FACTOR Invests $350K In Keychange Women's Mentorship Program

By FYI Staff

The Foundation Assisting Canadian Talent On Recordings has announced it is backing Keychange, the international women in music mentorship program started by the PRS Foundation in the UK, with a $350K investment over four years.

This year’s program involves 74 artists and innovators from 12 countries, eight of whom are Canadian participants. The Canadian contingent is the largest individual national delegation in the initiative to date.

Additionally, Canada is the first country outside of the EU to be included in the year-long program which is partially funded by the EU. The first meeting of participants will take place in Stockholm, Feb 13-15. Participants will receive year-long mentorship via global women in music network SheSaidSo; attend one European festival and a meeting at Reeperbahn Festival.

This initiative complements earlier Keychange activities involving events in Canada and elsewhere that have committed to gender parity in their activities by 2022.

Canadian events that are signatures to the gender parity initiative include FACTOR-supported orgs’ BreakOut West, MUTEK, Canadian Music Week, and Halifax Pop Explosion. These events are also supported by FACTOR and the Government of Canada through the Canada Music Fund.

“FACTOR recognizes the need to support creative initiatives to improve the opportunities for women in music through education and professional training,” association President Duncan McKie said in a statement Tuesday. “This international effort emphasizes that need and accompanying export opportunities and also allows Canadian women to share their experiences with their international colleagues...we are committed long-term to making this happen.”

The program will continue until 2023 with a new cohort chosen every year and an equivalent investment from FACTOR and other partners including the SOCAN Foundation.

– Click here to the full Keychange press release and the full list of participants.

For further information, contact evelyn.cream@factor.ca.