Jian Ghomeshi is one of Canada’s most prominent broadcasters and cultural journalists. A musician himself, Ghomeshi was a founding member of the popular folk rock group Moxy Früvous, and currently performs as a solo artist while managing and producing through his company Wonderboy Entertainment. From Toronto, he hosts the CBC Radio One arts and culture program Q, where he interviews prominent figures in the world of arts and culture. In February 2009, Ghomeshi hosted the 2009 East Coast Music Awards gala broadcast in Corner Brook, Newfoundland, capping a three-day conference that showcased the best of Atlantic Canadian music.

East Coast Connected’s Alex Willis spoke with Jian in early March in Toronto.

Alex Willis: You were born in London, England, and raised in Toronto. What went through your mind when you asked to host the East Coast Music Awards 2009 broadcast?

Jian Ghomeshi: My immediate thought was: fear. [laughs] That said, I’m very familiar with the East Coast Music Awards. I’ve attended them, I’ve presented at them, and in fact, as a musician, I’ve performed all over the East Coast. So I don’t feel entirely disconnected from that community. Second thing is, I’ve hosted different types of music awards shows, like the Western Music Awards, the Polaris Awards, the Indies....I think that for the ECMAs this was a bit of a nod towards saying, “hey, this is not just a parochial, provincial show for the East Coast, but something that should have national attention.” So why not have a national broadcaster who might not be from here be one of the co-hosts? So I was very flattered by the request, and very happy to do it. [Editorial Note: the other co-host for the ECMA broadcast was Newfoundland and Labrador musician Damhnait Doyle.]

AW: So your role there was partly to say, “hey, look, this is a national phenomenon.” But, as a broadcaster who hosts a national arts program, do you think that non-Atlantic bands, or the music industry in general, have some misconceptions about the East Coast music scene?

JG: I think that there have been some misconceptions. Those were based on some reality. Overall the greatest misconception is that everything musical that comes out of the East Coast is Celtic jigs – an extended version of Riverdance, you know? The reality is that there is some of that – the great tradition of Celtic music on the East Coast you don’t want to deny – but I actually think some of those stereotypes have diminished over the last few years. In the 90s you had the Murderecords-Sloan phenomenon that was undermining those stereotypes, but more recently, I mean, Joel Plaskett is a national name. And bands like Wintersleep...there’s an increasing number of artists we can identify who aren’t quote East Coast Music unquote. An incredible band like Hey Rosetta! would undermine any stereotypes you might have about East Coast music.

Having said that, the East Coast music scene, albeit with its varying genres, is a pretty tight community, to the envy, I think, of much of the country.

AW: Some might call it “insular,” but you used the word “tight.” How does an arts culture balance its “tight” regional roots with the quest for national accolades?

JG: I think we have to be careful. You used the word “insular,” and I think that’s absolutely appropriate – you don’t want to become “insular.” You also don’t want to have a misunderstood idea about how well-known or how popular an artist may be. Just because an artist is well-known on the East Coast doesn’t mean this is true nationally or internationally. I think Atlantic musicians know that – that the crowds won’t necessarily be as big when they cross over into Quebec and points west. The industry in general, and fans, need to recognize this as well.

Having said that, there’s an amazing, supportive legacy that’s been created on the East Coast around musicians and artists that has provided the ability to sustain careers. And that’s something that you just won’t find somewhere like Toronto, for instance. If you’re an enthusiastic, hard working musician on the East Coast, you have a community to go to, and you don’t necessarily have that in other parts of the country. As a musician based in Toronto, that’s always something I’ve been jealous of.

AW: You mention “community,” and that brings to mind your conversation on your radio show Q with Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Danny Williams. He mentioned “a community of spirit” that was a really prominent feature of the ECMAs. Can you comment on any personal experiences that showcased that sentiment that Premier Williams mentioned?

