The first step in succeeding in the music business is to actually get in. It is easy to dream about pursuing a career in music, but it is difficult to act on it. One such dreamer is Jonathan Davids of Toronto, Ontario. We spoke to Jonathan about his experiences getting into the business, his first recorded song, and several more topics.
andPOP: What have you found to be the hardest part of the music business so far?
Jonathan Davids: Getting into it is really hard. I found that once [you've opened some doors] and met some people, networked a little bit, it’s a lot easier to get places and get things done. Before [I got into it], before I met [anyone], it was very difficult to take that first step.
AP: What have you enjoyed most about the music industry so far.
JD: Meeting people. I’ve met a lot of people. All the networking events I’ve been to. Getting different [ideas for songs]; it?s been very educational.
AP: What inspired you to write the song “You Know How I Feel”?
JD: I was actually at school [during frosh week], and I liked this girl and I knew another guy liked her also and so I just sat down one night and I was thinking about her and I wrote this song.
AP: What are your immediate and future goals right now?
JD: Right now I want to keep developing my song writing and get a larger repertoire of songs. I want to perform and just develop at what I’m doing before I try to make it to the big time.
AP: Who are your musical inspirations?
JD: It’s very broad. I have a very eclectic taste in music from pop to R&B, rock, classical, jazz…even oldies so I really can’t say a specific person, but it’s very eclectic.
AP: When did you realize you wanted to be a musician?
JD: When I was 12 years old I did a show with my school and something about the experience of doing it, I just started taking piano lessons and I started doing other shows and the rest is history.
AP: What’s your musical background?
JD: I took music all throughout high school and elementary school. I took private voice lessons and piano lessons and now I?m in the Faculty of Fine Arts in the music course at York University.
AP: How far do you see yourself going with this music career?
JD: Well this is what I want to do with my life so I intend to spend my life doing it. I want to be a recording artist and even get behind the scenes and do some producing and even get involved in the business aspect of it.
AP: Is there anyone in specific that you want to work with?
JD: Actually, I really like Alicia Keys. [She is a fairly] new artist, so I haven’t heard a lot of her stuff, but she has been pretty influential to me. A lot of the people I grew up listening to…I like Bon Jovi a lot, Whitney Houston.
AP: So lets say you had the chance to work with one of those artists, who would it be?
JD: I think right now, today, I’d like to work with Alicia Keys, because she is new to the scene and she probably has a lot of new ideas to get out there, whereas a lot of the other artists have already been around for a long time.
Check out JD on the web at jonathandavids.com.
Nona Gaye, daughter of the late classic R&B singer Marvin Gaye, will replace Aaliyah in “The Matrix: Reloaded,” Variety reports.
Gaye, who appeared in “Ali,” will play “Zee” in the sequel to 1999′s “The Matrix.” Before her death, Aaliyah had filmed several scenes for the movie. Gaye also had a part in the “What’s Going On” benefit song.
“Zee” will be introduced in “Reloaded” but will have a bigger role in the third movie in the Matrix series, “Revolutions.” Gaye begins filming her part in Australia next week.
“Reloaded” is scheduled for a May 2003 release and “Revolutions” will follow in November 2003, MTV reports.
Christina Aguilera and Justin Timberlake have been linked to new romantic interests. Aguilera, who broke up with dancer Jorge Santos, is reportedly now dating Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters. Timberlake, who used to date… well you remember, is now dating Jenna Dewan, a dancer and friend, tabloids are reporting.
“Christina has never been happier and is thrilled. With Britney and Justin over, they are now the power couple in music,” a friend of Aguilera’s told worldpop. Groll first met Aguilera in January at an LA hotel.
“Shortly after the split Christina went back to the hotel and Dave walked in,” an “insider” told worldpop. “An hour later they were in a darkened booth making out like crazy. They have been inseparable ever since.”
As far as Timberlake is concerned, he and Dewan have been spotted together at an LA nightclub and backstage at an ‘N Sync concert in Dallas.
“Jenna is the antithesis of Britney,” a source told UK’s The Sun. “She’s wild, curvaceous and dark-haired and is very flirty. And she isn’t afraid of wearing her sexuality on her sleeve.” Sounds like Britney to this reporter anyway.
Dewan used to dance for Janet Jackson and Pink. One friend said the couple was clubbing until 4AM after the Grammys, where she danced with Timberlake during ‘N Sync’s performance. The two met two years ago.
We will keep you updated.
Celine Dion’s reign atop the Billboard charts was short lived. Last week’s number one seller, Dion’s “A New Day Has Come” fell two number two, behind new R&B superstar, Ashanti. Her self-titled album sold over 500,000 copies in its first week, earning her “gold” status in the Unites States.
Tweet made her debut with “Southern Hummingbird,” placing third with almost 200,000 copies sold. Dion sold 263,000 copies, meaning Ashanti out sold them both combined.
In Canada, Dion is still in first, though dropping more than 50% in sales. Ashanti did not make the top ten.
Mariah Carey’s “Glitter” is still MIA.
