After 18 years on Canadian radio, MTV Canada is set to go on the air on December 31st. The decision to close the specialty channel was confirmed by Bell Media, with a company spokesperson citing “changing audiences” to specialty TV as the reason for the closure.
MTV Canada launched in 2006 as part of the CTV network, and the channel offered viewers a Canadianized version of the MTV brand, one that had a huge international impact. MTV Canada's programming provided a mix of reality television, music content, talk, lifestyle and pop culture-oriented documentary programming.
Many of the channel's most popular shows were talk and reality based, featuring The Hills and Teen Mom. Launched in March 2006, MTV Live launched the career of co-host Dan Levy. The top half-hour variety show ran for six seasons and won a Gemini Award for Best Talk Series.
Best known as the co-creator and co-star of the Emmy-winning Canadian television comedy Schitt's Creek, Dan Levy would gain prominence in Canada by co-hosting, co-signing and co-producing the hit MTV Canada The Hills: After Show (later just The After Show) with Jessi Cruickshank.
The channel later became increasingly dependent on American reality shows such as Floribama coast, Jersey Shore: Family Vacation and Caught In The Act: Unfaithful in his programming, and ended up playing long hours on the day of the comedy reality show Ridiculousness.
South of the border, the MTV brand has also suffered in recent years, with owner Paramount Media Networks shutting down MTV News and demolishing its website's online archives in May 2023 as part of a massive round of layoffs at Paramount.
The MTV Canada name and brand were used under a licensing agreement with Paramount Global. Unlike MTV channels in the United States and internationally, the channel was limited in its ability to carry music programming until 2015 due to conditions in the channel's license issued by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC).
These restrictions meant that, unlike its international counterparts, MTV Canada never used the “Music Television” tagline. As a result, in terms of music programming, the channel has struggled to compete with the homegrown and much-loved channel MuchMusic, which is also owned by Bell Media.
Anthem Entertainment & Wax Records announce new creative partnership
Anthem Entertainment and Wax Records join forces.
The independent music label and label have announced a strategic creative partnership, which they say is “designed to revolutionize the artist development process.”
The Anthem-Wax partnership seeks to break down the barriers between songwriters, producers and artists and give them the tools and resources to create together. This includes initiatives such as international song camps to connect people across genres, indoor studio spaces and dedicated writing rooms. These resources are designed to facilitate greater music volume and effective market readiness.
Anthem Entertainment is a big player in publishing and licensing, with a stable that includes hit songwriters like Chantal Kreviazuk and Timbaland. The company has a massive song catalog, an infrastructure that includes strong creative and executive teams, and creative spaces in Toronto and Nashville. Anthem recently sold its Production Music Group to Slipstream, a deal that included well-known music production agency Jingle Punks and added over 650,000 tracks to Slipstream's catalog.
Since 2009, Wax Records has built a roster headlined by platinum-selling Vegas artists Alyssa Reid, Shawn Desman, and Virginia alongside bülow, Conor Gains, Blitz//Berlin, and more.
The collaboration broadens the scope of both companies.
“I'm thrilled to welcome the Wax team — and their outstanding roster of artists — to the Anthem family,” says Anthem CEO Jason Klein. “Jamie [Appleby, Wax Records President and Head of A&R] and Ron [Morse, Wax Records CEO] have built an exceptional label, with a creative and flexible approach to artist discovery, development and marketing that transcends conventional constraints. This partnership will allow Wax to showcase their excellent work with additional resources and infrastructure and introduce an exciting new creative pipeline for Anthem's songwriters.
“The potential for global success with this partnership is limitless.”
Anthem and Wax tout the partnership as “an evolution of the music business” and a key to empowering artists as well as opening doors internationally.
“The global music market is an ever-changing adventure,” says Wax's Jamie Appleby. “Through countless hours of dedication and hard work, we strive to foster a vibrant business culture that supports and provides globalization opportunities to our community. We are excited for the next evolution of Wax Records and have huge admiration for Jason and the great team at Anthem. This new venture will extend our ongoing commitment to our incredible artists, venture partners and sub-label teams.”