JG: I think that, on the East Coast, art and music and culture aren’t really segregated or pigeonholed into different categories as they are in other places. There’s such a great tradition of poetry, songwriting, performance there that cross most genres. I think that “spirit” that Premier Williams was talking about expresses itself in a wide diversity of ways. For example, during the ECMAs, I was at rock shows attended by grandmothers and grandfathers! It was like a family affair! The audience was obviously a broad strip of the community. Now, that’s partly because it is a smaller community, and that in any small town, you get a broader audience than in a place like Toronto. But I think it’s also a function of that spirit – a kind of openness, a positivity around supporting audiences that is cross-generational, and very liberating.

At one point, while hosting, when I was in the audience, and Hey Rosetta! was playing, I went up to a man who was definitely an octogenarian – the guy was literally in his mid-80s – and I asked him what he thought of Hey Rosetta! “They’re great!” he said. [laughs] It’s that spirit of, “we’re gonna embrace this, and laud them for choosing this path,” instead of worrying if music is an appropriate career choice, or if it’s the “correct” musical genre.

AW: This year’s ECMAs seem to be adapting to the “new media” generation by introducing a “fan’s choice” award, using internet voting, which this year was won by Halifax hip-hop artist Classified. What role do you see this kind of “awards 2.0” playing in the arts industry, or awards culture in the future?

JG: I don’t think it was an extraordinarily prominent part of the festival, unlike a festival like South-by-Southwest Interactive, which is very new media heavy. But I think what you’re tapping into is that artists have realized that it is important to harness and use whatever you can to reach audiences. It is a very exciting development. [Newfoundland country musician] Tara Oram is a great example. She’s not even a “niche” or alternative artist, but she’s used her own ingenuity and charisma to make webisodes and video blogs, and uses Facebook and MySpace to directly communicate with fans in a way that she couldn’t have 15-20 years ago. In a way, this bypasses the function of a major label. When the music industry and major labels are becoming more “conservative” – though I don’t think this is necessarily a crisis for all artists – some artists are reaching out, finding other ways. It’s partly out of necessity, it’s partly out of ingenuity, it’s partly the realities of new technology, but it’s definitely the future.

AW: Thinking holistically about Atlantic Canadian arts culture – whether funding models, community organizations, relationships between bands and their fans – what do you think are examples that could be employed productively in other regions of Canada?

JG: There’s an attitude, a spirit, on the East Coast, that says, “The artists are us. They are part of who we are. We’ll do what we have to do to support them.” I don’t think that generalizes across the country. I think that’s where you get some tension, nationally, about support from “the public” or through funding. When cutbacks happen to arts funding, federally, this raises fundamental questions about priorities, and sometimes that cultural dialogue gets lost. That understanding is a lot more fluid on the East Coast. I don’t want to canonize Danny Williams, but one of the things that he exudes, without question, is that arts, culture, music, are something that the people must support. And it’s worked really well for Newfoundland. It’s a lesson we could learn right across the country: rather than seeing our artists as a burden, looking at them as an investment that pays back.

AW: So, not looking at “arts culture” as a hermetic boundary between life or culture at large.

JG: Exactly. And I think “holistic” is a very good way to think about it.

AW: Do you have a favourite moment from this year’s ECMAs that you’d like to share?

JG: I was really impressed with Hey Rosetta! I came in a big fan, but I saw them three times over the weekend, and I think what they’re doing is really, really impressive. I really enjoy the Acadian rap of Radio Radio. They’re like an Acadian Beastie Boys! [laughs] Christina Martin has really got something, and I think you’ll be hearing a lot more from her in the future. But I would say that my favourite moment came on the Saturday night of the ECMAs. It was the wee hours, I was at Union Station, and Matt Mays and El Torpedo were playing their loud, gritty, Tom Petty-esque East Coast rock. They’re just such an unassailably great rock band. I was right up against the stage, headbanging, and I just thought they were fantastic. They’re such an old school rock experience, all hair and beards, great leads, and amps turned up to 11. Mays can play – he’s a guitar hero, and they’re a really fun band to watch.