Canada's Black Music Business Collective aims to 'provide a unified voice'

A new non-profit organization aims to provide a unified voice and create change for Black people working within all sectors of the Canadian music industry.

Called Advance, Canada's Black Music Business Collective, the group says it wants to develop an infrastructure for the "betterment, upliftment and retention of Black people" in Canada's music industry.

It also wants to build "a more equitable Canadian music industry that grants Canada's Black music communities a fair and valued voice in a consistently growing music nation."

"At the heart of the Canadian music industry lives brilliant artists, passionate creators and a vibrant mosaic of Black voices that have launched the biggest talents in the world," Advance said Monday on Twitter.

"Today, more than ever, these voices need to be amplified."

On its website, Advance vows to hold the corporate, private and government sectors accountable, and create "conditions for long-term success by addressing racial equality and inclusivity through four areas."

Those areas are advocacy, mentorship, community outreach, and business development and entrepreneurship.

On Twitter, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, which organizes the annual Juno Awards, said it welcomes the creation of the organization and looks forward to working with it "and supporting the goal of a more equitable Canadian music industry."