The fifth “Divas” special will air live from Las Vegas and feature Mary J. Blige, Cher, and Celine Dion. “VH1 Divas Las Vegas: A Benefit Concert for the VH1 Save the Music Foundation” is on May 23 from the MGM Grand in Vegas.
More performers will be announced in the coming weeks.
Dion will begin her own Las Vegas show from Caesar’s Palace in 2003 for three years.
David Bowie and Busta Rhymes will perform as part of Moby’s “Area:Two” tour this summer. Although the dates are not set yet, Moby has told Rolling Stone that those two performers have agreed to join him on the tour.
New Order, Nelly Furtado, OutKast, Paul Oakenfold and Carl Cox were amongst the performers who joined Moby on tour last year during the inaugural year of the “Area” tour.
Moby will release “18″ on May 13th, while Bowie returns with “Heathen” on June 11.
Grab your cameras and start filming! Plans for the second annual International Teen Movie Festival are well underway, and this year?s festival promises to be more polished, learning from the mistakes of the first festival held last November.
?[Last year?s] festival went fantastic,? says Jonathan Hiltz, one of the creators of the festival along with his sister Naomi and her fianc? Myles Shane. ?We?re really proud of everyone involved. We did a lot of things to test.?
Last year, festival organizers chose sponsors that could appeal to the international scene such as Levi?s, The Movie Network, and Much Music. The goal of last year was to get the festival known, and they did just that, getting flooded with submissions from all over the world.
This year, the festival will be held in August, rather then in November, because it simply makes more sense. ?People flew in from out of town, and eight to ten days off from school is a lot. We?re doing it in August because people are coming back from camp, and it?s before school begins,? says Hiltz.
Another change to the festival is that all of the week?s events will be held at one central location, an AMC theater. Throughout the week, ?Let?s Educate? seminars will be held, with guest speakers from the entertainment industry, school representatives, and others in the field, coming in everyday. The Awards Show Gala will also be held at AMC, honoring the best directors, actors, movies, and more.
Anyone 19-years of age or under is allowed to submit work they have completed, as well as people over 19 who completed their work when they were in that age range. Submissions have already been mailed in from Canada, the Unites States, China, Jordan, England, Spain, and several more. A board of four or five people will judge which movies end up in the festival, as well as who will win the awards.
?We look for diversity,? says Hiltz, regarding what judges are seeking. ?We look for content. Tell a story. You don?t have to go out and spend a lot of money. Go out, grab a camera, and tell a story. There are no specific guidelines.?
Winning an award at the show means respect at an early age from the film industry. ?The International Teen Movie Festival is a launching pad for future careers,? says Hiltz. ?I know people who have won an award at 32, making films at 25. You have a teen that will win even before that. We want to make sure people know there is a way to get into the industry.?
The final date to submit a piece of work is July 16. The festival will be held at AMC Interchange 30 in Concord, Ontario, from August 16 until August 24.
No, they’re not going to sing “Love Story,” but 2002 Olympic gold medallists Jamie Sal? and David Pelletier will make an appearance at the Juno Awards on Sunday. The skating pair will present an award at the music awards show.
“We had many exciting moments at the Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City,” they said in a press release. “However, being on stage with the Barenaked Ladies was one of the major highlights. We are looking forward to sharing some special time with them at the Junos.”
After skating in Salt Lake and being handed the controversial silver medals, Sal? and Pelletier joined the Barenaked Ladies onstage during the Olympic Concert Series in an informal jam session.
The Junos air live on CTV Sunday at 8:00 from Newfoundland.
Amid speculation that ‘N Sync are breaking up, members of the group denied such that in a chat with AOL yesterday. The group is currently on their “Pop Odyssey” tour.
“Right now we are having the tour and then we’ll take a break and do our own thing,” said Joey Fatone, who stars in “My Big Fat Greek Wedding,” due out later this month.
“We are not breaking up,” added Lance Bass. “For sure.”
Justin Timberlake, the standout of the group, will probably try his hands at a solo album. “We don’t want people to think that [we're splitting],” he said. “Right now we’re doing the Celebrity tour and after that I think we’re gonna take a hiatus and then just start getting creative again.”
You may have heard her in “The Day Before” by Baby Blue Soundcrew. Perhaps you remember her song “Rally’n” which earned her a Juno Award in 1998. You probably even heard her collaboarate with Choclair, Kardinal Offishall and Saukrates. Finally, after 10 years as a member of Toronto’s hip-hop “circle,” Jully Black is signed.
Black has signed a worldwide joint venture deal between Universal Music Canada and US label MCA Records. “This venture with Universal Canada and MCA will provide an opportunity for me to share my music and to express myself in a language known to all and loved by many,” she said in a press release. “I’m excited about this new relationship.”
By signing with both companies, Black will be able to share her music not only in Canada, but in the United States as part of the reputable MCA, joining the likes of Mary J. Blige, Shaggy, and fellow Canadians, soulDecision.
“I think that Jully’s voice is one of the most soulful I have ever heard,” MCA Records President Jay Boberg said. “She captures emotion and feeling in such a way that pierces your heart. I know she can be a big star for MCA Records and we are honoured to have her as part of our family.”
An album is expected to be released later this year, as Black is currently writing and recording in the studio.
