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Concerts

Billy Joel Announces First Toronto Show in Over a Decade

Nathaniel Rateliff, Jorja Smith, and Nate Smith have also announced upcoming Canadian dates.

Billy Joel

Billy Joel

Myrna Suárez

Billy Joel will be playing Toronto's Rogers Centre next year.

The legendary piano man is set to return to Toronto on March 15. The stadium show will be his first performance in the Canadian metropolis in 11 years and his only Canadian performance in 2025.


Joel is one of the industry's most popular artists, with 160 million records sold worldwide and 23 Grammy nominations to his name. He'll serenade the Rogers Centre thirty years after he last played there, in March 1995. Tickets go on sale October 25, with presale beginning Oct. 21.

Also announced this week: Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats will be bringing their brand of Americana to several Canadian cities in the new year. Touring their new album South of Here, they'll perform in Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg, Ottawa and Toronto in February and March 2025. Tickets go on sale Oct. 25, with presale beginning Oct. 22.

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American country singer Nate Smith is bringing his Through the Smoke tour to Toronto and Hamilton on March 28 and April 1 respectively, with tickets on sale Friday, Oct. 18. Smith's had a recent breakout and is performing particularly well in Canada, with his new album California Gold debuting at No. 45 this week on the Billboard Canadian Albums chart, 20 spots higher than in the U.S.

Another Smith just announced a Toronto show for next year: English singer Jorja Smith will perform at Massey Hall on March 4, her only Canadian stop on a North American tour. The new tour dates arrive alongside the deluxe edition of her album falling or flying, with features from popular U.K. acts like Craig David and Nia Archives. Tickets are on sale now.

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Influence Media Wins Bid to Acquire Anthem Entertainment’s Music Assets
Business News

Influence Media Wins Bid to Acquire Anthem Entertainment’s Music Assets

Sources say the BlackRock-backed company bid slightly above $650 million for the assets, though the deal has yet to close.

Apparently, the third time really can be the charm, as sources say Influence Media Partners has emerged as the winner in the auction for the music assets of Anthem Entertainment, the Canadian music firm that houses music publishing assets and recorded masters royalties from the likes of Rush and Timbaland.

While two earlier efforts to sell the firm in 2017 and 2022 came up short, sources suggest that in the third go-round, the successful Goldman Sachs-shopped deal saw at least two bids come in above the $600 million mark, even though most other bidders were said to be in the $500 million to $600 million range before dropping out. In all, sources suggested that about a dozen suitors kicked the tires on Anthem.

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