###FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE###

ROSE COUSINS WINS JUNO, PERFORMS IN GALA AWARDS SHOW

REGINA, SK CANADA (April 22, 2013) – Over the weekend, PEI-native, Halifax-based Rose Cousins took home the JUNO Award for Roots & Traditional Album of the Year: Solo for her 2012 release WE HAVE MADE A SPARK at the 2013 JUNO Gala Dinner & Awards.  It was her first JUNO nomination.

1,150 Canadian music industry members gathered to toast 35 JUNO Award winners the night before the JUNO Awards broadcast show.  Hosted by CBC Q’s Jian Ghomeshi, the evening’s festivities at Regina’s Eventplex featured performances by a spectacular lineup of JUNO Award nominees and winners, as well as unforgettable tributes to some of the most influential names in Canadian music.

During the show, Cousins performed her song “This Light” for the In Memoriam tribute - a special arrangement that included musical nods to recently departed East Coasters Rita MacNeil (“Flying On Your Own”) and Raylene Rankin (“Fare Thee Well Love”).

Cousins remarks, “Considering the East Coast has been hard hit by loss in the recent past, it was an honour to play the In Memorium piece in the Gala. Raylene Rankin, Stompin’ Tom and Rita MacNeil were a huge part of my musical and Maritime upbringing.  I can’t believe they are gone.”

Cousins’ acceptance speech was well-received by host and audience alike.

View it online at: http://junoawards.ca/episode/2013-juno-gala-awards-acceptance-speeches
[starts at video counter 49:05]

To make her winning album WE HAVE MADE A SPARK, Cousins traveled to Boston to work with a family of songwriters, singers and musicians including Zachariah Hickman, who produced the record.  A short film “If I Should Fall Behind” documents the heart of the music community where the record was made.  rosecousins.com/film

“It’s been a rough week hearing what’s happening in Boston as it’s a second home to me. I can’t wait to get back there this week to celebrate with all my friends who helped me make this record.”

Nominated alongside “first home” friends including Annabelle Chvostek and fellow East Coasters Amelia Curran and Old Man Luedecke, Cousins admits Corb Lund was the only artist nominated she did not know personally.

“I feel good.  It’s been a roller coaster ride for sure, and I was very nervous about performing.  But I was in a category with all my friends.  It couldn’t have turned out wrong.”

When asked for highlights of her experience at the JUNOs, Cousins adds the sheer excitement of witnessing and meeting some of her heroes.

“It was amazing to be in a room filled with so many people I admire. I met Colin James and Tom Cochrane during my soundcheck on Saturday, which was so amazing. Then last night at an after party, I met Anne Murray, Michael Buble and Jim Cuddy.  Couldn’t believe I was there with relevance and context. Very surreal and thrilling!”

PHOTOS (click to download):
Rose Cousins performing In Memoriam (horizontal)
Rose Cousins accepting award (vertical)
Rose Cousins accepting award (horizontal)

MORE ABOUT ROSE COUSINS AT www.rosecousins.com/media-tools

FOR A COMPLETE LIST OF WINNERS AT THE 2013 JUNO GALA DINNER & AWARDS, INCLUDING BIOGRAPHIES AND IMAGES, GO TO WWW.JUNOAWARDS.CA

About CARAS
The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences/L’académie canadienne des arts et des sciences de l’enregistrement (CARAS) is a not-for-profit organization created to preserve and enhance the Canadian music and recording industries and to contribute toward higher artistic and industry standards. The main focus of CARAS is the exploration and development of ongoing opportunities to showcase and promote Canadian artists and music through vehicles such as The JUNO Awards and other year-round initiatives. For more information on the 42^nd Annual JUNO Awards or The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences’ (CARAS), please visit www.junoawards.ca or www.carasonline.ca.

CONTACT:
Michelle Conceison | Market Monkeys
michelle@marketmonkeys.com
Office 888-980-9779 Mobile 617-233-1893
PO Box 960351 Boston MA 02196 USA
www.marketmonkeys.com

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ROSE COUSINS WINS A JUNO!
WE HAVE MADE A SPARK won Roots & Traditional Album of the Year: Solo at the JUNO Awards in Regina, SK!

