Canadian Reggae Summit Sets Stage for Success

Canadian Reggae Summit Sets Stage for Success
By Ryan B. Patrick
Pride Entertainment Writer
February 15 2006

Typically the spot for African History Month festivities, two weekends ago saw the Harbourfront Centre host the 2006 Canadian Reggae Summit.
As part of Harbourfront’s Kuumba Festival, the event was a chance for the Who’s Who in the Canadian reggae music industry to network, listen to artist demos, and impart wisdom on how to make it in the often-tough music business.
The objective of the summit, according to co-sponsor Canadian Reggae World, was to bring together artists, producers, concert promoters, musicians, DJs, managers, radio personalities, radio stations, and all reggae-related businesses, into one room, to encourage, promote and achieve liaisons and networking opportunities.
Those in attendance included local artists such as Jah Beng, King Ujah and Sonia Collymore, along with community radio personalities Jahmin (King Turbo) and Patrick Roots of CIUT 89.5 FM; Natty B and Carrie Mullings of CHRY 105.5 FM; Tony Barnes and DJ Chocolate of CKLN 88.1 FM..
The event featured a “demo derby”, where the panel of radio personalities listened to local artist demos and critiqued them, based on presentation, production quality and overall suitability for radio.
One panel of note centered around how emerging artists could improve their “concert readiness” and on how to improve the odds of getting record distribution.
Hosted by local dub poet Michael St. George, the panelists included Denise Jones of concert promotions firm Jones & Jones Productions Ltd.,; Frank Willison, president of record distribution company, Nuff Entertainment; and Alain P. Arthur, executive producer of the popular television show, “Caribbean Vibrations”.
Homegrown Canadian reggae is as good as anything out there right now, Jones offered. The issue is, and has always been about how artists present themselves.
Nowadays, getting record distribution is a relatively easy task, quipped Nuff Entertainment’s Willison. But it’s not about just having a finished a CD and more about the hustle, he noted.
The trick is in not only getting the product inside the store, but around effective marketing to move units.
“To get music in the stores, such as HMV, aren’t as receptive to new product as in the past, particularly when it comes to untested Canadian material. It’s often a hard sell and even harder to compete with American artists, he added.
Once you have a viable product, “the [music] video is the selling tool”, Arthur said, adding that “Caribbean Vibrations” is always looking for new music videos to play on the show.
He suggested that artists seek funding from the usual suspects, such as VideoFact (a funding agency for Canadian artists), and, even if artists get turned down, he reminded them to always remember there are alternatives, even if it means funding the project out of pocket.
“Presentation is important,” Jones said. “It’s called the music business…You’re only as good as your last performance.”
Maintaining a professional business attitude is key to success, Jones added, saying artists must be willing to make short-term sacrifices for long-term gain – eg. performing as many shows as possible, even the ones that don’t pay well – because it’s all about exposure.
“Approach the industry as a career,” Jones offered.