Humber’s NXNE Battle of the Bands to be hosted on Saturday

Mar 23, 2023 | Campus News

The stakes are high for the artists and bands competing at Humber’s Battle-of-the-Bands competition this weekend.

The top 10 acts will be selected by a panel of judges and will perform on stage at this summer’s NXNE festival.

Corina Ivory, a Manager of Work-Integrated Learning at Humber said this festival is a great way to showcase the amazing talent hailing from Humber’s Music Program and propel them into the spotlight in the music industry.

“Humber’s Music Program is celebrating 50 years of excellence this year – this is a great opportunity to showcase the enormous talent. We want students to use the foundational knowledge they’ve gained in the program and celebrate their own diverse musical styles,” said Ivory in an email interview.

Ivory said credit for this idea goes to Thomas McKercher, a Program Coordinator of the Music Business Program at Humber, who got in touch with NXNE President Michael Hollett to arrange this festival.

“The program coordinator for the music business program at Humber College, Thomas McKercher, deserves praise for creating this wonderful opportunity. For artists who are interested in pursuing careers as performers, this is a great way to get exposure and generate a larger fanbase,” Ivory said.

NXNE has had notable musicians perform on their stages in the past, artists such as Lizzo, Post Malone, Daniel Caesar, and Vince Staples to name a few.

NXNE Battle of the Bands serves as a jumpstart to the NXNE adventure here in Canada, acting as a launching pad to decide the top five bands that will get to perform in the actual NXNE festival on June 13th.

Led by students in Humber’s Work-Integrated Learning initiative, they’re fully in charge and focused on making sure the musical diversity is representative of the artists and matches Humber’s principles of Equity, diversity, and inclusion.

As part of NXNE 2023’s Official Programming, the top five bands that win the Battle of the Bands will play a 40-minute set at one of NXNE’s venues in downtown Toronto. Artist Management teams will create professional press-kits including photos, music videos, a social media marketing plan, access to industry events and bragging rights.

The Battle of the Bands will take place at Humber’s Lakeshore campus this Saturday.