ROSE COUSINS NOMINATED FOR A JUNO AWARD & PERFORMING AT JUNOFEST
Roots & Traditional Album of the Year: Solo

Rose Cousins performances at JUNOfest…
Friday April 19:
9:20-9:40pm at The Exchange – 2431 8TH AVENUE, Regina (Outlaws & Gunslingers event)
11-11:45pm at Slow Pub – 2124 ALBERT STREET, Regina
Saturday April 20:
performance during the Gala Dinner & Awards Show

ROSE COUSINS’ SONG “GO FIRST” APPEARS IN ABC’S GREYS ANATOMY MARCH 14th

ROSE COUSINS’ SONG “FOR THE BEST” APPEARS IN CBC’S HEARTLAND

ROSE COUSINS WINS 3 ECMAs, HOSTS 25th ANNIVERSARY TELEVISED AWARDS SHOW
Cousins emerged from ECMA week with three awards – “FOLK RECORDING OF THE YEAR” “SOLO RECORDING OF THE YEAR” “SONGWRITER OF THE YEAR”

ROSE COUSINS & THE MODERN GRASS: YOUR HEART TURNED ON ME
During East Coast Music Week, Rose Cousins performed a very special show with The Modern Grass and delightful guest Jennah Barry at Fort Massey Church in Halifax. Those who attended were able to buy a limited release EP Cousins recorded with The Modern Grass, including one song called “Your Heart Turned On Me” co-written by Cousins and Terrell, specifically for the occasion. Another track on the EP was the cover duet in this video, which was recorded at Fort Massey…

I saw a post on a listserv today. I thought I’d share my response to it here for our blog readers, too. In it a question arose about which widgets should be embedded on artists’ websites. I get that question a lot from clients and colleagues. It’s one I’ve thought a lot about, and am always working to stay on top of. At Market Monkeys, our recommendations are always changing as new tools emerge, existing tools are enhanced, and most of all, as our artists’/clients’ needs, devices, and behaviors change. Here goes…

Question: (I am paraphrasing)
What social media buttons and widgets should I embed and where? Which are more important? (and she listed a string of social/digital companies – to which I’ve replied directly to each below, and then added POVs on additional ones she didn’t ask about after that)

Answer:
Whatever tool(s) the artist uses effectively! And make their favorite one most prominent.

If the artist doesn’t use a tool effectively, it’s best not to highlight that with an embedded button or widget. That might sound obvious, but you’d be surprised how many sites have links in their MAIN NAVIGATION to social media sites they never update, just because they think they are supposed to. This is not like a diet. You don’t buy pants a size smaller as incentive to work to fit into them. I can assure you – like with the pants, no amount of putting buttons on your site is going to make you a better social networker!

Put the artist’s best foot forward. If they are “better on Facebook” go with it. (Hopefully they aren’t “better on MySpace”…)

For some of our artists, the answer is Twitter – for some it’s Facebook – for some it’s YouTube – for some it’s Instagram – for some it’s their email or blog… SELF AWARENESS FIRST AND ALWAYS.

As for the specifics, I can tell you how we use code from other sites…

Facebook – we go with Like and Share buttons, not the feed/timeline embed. Recommend buttons confuse us. So Like button in the main nav, at least on the homepage. Share buttons on blog posts, or particular pages/content you want people to share on Facebook. If you use WordPress or a similar content management system, this might be a simple on/off switch and doesn’t have to be a manual embed everytime.
Customize Facebook buttons, grab plug-in widget code, and go >>

Twitter – we use both the embedded feed and the Tweet buttons, depending on where we are in the site. Twitter’s embedded feed widget is more fun to watch than Facebook’s – and can even be interesting for fans who don’t use Twitter. We usually have that on the homepage, and Tweet buttons alongside the Facebook share buttons described above. We don’t usually use Cards and embedded Tweets yet, but we can see possibilities for that, especially if WordPress integrates a plugin in the future that could automate the use of that code.
Get Twitter button code >>
Get Twitter timeline widget code >>
The latest on Twitter embed options >>

Reverbnation – We don’t use it much with our artists. But we do use other direct to fan tools, and embed their widgets – primarily the ones for music players, email capture, download giveaways, and digital and physical music/merch sales. Our favorite is Topspin. We actually spent years working with multiple partners, and found a lot of merit in tools like Nimbit and other kindred partners, but in the end Topspin was the most professional and aggressive with respect to its development pipeline. They built a starting-place platform with a vision for the future, and they have been able to best keep up with change as smartphones and tablets and WordPress and clouds and other 3rd party partner tools and technologies have become more and more popular for artists and fans alike.

