Music Biz Headlines: Toronto Maple Leafs Fan Justin Bieber's Draft Day, Canada Eligible For Eurovision
Also this week: Diljit Dosanjh breaks his own North American touring record, Drake's Janice party, a festivals curfew for Calgary and artists raise concern about YouTube's AI training.
In the headlines this week, Justin Bieber gets to fulfill a boyhood dream by starring at a major media event for the Toronto Maple Leafs, shortly after announcing that his triumphant Coachella appearance is being released. –
Elsewhere, Canadian indie rock heroes team up for a joint tour, a Toronto concert venue comes back to life, and Heated Rivalry hasn't yet warmed to Mark Carney.
Read these and other stories from home and afar here.
Canadian Music Biz Headlines
Justin Bieber Makes 2026 NHL Draft Appearance, Announces Toronto Maple Leafs’ No. 1 Pick
"I've been a Leafs fans since I was a little boy," the singer said during his surprise visit. – Audrey Iasimone, Billboard Canada
Justin Bieber Adds to ‘Swag’ Collection With Live Coachella Album: Stream It Now
Swag Live From Coachella (Weekend I) features guest spots from The Kid LAROI, Tems, Wizkid, Dijon, and Mk.gee, and stretches across 22 tracks. – Lars Brandle, Billboard Canada
Drake Treats Attendees With Cash Prizes and Selfies During Apology Dinners For People Named Janice
The 6 God invited Janices in Miami, Houston, Los Angeles, New York and Toronto to a private dinner to apologize for the title of his hit single "Janice STFU," where guests received a three-course meal and entered a raffle for a $5,000 cash prize. – Stefano Rebuli, Billboard Canada
PUP Tapped as Guest Curators for Inaugural Second Summer Festival in Toronto
The Toronto rock group selected nine homegrown acts, including Casper Skulls, Truck Violence, Klokwise, Eucalyptus, Cam Kahin and Spirit Desire, to join over 100 acts performing at 13 multiple venues from September 24-26.– Heather Taylor-Singh, Billboard Canada
Joint Tour by Canadian Icons Metric, Broken Social Scene and Stars is the ‘Dream’
For the indie-rock bands, the opportunity to play with long-time friends outweighs the challenges of touring together.– Brad Wheeler, Globe & Mail
Brendan Brady, CEO and executive producer at Accent Aigu Entertainment, told The Globe & Mail that the show is withholding the coveted item from the Canadian Prime Minister until support for Canadian Content is clear. – Heather Taylor-Singh, Billboard Canada
One of Hamilton’s Longest-Running Festivals is Just Over a Month Away
Festival of Friends is slated for July 31 through Aug. 2 and it boasts all-Canadian headliners. Singer-songwriters Dallas Smith and Feist are set to pop on Friday and Saturday night, while Sunday will be an all-star celebration. – Hamilton Spectator
Canada Is Officially Eligible to Enter Eurovision Song Contest
The country’s eligibility comes after CBC/Radio-Canada became a full member of the European Broadcasting Union. – Heather Taylor-Singh, Billboard Canada
Eurovision is a Giant Glittery Mess – and CBC Should Absolutely Jump Into It: Opinion
The benefits of taking part outweigh the risks of our country getting mired in yet another debate over Israel-related boycotts.– JK Nestruck, Globe and Mail
National Arts Centre Orchestra Members Reflect on Alexander Shelley’s Time at the Helm
He takes his final bow with the NAC on July 2. – Zenith Wolfe, Globe and Mail
Dormant Toronto Concert Venue Reawakens With Eclectic Lineup Announced
Beginning in August, the Bowl at Sobeys Stadium will offer concerts by BINI, Interpol, Mother Mother and more. – Nick Krewen, Toronto Star
Sook-Yin Lee Searches for Truth on her New Album, 72RHR
In an interview planned around her latest album, 72RHR, nostalgia has a way of circling back into the conversation. But that’s the price of being one of those 1990s’ media personalities who never really left people’s living rooms. – Noel Ransome, Globe and Mail
Calgary City Council Upholds Controversial New Curfew for Summer Festivals
Summer festival tents and concerts outside Stampede Park will adhere to a strict 12 am noise curfew on weekends, however the period of cool-down music following concerts has been extended until 1 am. – Stefano Rebuli, Billboard Canada
Alberta's Country Thunder Festival Cancelled Citing Infrastructure Issues with the City of Calgary
The festival was slated to start in two days with Red Clay Strays, Lainey Wilson and Kane Brown. – Melinda Newman, Billboard Canada
Chris Walter Gives a Thorough, and Thoroughly Harrowing, Punk History Lesson with Born Too Loose
As advertised, Never Mind Chris Walter Here’s Born Too Loose is indeed a messy and incomplete history of punk, all seen through the eyes of a Canuck punk historian who seemingly buys ink—both kinds—by the barrel. Walter has over 30 titles to his credit. – Mike Usinger, Georgia Straight
International Music Biz Headlines
Diljit Dosanjh Breaks His Own Record for the Biggest North American Tour by a Punjabi Artist
The global Punjabi hitmaker has reached $32 million across 15 shows in support of his acclaimed album, Aura. – Heather Taylor-Singh, Billboard Canada
YouTube’s AI Training Argument Raises Alarm Among Indie Music Advocates: ‘Not Informed Consent’
"I suspect if people aren't angry about it, they don't know about it," says one creator advocate of YouTube potentially training AI on user content. – Rachel Scharf, Billboard
Oliver Tree Memorial Service To Be Livestreamed on July 25
A celebration of life for Oliver Tree, who died in a helicopter crash at age 32, is scheduled to take place in Santa Cruz, Calif. – Ashley Iasimone, Billboard
A pop superstar widely perceived as a romantic has in fact mostly written love songs troubled by strife, ghosts and delusion. Ahead of her wedding, we strip away the gossip to see what Swift-as-songwriter has spent 20 years telling us. – B.D. McClay, The Guardian
Lorde Celebrates One-Year ‘Virgin’ Anniversary With Mega-Drop of 49 Demos
The singer's new XRAYS site also features photos, notes and artwork ideas.– Gil Kaufman, Billboard
Vanilla Ice's "Freedom 250" Concert Was Canceled For An Embarrassing Reason
After weeks of controversy and backlash, Vanilla Ice's "Freedom 250" concert didn't even happen at all. – Larry Fitzmaurice, BuzzFeed
The star's final live show was at Nashville's Nissan Stadium on June 27. In this week's Country Update lead story, four execs look back on his career. – Tom Roland, Billboard
Chris Martin’s Lost James Bond Theme Goes on Auction With Unheard Coldplay Tapes
Acoustic recording of a song titled The World Is Not Enough included in wide-ranging auction featuring formative Coldplay recordings. – Ben Beaumont-Thomas, The Guardian
