EPISODE 7 | Representation in the Corporate & Organizational Entertainment Industry: Record Labels, Streaming Companies & Industry Associations
#BDRB EP:7 - Record Labels, Streaming Companies & Industry Associations #BREAKINGDOWNRACIALBARRIERS
SPEAKERS
CHRIS SMITH | @21entgroup
ERIN ASHLEY LOWERS | @ellhah
BUSHRA JUNAID
JOEL NAGA | @joelnaga
KARDINAL OFFISHALL | @kardinalo
KATRINA LOPES | @katrina_lopes
Moderated by:
IAN ANDRE ESPINET | @ianandreespinet + DAVID “CLICK” COX | @davidclickcox
CHRIS SMITH
[He/Him]
Founder, Entrepreneur, Music Mogul
Entrepreneur Chris Smith is the visionary behind some of the entertainment industry’s biggest names of the past two decade. Chris has successfully shaped the career of eight platinum musical artists including Alessia Cara, Nelly Furtado, Fefe Dobson, The Philosopher Kings and Tamia. He remains one of the most sought after entertainment and brand managers in the industry. Chris’ acumen is exemplified by having both Gold and Platinum in most record selling countries in the world.
Chris Smith Management as a company has garnered a number of prestigious awards and critical press acclaim including Management Company of the Year (Canadian Music Week), and Artist Management Company of the Year (Urban Music Awards). Chris has also been profiled in a number of international music and lifestyle publications, including Billboard Magazine, Elm Street Magazine and Pollstar; and managed several award winning artists who have earned Grammy Awards, Junos Awards, Billboard Music Awards, Music Awards, ASCAP Awards and MTV Video Music Awards.
KATRINA LOPES
[She/Her]
Artist Manager
Katrina is the president of KL Management, whose roster includes platinum selling, Juno Award winning artist & producer Shawn Desman, soul artist, film composer & Sephora collaborator TiKA, soul singer and TedX speaker Danielle Ponder, and pop singer/songwriter Kayla Diamond. KL has also worked with Family Channel stars Josh Bogert (“Backstage”) and Sarah Carmosino (“Lost & Found”).
KL clients have toured with Backstreet Boys, Selena Gomez, opened for NAO, John Legend, Nas, SWV, and performed alongside Sir Elton John. Together with its clients KL has garnered accolades including MMVA Video of the Year, Socan #1 Award, Socan Pop Song of the Year, and numerous platinum and gold singles. She executive produced the film "ALIVE" which aired on MUCH. The film was the cornerstone of an innovative campaign to promote Desman's album, winning “Outstanding Short Film” ReelWorld Film Awards, and garnering Canadian Screen Award nominations for “Best Youth Program/Series” and “Best Direction in Youth Program/Series”.
KL also serves on the board of directors for Manifesto, a contemporary youth arts and culture platform, producing curated programming in music, visual arts, and dance.
@katrina_lopes
KARDINAL OFFISHALL
[He/Him]
Rapper, Executive, Philanthropist
For the past two decades, Scarborough born rapper, executive and philanthropist, Kardinal Offishall has paved the way for a new wave of Canadian superstars (including Drake, who credited him with being one of the people who opened the door for Canadian music worldwide).
Kardinal has been nominated for 15 Juno Awards and is a multiple ASCAP award and Socan award winner. He first claimed the international music stage with his own single Dangerous, which leapt quickly into the top 5 on the Billboard Hot 100, making him the first rapper in Canadian history to do so. He also features with Global Superstars, such as Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Sean Paul, Akon and performed in some of the world’s most prestigious stadiums and festivals. Kardinal is world renowned for his distinctive, high energy, mash-up performances as well as his untamed positive energy and knowledge of the music business.
@kardinalo
BUSHRA JUNAID
[She/Her]
Bushra Junaid is Outreach and Development Manager at the Ontario Arts Council and manages the Skills and Career Development: Indigenous Arts Professionals and Arts Professionals of Colour and Deaf and Disability Arts programs.
Born in Montreal to Jamaican and Nigerian parents and raised in St. John’s, Bushra has spent more than a decade supporting the development and artistic practices of artists from a diverse range of communities and cultures. Bushra has also worked in social housing, low income and homeless initiatives, and newcomer and refugee settlement.
