CIMA and MusicOntario Launch LIVE Music Toronto to Support Independent Live Music Sector

The Canadian Independent Music Association and MusicOntario have launched LIVE Music Toronto, a new collective aimed at strengthening the city’s independent and grassroots live music community.

The initiative, announced ahead of CIMA and MusicOntario’s annual summer day party during NXNE, is designed to give Toronto’s independent venues, festivals, promoters and presenters a formal local organization dedicated to their needs. Tixr has joined the effort as a founding sponsor, providing financial support as the group begins outreach and member onboarding.

LIVE Music Toronto will operate as a membership tier within CIMA and will focus on the for-profit and non-profit live music sector in Canada’s largest live music market. Its mission includes advocacy, resource sharing, networking and coordination on policy issues that affect the long-term survival of local performance spaces.

The organization is intended to complement national advocacy work by the Canadian Live Music Association while creating a Toronto-specific structure for independent operators. Its model follows community-based live music organizations in other markets, including Les SMAQ in Quebec, the Music Venue Trust in the United Kingdom and the National Independent Venue Association in the United States.

Andrew Cash, president and CEO of CIMA, said the new group will help connect Toronto’s live music independents with one another while also linking them to the broader CIMA network.

“CIMA members know that a thriving local live scene sets up the entire music ecosystem for success,” Cash said. He added that the membership tier creates a bridge between independent live operators and CIMA’s wider community of labels, managers, publishers, artists and other music companies.

The launch follows years of organizing by Toronto venue owners and promoters, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, when independent music spaces pushed for support from local government.

Shaun Bowring, owner and operator of The Garrison and The Baby G, as well as promoter Transmit Presents, pointed to the City of Toronto’s property tax exemption for music venues as one example of what collective action has already achieved.

“It’s fantastic to see the establishment of LIVE Music Toronto as a formal initiative with the support of CIMA and MusicOntario,” Bowring said.

MusicOntario Executive Director Emy Stantcheva said the live music business remains a vital part of Toronto’s cultural and economic identity.

“The live music industry animates our city day and night, creates countless jobs, drives tourism and hospitality, and is a core feature of any world-class metropolis,” Stantcheva said.

Camille Neirynck-Guerrero, programmer of Queen West venue DROM Taberna and its non-profit presenting arm in•summer, said the new collective has already helped operators connect with peers and access resources.

Toronto’s live music economy represents a major economic driver. According to the City of Toronto’s 2020 Re:Venues study, local venues generate an estimated $850 million in annual economic impact and support the equivalent of 10,500 full-time jobs. The Canadian Live Music Association’s Hear and Now report also found that Canada’s broader live music industry contributed more than $10 billion to the national economy in 2023.

Membership in LIVE Music Toronto is open to Canadian-owned and Canadian-controlled independent grassroots venues, promoters, presenters and festivals operating in Toronto. Eligible members must operate outside the major institutional ecosystem and cannot be owned or operated by municipal, provincial or federal governments.

The initiative is supported by the City of Toronto’s Music Office and was developed through consultation with local operators and promoters. CIMA, MusicOntario and Toronto writer Jonathan Bunce, founder of non-profit Wavelength Music and co-author of Reimagining Music Venues, helped lead the groundwork.

More than 40 venues, presenters and promoters have already joined as founding members, with additional participants expected throughout the year.