May 1 st , 2017 in cities across the country .
The 2017 Music Monday sing-along will be led by a live-streamed national showcase concert from Ottawa in recognition of the sesquicentennial year . It will also continue last year ’ s # MMC2C2C initiative with a day-long webcast of videos from various music programs . This year , the webcast includes the northern coastline that is home to many indigenous people .
To see the video for “ Sing It Together ” and for more on Music Monday , go to www . musicmonday . ca .
… Bell Media ’ s MuchFACT has surpassed $ 100 million in total contributions to projects by Canadian artists . MuchFACT funds and promotes music videos and related media across various platforms and is exclusively funded by Much & M3 , divisions of Bell Media . MuchFACT ’ s $ 100 million contribution to Canada ’ s music industry represents nearly 9,000 projects since the foundation ’ s launch in 1984 . www . muchfact . ca .
12 • CANADIAN MUSICIAN