As an artist and curator, Bushra explores history, memory and representation through mixed media collage, drawing and painting. Her work was recently included in They Forgot That We Were Seeds (2020, Carleton University Art Gallery), Like Sugar (2019, Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery), Future Possible: Art of Newfoundland & Labrador to 1949 (2018, The Rooms Provincial Art Gallery), Here We Are Here: Black Canadian Contemporary Art (2018-19, Royal Ontario Museum, Musée des Beaux Arts, Art Gallery of Nova Scotia), among others. Bushra curated What Carries Us: Newfoundland and Labrador in the Black Atlantic (2020, The Rooms Provincial Art Gallery) and co-curated the multidisciplinary project New-Found-Lands: Exploring Historical and Contemporary Connections between Newfoundland and the Caribbean Diaspora (2016, Eastern Edge Gallery).
Bushra received a Bachelor of Environmental Design Studies and Masters of Architecture from the Technical University of Nova Scotia.
JOEL NAGA
[He/Him]
Marketing Manager - Warner Music Canada
@joelnaga
ERIN ASHLEY LOWERS
[She/Her]
Culture & Music Journalist / DSP Content Programmer
For the past decade, Erin has spent her time diving into the worlds of music journalism, digital content creation, and festival programming with the hopes of pushing the Canadian music community, specifically Black music (Hip-Hop and R&B), to the forefront of the entertainment industry.
The most recent additions to Erin’s career in the music industry include her work as an interview producer and researcher for the Emmy and Peabody-award winning Netflix series Hip-Hop Evolution, and she currently works as a Hip-Hop and R&B Content Programmer in the digital streaming world.
@ellhah
DAVID “CLICK” COX
CLK Creative Works
David “Click” Cox started his career as a member of the MMVA winning and JUNO nominated group, The Maximum Definitive.
He created a reputation for his promotional and marketing efforts working closely with concert promotions company REMG.
Soon after, he started his career working with BMG Music Canada and then worked at Universal Music Canada as A&R. During his time with Universal, David founded the Stylus Awards to celebrate the Canadian urban music talents and recognition of DJs.
After 8 years with Universal, he created his own entertainment company, CLK Creative Works. Today, CLK is responsible for managing an eclectic roster of highly skilled and experienced artists. Along with management, David teaches music business at Metalworks and The Remix Project.
@davidclickcox
IAN ANDRE ESPINET
[He/Him]
Entrepreneur: Iconic Arts & Entertainment | Black Star Graphic Design | Emancipation Consciouswear
Ian Andre Espinet is a Toronto born, serial entrepreneur and lifelong community advocate. A business professional with over 2 1/2 decades of combined expertise in various areas of business, he is a proficient marketer, graphic designer & creative director, social media specialist, entertainment impresario, public speaker and community servant.
More than the sum of his parts, he is a trusted and respected member of the Canadian entertainment scene.
He is owner, creative director/principle designer at Black Star Graphic Design & Communications, a boutique design & print agency established in 1996. Iconic Arts & Entertainment established in 2001, is one of Canada's most respected "Urban" club & concert promotions companies and has produced 100's of events for 10's of 1000's of patrons.
Amongst his signature brands are Toronto's World Renowned RNB event, The Soul Kitchen (est. 2003), Icon, The One, Carpe Diem, The B-Boy Document and The Legendary Amnesia Old School event (est. 1999), which boasts over 50 old performances and is one of the only EVENTS to sign a major label recording label deal in Canada (Universal Music).
In December 2018, Emancipation Consciouswear, his heritage clothing line established in 1993 was reinstated after a 15 year hiatus.
He frequently volunteers, and speaks to children/youth on entrepreneurship; has served on the board of CHRY/VIBE 105.5fm (4 years); Caras' JUNO hip hop jury; and FACTOR's Juror for Hip Hop & R&B for the last 5 sessions. He is recipient of the Government of Canada's "150 Neighbours" CityBuilder Award (for service in Scarborough) and a City of Toronto Volunteer & Community Service Award.
@ianandreespinet