After spearheading Red Music Rising, the Billboard Canada 40 Under 40 honouree’s newest venture will span artist management, label services and consulting to create opportunities and expand reach for Indigenous artists. The roster includes Sebastian Gaskin, Wolf Saga, Boogey The Beat and Miesha and the Spanks, who have the label's first release.
Indigenous music executive Matt Maw has launched a new Toronto-based music company.
SUPERCONNECTED is Maw’s latest venture into the world of artist development following his departure from Red Music Rising last month. The Billboard Canada 40 Under 40 honouree led the label and management company’s artist development and overall vision since its launch in 2020.
Maw has spent his career creating a platform and expanding the reach of Indigenous artists. The Toronto-based industry professional kick-started his career as an intern at indie record label Arts & Crafts, before working as a community manager at ticketing agency Collective Concerts, which recently rebranded as We Are in the Future.
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Two years later, Maw moved over to the development side of the industry, working as a label and artist manager at HOME Music Co. and Six Shooter Records. Most recently, he served as president and lead artist manager at Red Music Rising, overseeing a homegrown roster of artists, including Sebastian Gaskin, Boogey the Beat, Nimkish, Wolf Saga, Drives the Common Man and LOR. The label had an exclusive distribution deal with Warner Music Canada/ADA.
Gaskin, a Cree singer-songwriter from Manitoba, won his first Juno Award last year for contemporary Indigenous artist of the year, and became one of the first artists in residence at Massey Hall. Meanwhile, Anishinaabe DJ and producer Boogey the Beat has toured extensively with Haisla Nation hip-hop duo Snotty Nose Rez Kids.
Maw also collaborates with multiple Canadian music industry organizations such as Music Managers Forum, BreakOut West, CARAS and the SOCAN Foundation, providing mentorship and education for emerging Indigenous artists and communities.
As Maw enters this new era, he hopes to level up his impact in the industry, calling it “the evolution of a mission that has defined my career.”
“While my work at Red Music Rising focused on filling a critical role in representation, SUPERCONNECTED aims to scale up that impact,” he says. “This transition is personal for me — I'm carrying on the work I love with the people I trust and building something that offers more room to grow, for more artists, Indigenous or otherwise.”
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Maw's vision for SUPERCONNECTED is multifaceted, recognizing that record label services, artist management and consulting play integral roles in an artist's development and success. It's not just about him, as he says "I’m elated to have my community along for the ride."
As with Red Music Rising, SUPERCONNECTED will continue to be supported by independent artist management and record company, Coalition Music.
"SUPERCONNECTED will prove what Red Music Rising was hinting at. Matt has an incredible ability to discover, pull together and help artists,” shares co-founder Eric Lawrence. “His elevation from an early cohort in Canada’s Music Incubator (where we first met), to leading Red Music Rising for the Aboriginal People’s Television Network, to his new venture solidifies Matt’s role as a leader in the global music industry.”
SUPERCONNECTED brings over several of Maw’s clients from Red Music Rising, including Gaskin (management), Boogey The Beat (management and label) and Wolf Saga (management and label). Calgary’s Miesha and the Spanks has signed to the label side, and the rock band will be the label’s first release, with the single "Fight My Body” out this Friday before their new EP VISIONS is released on Sept. 18.
