News
The Mc Dades release "Dance Around the Spinning Wheel" and new album Thread the Light
8+ hour, 35+ min ago (722+ words) Roots Music Canada The Mc Dades have released "Dance Around the Spinning Wheel," the first single from their forthcoming album, Thread the Light. A traditional song arranged and produced by the band, the track arrives as the opening statement from…...
Mary Gauthier marks the 20th anniversary of Mercy Now at the Rogue Folk Club this month
5+ day, 9+ hour ago (276+ words) Mary Gauthier will perform a special evening of music at the Rogue Folk Club in Vancouver this month celebrating the 20th anniversary of her landmark album Mercy Now. The show will honour the songs and stories from the beloved album while…...
Danny Marks returns with landmark album Back to the Blues
6+ day, 19+ hour ago (340+ words) Danny Marks, one of Canada's most enduring and deeply revered figures in blues and roots music, has released his new album, Back to the Blues. Spanning 13 tracks and drawing on more than five decades of living, listening, and playing, the…...
A year after quitting the House of Commons, Charlie Angus is leading The Resistance and releasing new music
2+ week, 1+ day ago (766+ words) During the early days of the Trump administration, punk rocker-turned-Parliamentarian Charlie Angus turned back to music and protest, leaving his seat in parliament to focus on fronting his band The Grievous Angels and launching a newsletter called The Resistance. Before…...
Blues advocates say awards progress is good but there's more to be done to make things fair for Black artists
2+ week, 1+ day ago (1019+ words) An advocate for equity in the music business says the newly-minted Canadian Blues Music Awards, which held their inaugural edition at the end of March, appear to have evolved in a way that addresses some concerns about fairness involving the…...
Check out Ken Whiteley's performance of "Aberdeen' " and his upcoming shows
2+ week, 2+ day ago (148+ words) Ken Whiteley just celebrated his 75th birthday with a big bash at Hugh's Room Live in Toronto, and now he's released this video for "Aberdeen." It's a one take performance of the Bukka White blues classic. "I learned this decades ago…...
Trailblazing Indigenous cellist Cris Derksen has died
3+ week, 1+ day ago (490+ words) Like many of you, we here at Roots Music Canada are devastated by the news that trailblazing Indigenous cellist and composer Cris Derksen has died at the age of 45 after a motor vehicle collision Saturday in northern Alberta, reportedly after…...
Remembering pioneering Canadian reggae artist Ernie Smith
3+ week, 2+ day ago (804+ words) Music lovers everywhere lost a good friend with the departure last month of Glenroy Anthony Michael Archangelo Smith. He was an internationally famous and widely beloved Jamaican Canadian artist who excelled as both a singer and a songwriter. He was…...
Collingwood's Shjaane Glover Earns Honourable Mention At International Songwriters Day Song Contest With "Effervescence
4+ week, 2+ day ago (214+ words) Southern Ontario singer-songwriter Shjaane Glover has earned an Honourable Mention at the 2026 International Songwriters Day Song Contest for his song "Effervescence." The honour was announced on April 9, International Songwriters Day itself. The contest, which drew entries from Norway, Taiwan, Austria,…...
CBMA winner Ollee Owens announces new album with producer Colin Linden, plus tour dates
4+ week, 2+ day ago (634+ words) Roots Music Canada Ollee Owens is having a year. The Calgary-based blues and Americana artist has taken home the inaugural Canadian Blues Music Award for Emerging Blues Artist or Group of the Year " recognizing her album Nowhere to Hide and…...