Commons Conundrums

An article showed up in today’s Chronicle Herald about Halifax’s Mayor Peter Kelly enlisting the help of a New York promoter to seek concerts for the Halifax Commons.  Events Halifax is complaining that they have been usurped.  One of the promoter’s representatives stated:

 The president of Creative Entertainment Group confirmed Wednesday that she has a "written contract" with Halifax to pursue acts on the city’s behalf. But Sharon Kim-Dion, speaking from New York, was tight-lipped about what concerts she is trying to land.

"It’s a written agreement but only for very specific artists," she said. "And those artists are the kind that can fill the Commons space," that is, those that can attract more than 40,000 people.

"There’s only about half a dozen artists in the world that can fill that kind of venue."

It’s a "very informal" agreement, Ms. Kim-Dion said.

Only half a dozen artists in the world could attract more than 40,000 people?  Off the top of my head, here are some biggies from the entertainment world:

1)  David Bowie

2)  U2

3)  Madonna

4)  Rolling Stones

5)  The Eagles

6)  Pink Floyd

7)  Bruce Springsteen

8)  The Police

9)  Paul McCartney

10)  Faith Hill/Tim McGraw

11)  Billy Joel

12)   Spice Girls

13)  Garth Brooks

14)  Neil Diamond

15)  Led Zeppelin when they finally kick off a reunion tour

16)  Bon Jovi

17)  Hillary Duff

18)  Hanna Montana

19)  Gwen Stefani

20)  Tragically Hip

21) Van Halen

22)  An East Coast-themed extravaganza featuring artists such as Great Big Sea, Signal Hill, Sons of Maxwell with the Dropkick Murphys thrown in for good measure

23)  Iron Maiden – ok maybe this is more of a personal bias – but they could at least hit around 20,000 seats

Any artists I missed?  Please add them in the comments section.

Harry is Hip-Hop’s Last Hoorah?

Being of a certain age, I have seen numerous musical trends come and go.  Hair metal died when record labels started signing anyone with big hair.  Grunge died when plaid started showing up on the runways of Milan, New York and Japan.

 

If the past is any indication of the future, the world of hip-hop may now be on its last legs as well.   The kids’ show Hip Hop Harry takes the notion of musical oversaturation to dizzying new heights, no doubt making even Gene Simmons insanely jealous.  There’s even a brewing battle between Barney and Harry, a la Kanye and Fiddy.  Thankfully, I don’t ever recall a Hair Metal Harvey or Grungy Garry.

 

Even the trash talk in rap has gone commercial.  The latest battle between 50 Cent and Kanye West was not about who had the greater talent or artistic merit but who would sell the most albums.  Could competing tours sponsored by Target and Wal-Mart be far behind?

 

Perhaps the next step in the mass commercialization of hip-hop includes sponsorship by the big cereal companies.  I’m hoping for Kanye Krisps and Fiddy Flakes – that way when they continue to cram the mass consumption of hip-hop down my throat, it at least will have a sweet sugary aftertaste.  

A Tale of Two Cities

Having now spent a few months in Halifax, one can’t help but notice the contrasts between Winnipeg and my new home.  Some of my initial impressions are as follows:

 

1)  Halifax has a stronger cultural identity.  The Maritimes have a greater sense of history and embrace a common culture.  Even my East Indian friends out here know and play East Coast ditties.  Winnipeggers seem quicker to embrace their multicultural background at the expense of embracing the fact they are all Manitobans.  Maybe that’s why Spirited Energy was the best the NDP could do – is there anything that uniformly defines being a Winnipegger or Manitoban?

 

2)  Which city was supposed to be the transport hub?  Winnipeg’s only roadway that could be considered a freeway (albeit with red lights at numerous locations) is the 101 Perimeter Highway.  Halifax has many more – 102, 103, 107, 118 to name just a few.  With a fraction of Winnipeg’s population, how is it that Halifax can outmuscle the ‘Peg when it comes to the efficient movement of people and goods?

 

3)  And Justice for All – a Nova Scotia judge recently sentenced some teenage girls for LONGER than recommended by the defence AND the prosecution.  Contrast that with the constant attempts to encourage judges to make anything but laughable sentences in Manitoba.

 

4)  Haligonians love their home town.  We have met so many people that are happy to be here and couldn’t imagine being anywhere else.  I personally know individuals that left higher paying jobs in Toronto so they could live in Nova Scotia.  Winnipeggers seem to make a sport of dumping on their home city.

 

I love my home town and it has presented me with boundless opportunity.  That’s why it pains me to see it slowly and steadfastly slip into decline.  Did the NDP really do anything to actually merit the overwhelming show of support that voters gave them?  Or are Manitobans like frogs in a slowly boiling pot of water not realizing that the more they tolerate petty and serious crime, infrastructure deficiencies, debacles such as Crocus, the Floodway and now the Bipole 3 issue (not to mention other such problems), the more they move away from making Manitoba the beautiful and great province it once was and still deserves to be? 

 

Nova Scotia has never elected an NDP government to power and it shows.   The Schreyer, Pawley and now Doer dynasties have had an indelible effect on Manitoba – if the differences between Manitoba and Nova Scotia are any indication, this wasn’t necessarily for the better.

Boxed In

My first thought after reading Dan Lett’s February 4, 2008 article was that Doug Schweitzer has just been boxed in.  Lett ponders whether or not Doug is in the game for the long haul or whether this is just a “career-boosting stop on the way to greater fortune in the private sector.”  This article would inadvertently seem to give ammo to the NDP should Doug leave anytime before the next election.  After all, it would reaffirm the stereotypes that Tories are all career opportunists hellbent on laying waste to anything if it is in their own interests to do so.

 

Doug’s performance in his new position should be evaluated on what he delivers for the party, not the timeframe he chooses to deliver it in.  Results are far more important than the tired notion of seniority ever will be.  So let’s put down the stopwatch and see what Doug actually achieves before judging him.

 

Lett coins the term “pit-stop professional” to describe someone whose employment isn’t predicated on perpetuity.  Would he also use this term to depict the endless litany of personalities that have come and gone from his very own paper?  Nicholas Hirst, Murdoch Davis & Andrew Ritchie are but a few that have come and gone in the past few years.  Are the "new faces" of the paper little more than lipstick and rouge if they aren’t around for the long haul, to use some of Lett’s own verbiage?  I would like to think Winnipeggers are getting the best quality newspaper the Free Press can deliver – should there be any reasons to think otherwise?