Encore: The Stories Behind The Songs You Love

How many pop songs can you name that are universally adored? There aren’t many, are there? 

I think I can name one though: “Dancing On My Own” by Robyn. In case you’re unfamiliar with it, the 2010 banger was widely acclaimed by critics but not so much by the public. In fact, the only country it reached #1 in was Sweden - Robyn’s homeland. But man, oh man, if you can name a song from this millennium that has encapsulated pop music b...

Welcome to Season FOUR of Encore!

By 2007, Avril Lavigne was Canada’s Undisputed Pop-Punk Queen. The 22- Year old Avril was two wildly successful albums deep into a career that seemingly knew no bounds.

Her Debut, the influential ‘Let Go’ had introduced her to the world at the young age of 17 - and would go a resounding SIX times platinum in America in less than a year. 

Songs like ‘Complicated’ and ‘Sk8er Boi’ blew up charts world...

Lady Gaga is more than your average pop star. From the early modest days of sewing her own costumes and singing about disco sticks, she has continually reinvented herself along the way to become one of the planet’s biggest stars of both music and film.

She’s won Grammys, an Oscar and every award in between. She’s sold over 170 million records and generated hundreds of millions of dollars with her groundbreaking tours. She’s stolen ...

Quickly - don’t think too hard - but is there a more immediately recognizable Rock riff of the last 25 years than The White Stripes’ Seven Nation Army? 

Not so much a song owned by a band anymore, and more of a tour-de-force piece of performance art for passionate sporting event-goers worldwide to make their own; Seven Nation Army has become a part of the public consciousness in ways that very few songs since the turn of the centur...

Like Madonna, Bono, Prince and Beyoncé before her, Adele is one of the great mononymous superstars of our time.

Adele Adkins was born on May 5, 1988 in Tottenham, a working class town in northern London known best for its football club, Tottenham Hotspur. Her mom Penny Adkins, was only 18 when she was born and when she was only two, Adele’s father upped and left for Wales; he would never be in the picture as Adele grew up.

From the...

As I’m sure you’re mostly aware of already - the lyrical content of Amy Winehouse's breakthrough single ‘Rehab’ is very much a true story. 

Working with up-and-coming producer Mark Ronson in New York city, Amy inspired the entire production of the song simply walking down the street, telling Ronson her true ‘rehab’ story. Ronson initially thought of it as a funny little anecdote - and one worth turning into a song. Unfortunately, t...

Did you hear the one about the three sons of a preacher who one day decided to start a rock band with their cousin and somehow sell millions of albums, win some Grammys and have one of the biggest crossover rock songs in recent memory?

No? Well, great! Because I’m here to tell you all about how Kings Of Leon did just that.

Nathan, Caleb and Jared Followill were three good old southern boys from a small suburb about 17 miles east of...

There’s quite simply nothing more fascinating in pop music than the ‘sleeper hit’. I can only imagine how a band or artist feels when they introduce themselves to the world to little to no fanfare… then have to swallow their pride, keep on plugging away - and then suddenly blow up almost retroactively. 

The rollercoaster ride of ups and downs that surrounded the release of their breakthrough hit 'Mr Brightside' is an example of Roc...

When Maroon 5 came up with their smash hit “Moves Like Jagger,” they knew Jagger was a name that would resonate with listeners. And in 2011, Maroon 5 definitely knew what their fans wanted to hear.

But it wasn’t always that way.

Have you ever heard of the ‘90s alt-rock band Kara’s Flowers? If you haven’t you’re not alone. They were one of the more forgettable bands of their time. Kara’s Flowers did catch the attention of Rob Cavall...

It isn’t easy to shed a boyband or girl group image. 

Over the years, plenty of artists have tried and failed to hit the heights of superstardom that they have seen in a group setting. In many ways; the bigger the group, the more of an uphill battle it is to prove to fans that a solo career is a serious, worthwhile endeavor.  

Without re-litigating the entire NSYNC-to-solo-star trajectory of Justin Timberlake, it is important to lo...

She is both the Queen of Pop and the Queen of Reinvention. She is the most successful female solo artist of all-time with more than 300 million records sold. In one word, she is Madonna. 

It is safe to say that without Madonna we wouldn’t have the likes of Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Dua Lipa, or insert the name of any up-and-coming pop star that interests you. One could argue that Madonna is the most influential icon of he...

Welcome to Season 3 of Encore!

When the Landmark Las Vegas sphere opened up in September of 2023, with its $2.3 Billion dollar price tag, its 300 tons of steel, 16K resolution screens, 1,600 speakers and 4D machines capable of pumping in wind, scent and more into the venue… There was never any doubt that there was only one band in the world capable of matching the Sphere’s fantastical ambitions… and that band was the Iconic U2.

Off...

There was no artist bigger than Mariah Carey in the 1990s. She was the Artist of the Decade, according to Billboard, the ​​World Music Awards’ Female Artist of the Millennium, and the owner of 15 number one singles in the ‘90s alone. And that doesn’t even include “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” arguably her biggest song ever. That song didn’t become a #1 hit until 25 years after its release. And it has continued to top the Billb...

You've likely heard the news by now; Canadian Pop-Punk Icons SUM 41 are embarking on their final world tour, releasing their final album, and hanging up the Vans and Studded belts forever. 

That’s right, Ajax, Ontario’s finest are calling it quits.

It might surprise you to hear that Sum 41 have been a staple of Rock radio in this country for the better part of 25 years, and that even through lineup changes, health scares, label mov...

Did you ever catch Bieber Fever? The first reported cases of this communicable disease began popping up in 2009, throughout Canada, or maybe it was the United States.

It was hard to tell considering the fever was spread via performance videos on YouTube by an aspiring teenager named, you guessed it, Justin Bieber.

Before he was captaining NHL all-star teams and selling over 150 million records, Justin Drew Bieber was just a young b...

It might be hard to think of Rihanna as anything other than the multi-hyphenate superstar that she is today. 

At time of recording, fans have been waiting for more than eight years for a proper new RiRi album, with 2016’s ANTI being the last full release from the original Bad Gal - but this period of waiting hasn’t made Rihanna any less popular.

Back in the year 2007, Rihanna was at a bit of a crossroads - She’d released two albums...

It’s hard to remember a time when Drake wasn’t the biggest rapper in the world. He is Canada’s most successful AND influential artist of the 21st century. As both a rapper and a singer he has pretty much single-handedly put our country on the map for hip-hop and R&B. 

He is a five-time Grammy winner, has 85 million monthly listeners on Streaming Services- more than any other rapper - and holds the record for most number 2 singl...

Usher was born to entertain. It might be hard to believe, but this year marks the 30th Anniversary of his debut album!

Usher was discovered at the age of 13 on television by famed record exec, L.A. Reid, who wasted no time signing him to his LaFace label. Usher’s ascent truly began three years later with the release of his second album, the game-changing My Way, which catapulted him from baby-faced R&B up-and-comer to bona fide...