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Forest City music awards: High school bands, young rapper in spotlight

The future of music in London — five high school musical acts selected by a jury — will be virtually showcased at 9 p.m., along with an 11-year-old rapper, CDMN (Cassius Smith), introduced as a future star.

Yeah, the kids are all right.

Want proof? Just have a look at the Forest City London Music Awards battle of the high school bands on Thursday and Friday.

The future of music in London — five high school musical acts selected by a jury — will be virtually showcased at 9 p.m., along with an 11-year-old rapper, CDMN (Cassius Smith), introduced as a future star.

Although a mainstay of Forest City London Music Week, the battle of the bands was cancelled last year due to the pandemic.

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The competing bands and musicians this year are singer Micaela (Coelho) from Monseigneur-Bruyère, the band Avenoir from H.B. Beal, singer Bella Rosa from St. André Bessette, the band Full Throttle from A.B. Lucas and Catholic Central and singer-songwriter Custie (Justin Heffernan) from Mother Teresa.

“This is a good representation of the future of music in London and it’s looking bright,” said organizer Scott Bollert, lead singer for the band After the Lounge.

“You’re going to see a lot of really good musical talent and they’re very entertaining. People will be surprised. It’s refreshing to see all these young musicians — live rock bands and pop singers — who are still honing their talent, so young, very talented and so unique.”

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The bands will be judged by some major Canadian talents, among them:

  • bassist Jack Syperek of The Trews
  • Graham Lear, a Forest City London Music Hall of Fame inductee known for his time with Gino Vannelli, Santana and REO Speedwagon
  • Luke Bentham of the Juno-winning alternative rockers The Dirty Nil
  • London singer-songwriter Sarina Haggarty
  • Award-winning London singer-songwriter Anne Moniz
  • Music producer and engineer Eric Altomonte of London’s The Watershed studio.

The students will be battling for more than bragging rights. The prizes include:

  • First place winner: Two songs professionally produced and engineered at The Watershed (valued at about $2,500) and mastered by one of Canada’s leading engineers, Robert Nation of EMAC Studios. They will also be invited to attend the Forest City London Music Awards gala and have their song played on Corus Radio’s FM96 or Country 104.
  • Second place winner: One song professionally produced, engineered, mixed and mastered by Sugar Shack Recording Studio ($600 value)
  • All other contestants: Free live recording session at the Digital Creative Arts Centre (DCAC) at the Boys’ and Girls’ Club of London.
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Bollert said viewers will be surprised by the performance of 11-year-old Cassius Smith.

“He did one special (personal) song (he wrote) for us and we think he’s going to be a future competitor,” Bollert said. “Boy, can he ever perform.”

There are still several major events left for London Music Week:

  • SoundCheck for Success professional development workshops, seminars and speakers, including the keynote address by recording executive Iain Taylor of Cadence Music Group (Thursday, 7:30 p.m.), and seminars on the evolution of country music (panel, Friday, 7:30 p.m.), making and recording music during the pandemic (panel, Saturday, 1 p.m.), and producing (panel, Saturday, 3 p.m.). Although free, guests must register at fclma.ca to view SoundCheck for Success
  • The FCLMA High Nooner, featuring Alan Pigguns of the Morganfields (Thursday), and Paul Jago of The Gandharvas (Friday)
  • 19th annual Forest City London Music Awards (virtual) gala, including performances by several artists, Saturday, 9 p.m.

Watch Box

What: Forest City London Music Week, featuring awards, performances and professional development workshops, discussions and speakers
When: Until Saturday
Where: All events can be viewed on the Forest City London Music Awards’ Facebook page. Visit fclma.ca for more information.
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