Soundcloud – We use it in specific applications, like for promotional pages, or specific ad hoc one to one mailing. Some people use it for all the players on their sites – it’s more common for booking agencies, music production companies and bloggers than for artist fan-facing websites. We use the direct to fan tool widgets so they tie back to sales on artist sites. But Soundcloud is great. And people in the industry are familiar with it. Like with YouTube, best practice is for an artist to have their own account in their name. We originally started with all of our artists in our account to hopefully bring them cross-pollination, especially when Soundcloud was new and just getting started. But now we have found it more appropriate and advantageous for them to have their own accounts in their names, so they can build a following and analytical data that goes with them over time.

MySpace – We kept the buttons to MySpace on artist sites for a while. Justin Timberlake has long threatened to bring back sexy there, but maybe last year we finally gave up and started removing MySpace links from all our artists’ websites as redesigns were done.

What else??!!! The big one you are missing most here is YouTube!
With “watch consumption” on the rise, and the vital role that plays in discovery and sharing of new music, YouTube might be one of the most important social/user generated media sites to prioritize!! Your artists should have official YouTube accounts, and they should both “upload” their own official content and “playlist” videos others post of them that they like, so those are sure to be featured most. Whenever someone sends me a link to their website because they want me to hear their music, the first thing I look for is a link to live performance video. First. Before bio. Before audio. Because video tells me 10 things quickly. If I don’t see a video right out front, but I see a link to YouTube, I go there.

A couple others that are worth knowing about…

Instagram: A lot of artists like this because they can post photos and don’t have to write status updates. It feels more creative to some. We haven’t loved the widgets/embeds out there that we’ve seen so far, so we haven’t *quite* yet been embedding artist photo streams on sites. But we hope someone will develop a great Instagram embed, or that Instagram will become more embed-friendly in the future, and we have reason to believe they will… because some of our artists are very active and I know they would love to feature those images on their sites for their fans.

Pinterest: Still building following, unclear if it will reach critical mass. still baffles and befuddles many. but the numbers are clear – they had huge exponential growth in users in 2012, which came with it a natural level of “kicking the tires” style usage. 2013 will be a deciding year from them – will all those new users remember their login passwords 6 months from now?
Interesting research from Nielsen on Social Media with particular focus on the demographic that is using Pinterest >>

ArtistData and Songkick and GigPress, oh my…
These are all commonly used calendar widgets/tools. We currently use ArtistData for most of our sites, as the tool is sufficient and delivers all calendar data to other prominent calendar databases across the web, mobile, and local news outlets. We have been patiently awaiting further product development/enhancements by parent company Sonicbids. Virtually no development has happened since Sonicbids acquired ArtistData in 2010, but we are hopeful that Sonicbids’ recent acquisition by Backstage (Jan 2013) may change that. In the meantime, we continue to use the ArtistData tool, and use CSV exports and imports so that we can use site plugins like GigPress, to keep artist’s calendars look, feel and functionality up to speed with the ever-changing demands of mobile, tablet and digital browsers.

Hope this helps!

mc

THE MONKEYS IN TORONTO FOR FOLK ALLIANCE INTERNATIONAL
We are pleased to present a truly international “Monkey Room” at this year’s Folk Alliance with our pals across the pond – Sheena Keane of Blue Grace Music in Ireland and Rebecca Kemp of On Tour Logistics in the UK.

View our showcase room (1074) schedule at marketmonkeys.com/guerilla

Download a handy printable PDF of all of our Folk Alliance schedules >>

ROSE COUSINS TO CO-HOST 25th ANNIVERSARY ECMA AWARDS

NPR’s TOP 10 FOLK & AMERICANA ABLUMS OF 2012

It is our pleasure to congratulate artist Rose Cousins, producer Zachariah Hickman, and the gang of Boston singers, songwriters and instrumentalists who made WE HAVE MADE A SPARK with Rose, as NPR has named their creation one of the best albums of 2012. We couldn’t agree more!
Here is what NPR had to say about Rose Cousins’ WE HAVE MADE A SPARK >>

