Do Canada's musicians and songwriters still need Canadian content rules to survive?

Protecting Canadian music. 

In 1970, a song called American Woman by Winnipeg band, The Guess Who was climbing high in the charts.  As lead singer Burton Cummings belted out "American Woman ...stay away from me," it was a time when Canadians were worrying about being swamped by American culture. 

Then Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau described in a Washington speech that living next to America was like sleeping with an elephant. The Guess Who may not have intended the song to be interpreted politically, but it was ....and that was a sign of the times.  

One year later, Canada's broadcast regulator the CRTC brought in tough new rules forcing radio stations to play 30 percent Canadian music. CanCon was born, and some say it was the foundation of the Canadian music industry today.

Did it work? You be the judge. This is the week of the 2018 JUNO Awards where the best of Canadian music is celebrated and showcase. And it's no accident that those awards took their name from Pierre Juneau, the man who presided over the CRTC and brought in the CanCon regulations in 1971.  Did they succeed in giving Canadian music enough room to breathe?  

The regulations are all about radio play, but how many people listen to their music on radio now? In a world where the music has moved to digital downloads, streaming music services — YouTube, Vimeo, Vine — it's now out of reach of the only place where Canadian music is being counted — on radio.  Do you care where your music comes from, or is it like food...better to buy local?

Some music critics complain that the CanCon rules only give already-established artists more airplay, and that the Junos showcase and reward those artists unfairly propped up by CanCon rules. 

Our topic today: Do Canada's musicians and songwriters still need Canadian content rules to survive?

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