The independent music scene (and any other creative career) which is self-produced by the musicians themselves is often a struggle in terms of getting airplay, funding and developing a public market. Many unknown bands buy their own instruments, practise wherever they can, and perform in small bars and clubs sometimes even having to pay stage rental fees to the owner, and do their own promotion through posting flyers around poles or small cards left in restaurants, bars, galleries, clubs. There is also Myspace which allows a few songs to be uploaded with photos and YouTube for videos. Internet radio stations for those with the software such as iTunes to listen are another way to get airplay online. Ontario Independent Music Awards (OIMA) is a non-profit group which gives awards for different music categories to the independent music scene once a year, now in its 4th year. Bands submit to them and the best of the top 5 nominees will win the specific award for a certain type of music, such as Jazz, Rock, Punk Rock, Country, R & B, Electronic and many more. Martin Brown, the producer of the show is moving on to Spain to start something similar. Jane Harbury is responsible for publicity relations here. Internet radio djs who give airplay to these bands help and announce the nominees and winners. Club djs too are another potential chance to reach the public. The Phoenix Concert Theater kindly hosts the awards night by offering its space. The evening is structured where awards are read, followed with performances from past winners in between. From all these local talents, perhaps a big producer will spot them playing at a club or hear a tune online. MTV or MuchMusic are tv stations which can broadcast performances or video recordings to their viewers. Music festival organizers also help promote local musicians by allowing them stage time to entertain the public who attend the festival. The more exposure and opportunity to be on stage and in front of the public, the greater the chances of being spotted by a recording producer and television stations, which may lead to contracts to record and perform around the world. Till that big break, many musicians play for free until it happens. OIMA can help select the best which may influence producers to take a chance on the winners.
