Two Canadian superstars have dominated the headlines over the past week. Justin Bieber conquered Coachella with his appearances at the festival, reaping kudos and financial payoffs. In Toronto, Drake's publicity stunt to announce the release date of new album Iceman drew frenzied fans and police attention.
Read more more music biz headlines of the week from Canada and beyond here.
The album’s release date was uncovered from the rapper's ice installation in Toronto by local streamer Kishka. Check out footage from the chaos here. – Stefano Rebuli, Peony Hirwani, Billboard Canada
Following the costumed Quebec duo’s viral performance videos, their streams have skyrocketed in Canada and across the globe. – Heather Taylor-Singh, Billboard Canada
This comes after the superstar's ‘One Less Lonely Girl’ Coachella serenade of her daughter. Maggie Baird gushed about watching the "crazy unimaginable dream" of Billie and Justin becoming friends in a sweet Instagram post on Sunday (April 19). – Gil Kaufman, Billboard
The Bieb's daily plays continue to skyrocket following his much-anticipated festival performance, while fellow headliners Karol G and Sabrina Carpenter also see gains. – Kyle Denis & Andrew Unterberger, Billboard
Justin Bieber has fans asking “What do you mean?” after a cryptic website update suggests a tour announcement could be coming. – Alex Nino Gheciu, Canadian Press
Influential Montreal concert promoter, record label head and record producer Donald K. Tarlton (a.k.a. Donald K. Donald) has died at the age of 82. – Kerry Doole, Billboard Canada
The beloved Canadian singer returns to her roots on the ballad, which was written by frequent collaborator Jean-Jacques Goldman. – Heather Taylor-Singh, Billboard Canada
The Canadian musician and one half of Whitehorse had received a long-distance ring from England the week before. “Could you,” Mr. Adams asked Mr. Doucet, “learn 26 of my songs and be ready to play in San Juan in three days?” –Brad Wheeler, The Globe and Mail
In a profile with Interview Magazine, the Canadian avant-garde artist shared some details on her forthcoming record, which has yet to be given a release date. – Heather Taylor-Singh, Billboard Canada
Norton's upcoming appearance at Dickens on April 24 — followed by an Edmonton show at The Buckingham on April 25 — are monumental. The setup involves Norton and two sidemen playing classic Husker Du cuts as instrumentals and having locals sing them. – Eric Volmers, Calgary Herald
The notes are collateralized by royalties from a catalog of more than 3,750 works from artists and songwriters, including Suicideboys, Morgan Wallen, Ryan Tedder, Diplo, and Twenty One Pilots. – Music Business Worldwide
The murder charge follows the death of a 14-year-old girl whose dismembered and decomposed body was found in September in his apparently abandoned Tesla.– Andrew Dalton, Associated Press
The networking platform – social media’s answer to boomer grandparents – is rapidly becoming an AI slop dystopia. Which made it the perfect place for my Nvidia-inspired fairytale.– Al Warburton, The Guardian
