Also this week: A dispute over the band name Live, Tate McRae honoured at Billboard Women in Music in Los Angeles, Live Nation's standoff with the DOJ and more.
While one American country star is forced to cancel a Canadian tour, another U.S. rock band prepares to tour here while under a legal cloud. Elsewhere, Tate McRae makes the honours list for Billboard Women In Music 2026. And a look inside the new Paul McCartney photo exhibit at the AGO.
Read these stories and more in this week's roundup of music biz headlines of the week from Canada and beyond.
'Paul McCartney Photographs 1963–64: Eyes of the Storm’ features over 250 photographs McCartney's personal archive captured during a moment when Beatlemania was hitting its apex. – Billboard Canada
"His energy meshed with ours. He brought it every night. I’m not saying other people we’ve played with didn’t, but there was a level to his performance that was like an old-time evangelist. He lost himself in the songs." – Brad Wheeler, Globe and Mail
The Canadian pop star will receive the accolade on April 29 at the Hollywood Palladium, joining Teyana Taylor, Kehlani, Laufey and more as honourees. – Heather Taylor-Singh, Billboard Canada
In addition, the major Montreal music festival will welcome The XX, Empire Of The Sun, Sombr, Major Lazer, Geese, Wolf Parade and more to Parc Jean-Drapeau from July 31 to Aug. 2. – Heather Taylor-Singh, Billboard Canada
The Montréal festival bets on internet-era disruptors as the city’s festival season kicks off earlier than usual, from May 14-16. – Yasmine Seck, Billboard Canada
The 94-year-old Canadian actor's upcoming metal album that will feature 35 of heavy music’s biggest names, including former Black Flag vocalist Henry Rollins and longtime Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Zakk Wylde. – Alex Nino Gheciu, The Canadian Press
Leah Fay Goldstein and Peter Dreimanis are experts at blurring the line between the personal and the professional. As the couple at the core of the Toronto rock group July Talk, the two have long learned to balance the thrill of deafening live performance alongside the sometimes less glamorous duties of managing a household and raising a toddler. – Barry Hertz, Globe and Mail
The concert giant wants to postpone a blockbuster trial, but the feds aren't having it: "Now is the time for defendants to be held accountable." – Bill Donahue, Billboard
On Feb. 19, Live Nation Entertainment also reported that a record 159 million people attended Live Nation-promoted shows in 2025 (across 55,000 concerts) – up by 8 million YoY. For the first time, in 2025, more music fans attended Live Nation concerts outside the United States than inside it. – Music Business Worldwide
In the DOJ’s email dump, Epstein’s would‑be partners pitch the crumbling record giant as a “troubled industry” but a “great asset to have for P,” revealing how they saw the music business as a pipeline to women. – Casey Epstein-Gross , Paste
The deal was announced on February 24 via a Google blog post from Elias Roman, Senior Director of Product Management at Google Labs, who described ProducerAI as “a creative collaborator” that allows users to “turn imagination into dynamic, comprehensive songs.” – Murray Stassen, MBW
A collection of Paul McCartney instruments, outfits, handwritten lyrics, unseen photos and tour memorabilia will be part of an exhibit at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this summer, billed as the first major museum show to feature McCartney and Wings. – Mark Kennedy, AP
While Bad Bunny has dominated global charts, the superstar has not had quite the same success in Brazil, a country notoriously hard for foreign stars to win over due to a devotion to national artists.‘AP
History was unmade last year, as engineers began the massive project of ripping the first-ever transoceanic fiber-optic cable from the ocean floor. Just don’t mention sharks. – Jane Ruffino, Wired
