Music Biz Headlines, Aug. 30, 2021

By Kerry Doole

TIFF gets tuneful with wide-ranging lineup of music docs

Still, music fans won’t go without. The TIFF documentary schedule includes a handful of films devoted to the stories of a Canadian pop superstar, a beloved sixties siren unsure of the best way to San Jose, a Montreal icon not named Leonard Cohen, a polarizing smooth saxophonist and a Canadian rock trio from the 1980s. – Brad Wheeler, The Globe and Mail

Ayla Tesler-Mabe wants a rock resurgence

NEXT sits down with this 20-year-old guitarist and singer phenom who’s putting a feminine face to the rock ‘n’ roll resurgence with prodigious guitar skills and ’70s style. –  Rayne Fisher-Quann,  NEXT

Vince Gill: A hockey-loving Okie

It is hard to fathom that a boy who grew up in Oklahoma City would have much knowledge of hockey, let alone be a passionate fan of the game, but that is the story of Vince Gill, country music superstar now residing in Nashville with his wife, Amy Grant. He has long had a special affinity for Canada. – Kevin Shea, Cashbox Canada

Canadian composer R. Murray Schafer followed his own iconoclastic path to classical music success

Mr. Schafer died on Aug. 14, aged 88. During the course of a prolific career that lasted over 60 years, he was an internationally celebrated composer and music educator, and the founder of the field of acoustic ecology – the study of the relationship between humans and their sound environment. He was also a talented visual artist and an imaginative writer. – Robin Elliott, Globe and Mail

Danko Jones is still defiant two decades after landing on NOW’s cover

One of the most prominent names in Toronto rock, the power trio is your favourite band's favourite band. – Richard Trapunski, NOW

For the love of Vinyl: this Montreal museum is something to see ... and hear

If nostalgia runs through your veins and you like getting your hands on anything vintage, then we’ve found just the spot for you. The Emile Berliner Musée des Ondes is one of Montreal’s hidden historic gems. – Al Sciola, Daily Hive

Is Drake's new album dropping the same day as Kanye's?

After calling out his nemesis Kanye West in a recent verse, Drake may be ready to duel on release day. Hints were dropped that both new albums may come out on Sept. 3, but Kanye delivered his yesterday – Nickiswift.com

Drake has nothing to gain in his beef with Kanye

In hip hop, a good beef can be a godsend. Depending on the victor, a solid verse from a diss track can write an artist with an otherwise negligible career into the annals of rap history. A rivalry can push album sales, catapult an artist to stardom or even solidify a legacy. There are plenty of positives – unless you’re Drake, who has absolutely nothing to gain from renewing his feud with Kanye West. – Demar Grant, Globe and Mail

Ontario businesses cautiously optimistic about vaccine passports.

For Toronto concert promoter Jeff Cohen, who also owns the Horseshoe Tavern, the devil is in the passport details. “If it’s a prelude to allowing full capacity again, it’s wonderful news. Bring it on. But if it’s just on top of the restrictions we’ve already got, it’s really not helpful,” said Cohen. – Josh Rubin, Toronto Star

International

Music industry weighs vaccine mandates, but politics collide

The coronavirus vaccine gave the live entertainment industry hope for a rebound in 2021. Now, as Covid cases surge and hospital beds fill up, it feels like March 2020 all over again. In hope of salvaging and surviving another devastating year, the industry is moving rapidly toward vaccine mandates for concertgoers, event staff and crew. – Kristin M. Hall,  AP

Rolling Stones’ U.S. tour to proceed as planned after Charlie Watts’ death

The promoter announces tour kickoff on September 26th in St. Louis is still on: “The Rolling Stones’ tour dates are moving ahead as planned." – Simon Levinson, Rolling Stone

Kanye West finally releases ‘Donda’ album

After five weeks, four official public listening sessions and millions of words of speculation from the media, Kanye West finally released his Donda album to streaming services on Sunday morning. It is unclear when the album was actually posted, but a press release from West’s label, Def Jam, arrived at around 8:15 a.m. ET.  – Jem Aswad, Variety

What happens when sad artists get happy?

Lorde is the latest of music’s sad girls club to debut a hesitantly happy record, but, for some fans, positivity and growth feels like betrayal. – Sophie Wilson, i-d

Gen Z rap’s reluctant star Lil Tecca is back like he never left

Don't call it a comeback. The fact that Lil Tecca was a leading light in the crowded field of melodic young trappers in 2019 was especially unlikely: instead of a grill, the 16 year old wore braces. – John Norris, GQ

‘No reasonable person would consider Nirvana’s ‘Nevermind’ cover child porn, lawyers say

Four criminal defense attorneys explain why they think the now-grown baby on the 1991 album cover doesn’t have a case. – Samantha Hissong, Rolling Stone

Rhye’s Michael Milosh sued by ex-wife for sexual battery and more

Alexa Nikolas, in a lawsuit filed in a California state court, says that Milosh “preyed on the innocence of a minor fan to manipulate and coerce her into succumbing to his repeated sexual assaults of her." –  Matthew Strauss, Pitchfork

‘Not just a drummer – a genre’: Stewart Copeland and Max Weinberg on Charlie Watts

The Police and Bruce Springsteen drummers share memories of their late Rolling Stones counterpart, explaining his technical brilliance, his verve – and his clothes-folding skills. –The Guardian

If it sounded like Charlie Watts, then it sounded like the Rolling Stones

Making it sound like the Rolling Stones was all that mattered to their srummer. An Englishman’s Englishman, a Savile Row suit enthusiast and a team player through and through, Charlie Watts died at a London hospital last week, age 80. – Brad Wheeler, Globe and Mail

Kanye West files application to officially change his name to Ye

In new legal documents, obtained by The Blast, Kanye says the decision to change his moniker is for "personal" reasons, and doesn't elaborate. –WENN

Beyoncé’s ‘Black Is King,’ ‘For All Mankind’ among juried Emmy winners

Awards will be presented at Creative Arts Emmy ceremony next month. – Brian Welk, The Wrap

Emmylou Harris’s teenage obsessions: ‘The Beatles parted the clouds after JFK’s assassination’

The country singer, 74, recalls the inspirational power of Joan Baez and American folk – and the lessons dogs can teach us. – As told to Dave Simpson, The Guardian

How Kate Bush's 'The Dreaming' made my monsters my own

There are so many ways that women are made into monsters. On The Dreaming, Bush expresses the pain and explores the potential of monstrous transformation — and teaches us how to do the same. – NPR

ABBA teases new music in cryptic social media post

Remember those new ABBA songs and “virtual tour” that were supposedly on the way three and a half years ago? First it was two new songs, then six new songs, for a “Virtual ABBA” experience in collaboration with “American Idol” creator Simon Fuller? Well, finally something is on the way, judging by a vague social media post from the group that appeared early Thursday. – Jem Aswad, Variety