New Rogers Cable 22 program showcases Ottawa artists

Look for a new program next week showcasing local musicians.

The Ottawa Music Video Showcase was local musician and host Joel Elliott’s (Jumpin’ Joel Flash) idea to help Ottawa musicians who have taken a hit because of COVID-19. With a background in marketing and entertainment Elliott knows how long it takes to put together, release and promote new music and how many local musicians had to scrap their plans completely because of the pandemic. “The whole world of art was trying to find a voice online,” Elliott says. “Many music videos that were released in 2020 got lost in the noise.”

Elliott, who hosts the open mic night at Live on Elgin, knew Rogers Cable 22 producer Iain Murphy because he came out to the open mic once a month to broadcast it live on the channel. Because the open mic has not been held for several months, Murphy approached Elliott to see if he had any ideas for how to get the local community beat back on Rogers television.

Elliott came up with the idea to find five local artists from different genres and give them a forum to talk about their music, showcase their videos and give each other feedback online. The entire thing was filmed and then produced by Murphy into a 45-minute episode to be broadcast both on TV and over the internet. Elliott says all the artists showcased have their own unique take on music and many have stories about how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected their art. He says one of the artists, Lynne Hanson, was on tour in Europe when the global pandemic was declared and had to cancel the remainder of her shows.

Perhaps the most interesting part about the Ottawa Music Video Showcase is that it promotes all different genres of music in one setting. Elliot says this is unique because artists often tend to stick to their own music scenes and only ever get feedback from peers in their own genres. The program includes artists from all different genres including French Rap/Urban pop, Pop, Alt rock/Hip Hop, Indie Rock and Americana. “It all focused on what we can learn from each other,” Elliott says. “It worked even better than I could have imagined.”

Elliott says that there is so much amazing talent in Ottawa it was hard to pick just five to showcase on the first episode. He says he hopes the show will turn into a regular program on Rogers Cable and that he will be able to feature even more local artists using this platform. “Ottawa is full of great song writers and I’m glad we got to showcase some of them,” he says.

The artists that will be featured in the first episode of the Ottawa Music Video Showcase are Andrew Cassara, LeFLOFRANCO, Lynne Hanson, Valois and DREA. The program will be aired on Rogers Cable 22 from June 15-19 at 1:00 p.m., 4:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. and Elliott says Rogers will also be putting it on either their website or YouTube channel. “There is a lot of awesome art in Ottawa,” Elliott says. “The more eyes and ears we have on Ottawa art the more will be made.”