Community Radio Initiative

Hello there,

This is a little different from our usual best practices and system updates but we hope you will take the time to read it because as an artist, label, or music industry professional using !earshot Distro, you’ve likely experienced firsthand the role that campus, community, and Indigenous radio play in supporting Canadian music.

These stations are often where artists receive their first airplay, their first chart placements, their first interviews, and their first opportunities to connect with audiences outside of commercial and algorithm-driven platforms. They help build local music scenes, promote tours and festivals, and create space for emerging and independent voices. We hope this has been the case for you!

Today, that infrastructure needs support.

The Community Radio Initiative (CRI) is a national proposal that would provide stable funding for more than 255 licensed community, campus, and Indigenous radio stations across Canada. This would provide approximately $95,000 annually per station, helping ensure these vital community institutions can continue serving artists and audiences across the country.

Why should the music sector care?

Community radio is one of Canada’s most important artist discovery systems. Unlike many commercial outlets, community radio actively supports emerging, local, independent, Indigenous, francophone, multilingual, and genre-specific artists. It provides opportunities for artists to be heard, interviewed, charted, and connected with listeners in meaningful ways.

Recent research from Australia found that community radio contributes over $153 million annually to the music industry through artist discovery, audience development, promotion, training, and cultural support. While the Canadian context is different, the findings reinforce what many artists already know: supporting community radio is supporting the broader music ecosystem.

We are asking artists, labels, managers, publishers, festivals, and music industry professionals to learn more about the Community Radio Initiative and consider adding your voice in support.

A Thank You From Us: Send a Letter, Get a Free Upload!

We know your time is valuable, and we want to thank you for standing up for the community that stands up for you. Please consider sending an email to your MP! The mycri.ca makes this so easy for you. We have even attached template letters for you to personalize while emailing your MP here.

As a token of our appreciation, we are offering a free !earshot Distro upload coupon to everyone who sends a letter of support.

Here is how to claim yours:

1. Download or write your letter using the templates provided.
2. Send it to your local MP, check mycri.ca to locate your MP.
3. CC us on the email at support@earshot-distro.ca 

Once we see your CC’d email, we will send a promo code directly to your inbox for your next upload. 

Submit a short testimonial.

After contacting your MP, we encouraged you to submit a brief story about how community radio has supported your career by July 20th, 2026.

You can submit:

• a 30-second video;
• a 30-second audio recording; or
• a short written testimonial.

Music Testimonial Submission Form: https://forms.gle/YnfkZBoiyb6f8dHy8

These testimonials will help us create campaign videos, social media content, on-air PSAs, meeting materials, and other advocacy tools that show the real impact of community radio on Canadian artists.

Learn more about the Community Radio Initiative and how you can help: https://www.cri-irc.ca/en/. Consider sharing this info with your artists friends and let them know about this initiative. 

– Sincerely,

!earshot Distro Team