ROSE COUSINS & DON BROWNRIGG GIVE US A SONG FOR THE HOLIDAYS

NATALIA ZUKERMAN RELEASES LIVE ALBUM “GYPSIES & CLOWNS”
On September 14th, 2012, Natalia Zukerman performed one very special show at SPACE in Evanston, Illinois. The night was filled with guest appearances by many of the musicians and songwriters that Natalia has collaborated with over the last two years – including AG, TRINA HAMLIN, ERIN MCKEOWN, WILLY PORTER, GARRISON STARR, MONA TAVAKOLI and SUSAN WERNER. Available for purchase now at NataliaZukerman.com >>

MEG HUTCHINSON RELEASES BOOK OF POETRY “THE MORNING I WAS BORN”
In April, Meg Hutchinson undertook an adventure with her fans – daily writing assignments from her mother – who has written a poem every day for 10 years. This December, Hutchinson is making the complete collection of poems from that month’s creative journey, available in a book. Pre-order your copy of Meg Hutchinson’s book of poems at MegHutchinson.com >>

WINTERBLOOM ON TOUR THIS HOLIDAY SEASON
Singer-songwriters Antje Duvekot, Anne Heaton, Meg Hutchinson and Natalia Zukerman have been touring each of the last four holiday seasons – sharing stories, traditions, songs, words, warmth, and a good dose of holiday introspection. This year, they tour again!
Full tour dates and ticket info at Winterbloom.com >>

ROSE COUSINS ALBUM WINS CANADIAN MUSIC AWARDS
Rose Cousins’ new album WE HAVE MADE A SPARK took home Contemporary Singer of the Year at the Canadian Folk Music Awards AND Music Nova Scotia’s Folk Recording of the Year

A HAPPY KICKDAY BIRTHDAY VIDEO FROM ROSE COUSINS
A year ago, Rose Cousins launched a Kickstarter campaign that raised over $25,000 to make her record WE HAVE MADE A SPARK and short film IF I SHOULD FALL BEHIND, about the community of songwriters and musicians in Boston where the album was made. Cousins made this video, one of many updates she has continued to send to backers throughout the year, with members of her Halifax community – songwriter and community organizer Don Brownrigg, songwriter, performer and Halifax Poet Laureate Tanya Davis, and actor, singer, dancer and writer Stewart Legere.

ROSE COUSINS RELEASES IRISH SINGLE “BIRDS OF BELFAST”

ROSE COUSINS’ SONG “GO FIRST” APPEARS IN DEGRASSI,
ALSO HIGHLIGHTED IN ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY

Watch the full episode on Much >>

Degrassi’s use of Cousins’ song “Go First” was also highlighted in Entertainment Weekly’s wrapup of songs featured in television shows >>

ROSE COUSINS VIDEO WITH JENNAH BARRY KICKS OFF NEW FALL TOUR COLLABS

Full tour dates at rosecousins.com

THE PINES OPEN A RUN OF DATES w/TIFT MERRITT

ROSE COUSINS NOMINATED FOR 3 CANADIAN FOLK MUSIC AWARDS

Contemporary Album of the Year
Contemporary Singer of the Year
Solo Artist of the Year

ROSE COUSINS NOMINATED FOR 6 MUSIC NOVA SCOTIA AWARDS

Entertainer of the Year
Female Artist Recording of the Year
Folk Recording of the Year
Music Video of the Year
Recording of the Year
SOCAN Songwriter of the Year

ROSE COUSINS & THE PINES TO APPEAR AT AMERICANA MUSIC CONFERENCE

FRI SEPT 14 2pm Rose Cousins – The Sheraton featured songwriters round
SAT SEPT 15 11pm The Pines – The Basement, 1604 8th Ave S

To download a PDF for printing, click the image below >>

ZUKERMAN TO RECORD LIVE RECORD IN CHICAGO w/MANY SPECIAL GUESTS

MEG HUTCHINSON & NATALIA ZUKERMAN JOIN PERFORMERS UNITED
78 concerts in 71 cities, 50 states… all in one weekend! www.voicesunitedconcerts.com
NATALIA ZUKERMAN – SEPTEMBER 29 MANHATTAN NY
MEG HUTCHINSON – SEPTEMBER 30 CONCORD NH 4pm