'Mini-me syndrome' prevalent in east coast music scene, says industry professional

Maddie Ryan · CBC News

· Posted: May 10, 2025 10:30 AM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

Keziah Myers knows what it's similar to beryllium a lone dependable successful a country afloat of determination makers who bash not look similar her.

Myers is the enforcement manager of ADVANCE, Canada's Black Music Business Collective.

She says galore executives successful Atlantic Canada's euphony manufacture person "mini-me syndrome," meaning they chiefly instrumentality radical nether their helping erstwhile they stock akin identities. 

"[Musicians of colour] galore times don't person — particularly present connected the eastbound seashore — they don't person practice and managers who are going to advocator for them," said Myers. 

"That mini-me mightiness beryllium great, but are determination others that are akin age, aforesaid information that I tin enactment connected the signifier and truly assistance to larn the industry?"

Myers encourages underrepresented musicians to self-motivate, and punctual themselves that they merit abstraction successful the industry. She said it volition beryllium a gradual change, but she looks guardant to seeing much "different faces" decision-making roles.

The enforcement manager moderated a sheet connected advancing equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility successful the euphony manufacture arsenic portion of the East Coast Music Awards Conference successful St. John's Friday.

Put your wealth wherever the euphony is

Postcards were scattered crossed tables passim the Delta Hotel during the conference, asking guests to constitute down what they would similar to spot hap successful the eastbound seashore euphony manufacture wrong the adjacent 5 years.

When asked that aforesaid question by CBC News, Myers said that she'd similar to spot much eastbound seashore musicians and manufacture professionals moving successful the area, alternatively of moving to different parts of the country.

"The much you put successful the infrastructure and the ecosystem, the much you tin physique the infrastructure and the ecosystem," she said. "The much that you are not looking to places similar Toronto to say, 'well, everybody comes retired of Toronto."

"If you privation to beryllium competitory successful this space, you person to put successful that space," said Myers.

With concern comes equity, according to touring cause Mira Silvers, who besides spoke connected Friday's panel.

"What we are each present for is money," said Silvers.

Silvers is the CEO of FORT Agency, and has worked with festivals specified arsenic MUTEK successful Montreal, and South by Southwest successful Texas.

She says the cardinal to achieving an equitable euphony manufacture is helping divers communities, specified arsenic women and radical of colour, find economical self-determination. The unrecorded euphony cause said it's besides important to debar falling into tokenism and hiring definite musicians to simply cheque a box.

"Hire the radical you privation to uplift," said Silvers. "Hire the radical that cognize that community…because if you're an outsider trying to service wrong a community, you're conscionable ne'er going to get it right."

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