Radio Starmaker Fund

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Radio Starmaker Fund Annual Report

2011 / 2012

Artist Profile: Mia Martina

Mia Martina

A lot has happened to the beautiful tri-lingual pop star and songstress between her departure from St. Ignace, New Brunswick – a tiny French speaking Acadian town of barely 500 people – and when her debut single turned into an international sensation. Now Mia is one of the top artists on Canada’s largest and most successful independent urban label, CP Records, and is becoming a household name across the country.

Starting as an intern for the label, Mia went from delivering cheques and CD’s, to recording CD’s and cashing cheques in a span of six years. It took Mia over a year to get over her nerves to even sing for label head Tony Sal. “I never told them that I sang because I was shy. But after a year I finally got the guts. My passion was music, that’s what I’m good at, so maybe this was God saying this is my chance. I had to speak up.” To this day, Mia remembers the feeling of growth from small-town sweetheart to red carpet pop star. “Oh my God, yeah, it was totally different. I wasn’t used to the parties, the cars, the jewelry… it was totally different. I was out of my element,” says Mia, reflecting on the extreme changes in her life after joining CP Records roster. However, the launch into stardom was not an overnight success but rather a well polished plan that began with Mia appearing on label mate Belly’s debut album “The Revolution”. Singing backups and getting her first taste of the studio and touring life, Mia knew this was her calling – and so did label boss Tony Sal.

Neither of them could have predicted the serendipitous events that landed Mia the gig to appear on the remix of the European smash single by Edward Maya called “Stereo Love”. Within weeks of its release, the single started blowing up at the dance clubs and then began its takeover of CHR radio. Before anyone could catch their breath, Mia Martina was born and off to the races. Her first ever show following the release of “Stereo Love” was in Miami in front of six thousand people. A hundred shows followed, as did a platinum plaque for “Stereo Love.” The song went top ten on the Canadian pop charts while ruling radio, topped the U.S. dance charts and was nominated for a Juno Award and a MuchMusic Video Award for “most watched video”. Thanks to a Don Omar remix, it also became a favourite in Latin communities throughout the Americas. The single went on to double platinum sales.

Without the support of grants and funding agencies such as the Radio Starmaker Fund, we wouldn’t have the ability to hire radio and publicity teams and to tour Canada and the world. By being able to get support to fund the ambitious marketing campaigns that are necessary to compete with the major labels, CP Records has been able to emerge as a leader of the independent sector and will remain on the path to becoming a major player in the international music marketplace.

Mia Martina has used the support from Starmaker – especially in the realm of domestic marketing – to launch her career even further. Thanks to the RSF, Mia Martina and CP Records have been able to continue her run at CHR radio with her smash follow up singles “Latin Moon” and “Burning” – both of which have reached gold status with their success at radio. The album is licensed to over 25 countries across the world including: Germany, Austria, Japan, France, Romania, Poland, Greece, Mexico, the United States, the Middle East, Switzerland and many more. In Japan, the single “Burning” debuted at #4 and the album “Devotion” debuted top 10 on the charts.

We at CP Records are extremely happy that the Radio Starmaker Fund believes in our company and one of our most important artists: Mia Martina. Thank you for all your support and we look forward to building more successes together every step of the way!

Tony Sal
C.E.O.
CP Records Inc.