August 22, 2016
The CBC announced on August 15 that the following day would be feel-good, Juno-winning rapper Shadrach Kabango’s (Shad) last day hosting ‘q,’ CBC Radio’s embattled “flagship music, arts, and cultural affairs” show. Tom Power, the current host of Radio 2 Morning and a regular guest host on ‘q’ for years, will take over Shad’s role.
Kabango was brought on to host ‘q’ after former host Jian Ghomeshi was fired in the light of sexual assault allegations (as the CBC reports, “Ghomeshi was acquitted of all charges at one trial involving three complainants and had another case dropped in May after he agreed to sign a peace bond and publicly apologize.”). He was thrown into the role with no radio hosting experience, and drew some criticism for his interviewing style, with even an earlier version of the linked CBC announcement above mentioned his critics had called him “unengaging and rudderless.” In September 2014, just prior to Ghomeshi’s dismissal, the show had its most listeners at 282,000. In June 2016, it had only 168,000.
Kabango issued a statement about the switch:
“It’s been an honour and a joy to serve in this role. Countless fascinating guests and don’t even get me started on my colleagues: smart, funny, and dedicated is just the beginning. The show will continue and is in great hands with Tom Power — an excellent host and a great guy. My relationship with the CBC remains strong… I’m grateful for an amazing experience.”
Power, who is 29 now and joined the CBC at 21, eventually becoming its youngest host of a national radio program since Peter Jennings, will begin at ‘q’ in October, joining the show’s new executive producer Jennifer Moroz.
In Other News:
- The performers for the Polaris Music Prize Gala, and its Grand Jury, were announced.
- The Stranger Things theme got a deadmau5 remake.
- Black Mountain got the official Dave Grohl stamp of approval.
- Canadian Music Week will host a start-up competition named Launch Pad next year.
- Victoria will get its own branch of the Canadian Music Centre.
Festival Lineups: Nelson’s MASSiF
