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In Canada: How Connor Price Built a Global Fanbase Without a Label; Billboard Summit’s Toronto Debut
Also in this week's roundup of Canadian music news: PUP hits the charts with its latest album, Who Will Look After The Dogs?
In just a few years, Toronto-born rapper and actor Connor Price has built a global audience and over 2 billion streams entirely on his own terms.
“Staying independent means ownership, creative control and being able to do things my own way,” says Price. “I can put out music when I want. I can say what I want. I can work with who I want. I can market it how I want. I don’t have to wait for a label.”
That mindset has already helped him carve out a career many would envy. Using social media, online savvy, and some help from his family and friends, Price has found a way to reach a wide fan base all over the world. It’s a 21st-century DIY rise. Build the fanbase first, then go out on the road. Release 110 songs, then record your debut album.
Connor Price stars on Billboard Canada’s new Indie Issue digital cover — a look at artists making it work without a label. In the story, he talks about going from a career as an actor into music and content creation, and the viral Spin The Globe project that has resulted in millions of streams not just for him but for independent artists all over the world.
“Being on the independent side and working so closely with my wife [Breanna, his manager], I have to know how the business side works,” he says. “Some artists might be in a label situation with a big team where all they have to do is focus on the music, which is great, all the power to them. But I actually have a lot of pride and enjoyment in both the business side and the creative side.”
It’s every starry-eyed artist’s dream to sign a record deal — or so the conventional wisdom goes.
The recorded music industry has been built on the label model from its earliest days, with record companies providing funding to artists in exchange for rights to the music.
As recording has become cheaper and more accessible, though, the whole paradigm is shifting. Now, many artists are choosing to remain independent — or, in the case of major Canadian breakouts like The Beaches and Nemahsis, seeing success as independent artists after leaving a label roster.
That dynamic has been changing for decades, with strong independent streaks in DIY-minded genres like punk and hip-hop, but the internet has upended the industry to such an extent that artists across all genres are weighing the benefits of independence.
When you don’t have a label fronting funds or tapping into established release strategies and promotional networks, you need to make sure you’ve got a strong community around.
Ontario indie artist Ruby Waters knows that firsthand. She’s become a major breakout Canadian indie rock act in the last five years, with two Juno nominations, international tours and millions of streams under her belt.
“The main force to my independence as an artist really comes down to the love and support I’ve had from my day one homies and fans throughout my whole musical journey starting from back when I was singing on the street,” she says in another Billboard Canada Indie Issue feature.
Read the whole feature, which looks at the tools artists have without label support, here.
Billboard Summit Brings Global Talent to Toronto This Summer
A major global initiative is coming to Canada.
The inaugural Billboard Summit will bring some of the world’s biggest artists to Toronto’s NXNE Festival for a series of dynamic, artist-led conversations in June.
The full-day event will go beyond industry panel conversations to centre musicians talking about what they’re most passionate about: their processes, collaborations and breakthroughs.
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Charlotte Cardin is the first artist announced to join the summit. The Montreal-based singer and songwriter has had an international breakout over the last few years, charting on multiple Billboard charts and touring throughout Canada, Europe and the Middle East.
Her global rise led from Billboard Canada Women in Music, where she was named Woman of the Year in 2024, to the global Billboard Women in Music stage in Los Angeles this past March, where she represented Canada as Global Woman of the Year.
Cardin will speak on the topic of Breaking Through Barriers by sharing experiences and moments that have defined her career and offering inspiration to anyone striving to push boundaries.
Other soon-to-be-announced names will include artists from around the world — from trailblazing Canadians who’ve built influential brands that have resonated across borders to international artists who’ve set chart and live music records throughout the globe.
Stay tuned for the full programming announcement, featuring an exciting lineup of diverse voices and thought-provoking speakers.
More info here.
PUP Chart on Billboard Canadian Albums for the Fourth Straight Time with ‘Who Will Look After The Dogs?’
Punk is back on the charts this week.
Toronto band PUP have debuted their newest album Who Will Look After The Dogs? on the Billboard Canadian Albums chart this week, dated May 17. The album enters at No. 72 and marks the band’s fourth consecutive album on the chart since its sophomore effort, The Dream Is Over, first landed at No. 48 in 2016.
The album is fun and self-deprecating in ways we’ve come to expect from PUP, but also reflects the band’s major life changes: members got married or had kids, one expanded his home studio, and singer Stefan Babcock ended a decade-long relationship.
Although they have previously reached higher peaks on the chart, the band has some serious momentum. Following a stint playing arenas opening for Sum 41 on the band’s farewell tour, they’re now currently on tour in Europe and will also celebrate the record with a citywide summer tour in Toronto. The Mega-City Madness Tour is set to kick off in July, with dates at six venues in PUP’s hometown.
Elsewhere on the chart, legendary British rock band Pink Floyd earns this week’s top debut on the chart with Pink Floyd At Pompeii: MCMLXXII, which lands at No. 45. It is the first-ever soundtrack album for the band’s 1972 concert film Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii, which was recently remastered in 4K and re-released in theatres. It is the only other debut on the May 17 chart.
Check out the whole Canadian Albums chart breakdown here. – Stefano Rebuli
