THE 2020 CANADIAN SONGWRITER CHALLENGE
London, ON Edition - August/September 2020

Welcome to the sixth annual Ontario edition of the Canadian Songwriter Challenge, in partnership with the London Music Office, the Council of Music Industry Associations (CCMIA), Bell Media, and Music Publishers Canada! The Canadian Songwriter Challenge invites Music Industry Associations from each province to program unique songwriting retreats to develop local writers and their skills.

Each year, the CSC hosts a group of emerging songwriters and pairs them with experienced mentors, producers, and engineers to co-write and record demos, participate in workshops on the business of music, and network and build relationships over the course of 2-5 days.

This year’s Challenge will highlight one of Ontario’s major hubs for studios, producers, and production: London, ON! London is a music production hub with world renowned music education facilities at Fanshawe College, Western University and Ontario Institute of Audio Recording Technology (OIART). These schools educate 1,000+ music students with a major focus on audio production – it’s truly a progressive music city.

While you do not have to be a resident of London, ON to be eligible for this program, please note that you will have to be able to be present in London for the duration of the Challenge, whether that means you’re staying in town, or commuting in each day. You do have to be a resident of Ontario in general, however. If you are not from Ontario, check out the CCMIA’s website to learn more about what the other provinces and territories are doing for their own editions of the Canadian Songwriter Challenge.

We very much hope to host this program in person, much like we have for the previous five years, so that we can showcase some excellent spaces across London, ON. However, we understand that this may change depending on developments with the novel coronavirus pandemic, so we ask you to remain flexible along with us as we navigate these challenges in planning CSC 2020.

We welcome all genres of music and writing/composition styles; the purpose of this challenge is to learn from one another and explore the craft of songwriting through the shared perspectives of a fast-paced and eclectic group setting.

Past mentors include Adrian X, Gavin Brown, Adaline, Bijan Amir, Jordon Manswell, Liz Rodrigues, Robyn Dell’Unto, Julian Taylor, Donovan Woods, Nathan Ferraro, Mike Wise, Bill Bell, Shobha, Casey Marshall and Rob Wells.

Deadline for submissions is Friday, July 17, 2020. Applications will be reviewed and assessed by an independent talent committee, and successful applicants will be notified in July 2020.

Check out MusicOntario's SoundCloud to hear past demos to come out of this program!