MARCH 24, 2021
HAMILTON PARTNERS WITH GLOBAL LEADERS IN MUSIC STRATEGY, SOUND DIPLOMACY, TO DEVELOP STRATEGIC MUSIC PLAN
Partnership aims to confirm the City’s role in music for COVID-19 recovery
and reframe its current Music Strategy efforts
Hamilton, ON: Today a new partnership was announced between Sonic Unyon and Sound Diplomacy to develop a strategic music business plan that defines the role of the City of Hamilton across all departments in relation to music. This project will be a cooperative effort, extending the partnership across the City, and engaging global and local music industry experts, advocates and supporters.
The City of Hamilton has created a number of successful initiatives to support the development of music in wider municipal planning and development. In January 2014, Council approved the City of Hamilton’s Music Strategy including the process to appoint a working committee of industry experts, the Hamilton Music Advisory Team, to provide advice to the City on music. Post analysis of these efforts and research, balanced with the need to recover economically from COVID-19 impacts, the City of Hamilton is now positioned to prioritize and formalize a strategic music business plan, which will provide Hamilton with a fresh, necessary, strategic approach to music. Funding support from FACTOR will help make this important work possible.
“Hamilton's music sector has always been one of the city's strengths,” said Sonic Unyon president Tim Potocic, Chair of the Canadian Independent Music Association, and Festival Director of music and arts festival Supercrawl. “That scene has already given rise to an incredible range of internationally recognized talents, but it now faces historic challenges. In partnership with Sound Diplomacy and the City of Hamilton, we are eager to identify concrete ways to create and nurture an environment where music and the music industry flourishes, grows and prospers."
“It's an incredible honour to be working with Sonic Unyon and the City of Hamilton,” said Shain Shapiro, founder of Sound Diplomacy. “It, along with Toronto, is where I started my career, so being able to play a role in its future is a genuine privilege. We can't wait to get started and look forward to working with the community in one of the best music cities in the world.”
The benefits of this new partnership include:
● Confirming the City’s role in music for COVID-19 recovery purposes reframing the current Music Strategy (created in 2014) where applicable;
● Development of actionable recommendations that prioritize, for the City of Hamilton, the goals, policies, reform and/or actions required for the purpose of recovery;
● Alignment of the recommendations to the appropriate responsibilities of a municipal government in relation to Music/Creative Industries for the longer term;
● Catalyze partnerships with the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce and Hamilton Public Library; and
● Determine potential alignments to the Mayor’s Task Force on Economic Recovery recommendations.
About Sound Diplomacy
Sound Diplomacy is the leading global advisor on music cities strategies and market development. As strategists for cities, developers, large private sector organizations and governments, Sound Diplomacy provides cutting-edge research and market expertise in placing music and music business strategy in city, urban and development plans. They work in over 40 countries and with over 100 clients, spanning public, private and third sectors, such as the Greater London Authority (UK), the cities of Vancouver (Canada), Huntsville (Alabama), New Orleans (Louisiana), San Francisco (California), Brisbane (AU), Cardiff (UK), the regions of Northwest Arkansas (Arkansas) and The Shoals (Alabama), and organizations such as the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).
About Sonic Unyon
Founded in 1993, Sonic Unyon Records became the organizing force behind Hamilton's free music and arts festival Supercrawl in 2009, growing it from 3,000 attendees in the first year to more than 250,000 by 2019 and closing down blocks of downtown Hamilton in order to host hundreds of artists, including the likes of Broken Social Scene, Lights, Arkells, Monster Truck, Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, Charles Bradley, Yo La Tengo, and Spoon. Supercrawl also presents dynamic ticketed concert events throughout the year. In addition to events like the annual Because Beer Craft Beer Festival and work producing JUNOfest 2015 and Hamilton's Pan Am Games closing celebrations, Sonic Unyon opened multi-use events space Mills Hardware in 2014 and launched cultural hub Bridgeworks in late 2020.
This project is funded in part by FACTOR, the Government of Canada and Canada’s private radio broadcasters. Ce projet est financé en partie par FACTOR, le gouvernement du Canada et les radiodiffuseurs privés du Canada. Made possible with the support of Ontario Creates.
•
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Lisa La Rocca | Director of Operations, Sonic Unyon Records | lisa@sonicunyon.com
Kate Durio | CEO, Sound Diplomacy | North America | kate@sounddiplomacy.com