Alessia Cara to perform Freedom Mobile Grey Cup Halftime Show

[ZLions]

Thanks ZLions. It's great to hear the perspective from someone who is Ambrosie's "target market". You are the future of the game, if it's to have one (after us old fogies retire to our rocking chairs).

Appreciate it. I really hope their is a future. The Lions (and entire CFL for that matter) got to do something about the dwindling attendance numbers. The in game atmosphere at BC Place was so much better just 4-5 years ago, when they regularly hit almost ~30k fans. The $5 kids deal for example was a great idea.

[BC 1988]

Just finished listening to both of Alessia Cara's songs ZLions posted.
It turns out I had heard "Scars To Your Beautiful" before (and didn't know who it was). I never listen to conventional radio for music, but that song does ring a bell. I probably heard it somewhere on TV.
**EDIT--Watching NBC Seattle original feed tonight, I saw this ad:

and remembered where I'd heard the song. It's for Ulta Beauty, a US company, so is not running in Canada. An ad like that will give Cara a lot more exposure. It's ironic that, given her GC appearance, she isn't getting the added boost of the ad in Canada.

"Here" is interesting because she uses a sample of Isaac Hayes - "Ike's Rap 2" (Portishead's "Glory Box" also used it and was one of my favorite songs back in '94) It was also used by Tricky in "Hell is Round The Corner" in '95.

The thing that stands out about Cara is that she tries to present a positive viewpoint on life. (Unlike a lot of the genre where the emphasis is on money and status.)

I doubt she will become one of my regular artists to listen to though (unlike Lorde and Lana Del Ray) but then it's rare for me to really enjoy contemporary artists.

[cromartie]

I'm a 40 something white guy and I hear her on Radio 2, err CBC Music, fairly regularly.

We're seeing artists cross genre regularly far more than we used to, particularly female artists such as her and Canadian artists, in order to maximize revenue in a smaller market, are making more of a go of it nowadays.

We joke about the Super Bowl caliber act, but the conditions the NFL sets on a halftime artist (which include a cut of the artist's subsequent tour revenue) borders on absurd. They actually get turned down by acts because of it.

I do think we'll get bigger Canadian names for halftime going forward, as artists and labels/promoters see the opportunity as more of a bargain for exposure going forward.

[Belize City Lion]

It seems appropriate for a season where we were "treated" to Thursday night concerts featuring artists most people had never heard of before, that the Grey Cup halftime show would be performed by a relative unknown (at least by core CFL fans). I'm about as excited for this as I was when Headly played halftime at the Grey Cup in Regina. Only difference is I had heard of Headly before and already knew they sucked.

[CardiacKid]

I saw her perform in Toronto at the 2016 Grey Cup and she did just fine. I might not be old as dirt (yet) but I remember enjoying Bread and ELO as a youngster and yet I like her music.

You are never going to satisfy everyone with the choice for halftime performer. IMO too much time is spent on worrying who might be the “purrfect” choice, who is more “football”, yadda yadda yadda.

All I ask is the performer put in a good, solid effort, have pretty good musical chops and not get bogged down in some over-produced, over-wrought and over-hyped show that looks like a Tim Burton nightmare on acid or Busby Berkeley has choreographed an army of foam dolphins. You know, the typical Super Bowl halftime show....

[aklawitter]

a bunch of old fogeys here

do you even watch the game or do you just huddle up around the transistor radio with a glass of bourbon and Sinatra softly crooning in the background

btw Alessia Cara did the GC pre-game in 2016, but apparently nobody watches the TV

[JohnnyMusso]

Aklawitter said:

a bunch of old fogeys here

do you even watch the game or do you just huddle up around the transistor radio with a glass of bourbon and Sinatra softly crooning in the background

btw Alessia Cara did the GC pre-game in 2016, but apparently nobody watches the TV

Maybe before you put us down, you should look at yourself in the mirror. Who cares if we did not watch the pregame show in 2016. No one really cares about the pregame show anyway. Most of us wait for the kick off than waste 3 hours or so watching a bunch of guys talk about what they think may happen or listen to pregame acts.

And if we hate hip hop music that is our privilege. I rather listen to old Beatle music, than hear some hip hop artist bore me to death with songs that are targeted for teenagers or early 20 something adults.

[Hambone]

a bunch of old fogeys here

do you even watch the game or do you just huddle up around the transistor radio with a glass of bourbon and Sinatra softly crooning in the background

btw Alessia Cara did the GC pre-game in 2016, but apparently nobody watches the TV

I never watch Grey Cup on TV because I'm always at the stadium.

I also accept that whatever acts perform for pre-game and halftime are there for the TV audience. If they tweak my interest as somebody I'd like to watch I will try to be in my seat. Regardless I will spend most of every pre-game out in the concourse BSing with whomever until it's time for player intros. I usually am not aware of nor care about the other pre-game festivities. Half-time is a different story. If the act turns my crank I'll go for a quick beer refill and get back to my seat. Otherwise I'll spend it out in the concourse and let those who wish to watch it enjoy themselves.

I fit your old fogey demographic (60+). I skipped watching Canada's Cougar Shania last year. Already had seen her do HT in 2002 at Edmonton so it was a been there, done that recycled act as for as I was concerned. I watched Fall Out Boy in 2016, One Republic in 2015, Imagine Dragons (easily top 2 or 3 HT acts of the 35 games I've attended) in 2014. I skipped Serena Ryder in 2013 in part because it was warmer in the Mosaic concourse. At GC 100 I watched Biebs, Jepsen, Mariana Trench and Gordon Lightfoot doing a great impression of Bernie in "Weekend at Bernie's" partly out of curiosity but also because Skydome allows one to multitask and half pay attention while up in the concourse getting a beer and going for a whiz. 2011 and Nickelback was another I watched. Their detractors are many but I think their style of hard rockin' music is purrfect for half-time. I had to watch Bachman and Turner in 2010 'cause I was a huge BTO fan in their glory days but passed on Blue Rodeo in Calgary in 2009. Can't remember if I watched Montreal's halftime show in 2008 but definitely watched Lenny Kravitz in TO in 2007, possibly the best HT show I've seen. Black Eyed Peas I watched in 2005 not because I liked their music but because of their stature. Generally if the act smells at all of country I'm gonna be in the concourse.

From the GC Half-Time did you know file: Shania (2003), Black Eyed Peas (2011), and Lenny Kravitz (2015) also performed at half-time at Super Bowls after doing GC HT. I was at Super Bowl XXVIII in Atlanta which featured Clint Black, Tanya Tucker, Travis Tritt and The Judds. Just my luck, Vulture.com ranks it 24th best out of the last 25 Super Bowl half-time shows. Ironically the Charlie Daniels Band was one of the pre-game acts. I had seen CDB at the Pacific Coliseum way back around 1975 or 1976 when they opened for BTO in their first big arena concert back after making it big. Needless to say the 15000 restless BTO fans who had been either lined up outside the Coliseum (all festival seating then) or inside for the better part of 3 hours by the time Charlie took the stage had no appetite for that style of music by then and more or less booed them off the stage.

[CardiacKid]

a bunch of old fogeys here

do you even watch the game or do you just huddle up around the transistor radio with a glass of bourbon and Sinatra softly crooning in the background

btw Alessia Cara did the GC pre-game in 2016, but apparently nobody watches the TV

I never watch Grey Cup on TV because I'm always at the stadium.

I also accept that whatever acts perform for pre-game and halftime are there for the TV audience. If they tweak my interest as somebody I'd like to watch I will try to be in my seat. Regardless I will spend most of every pre-game out in the concourse BSing with whomever until it's time for player intros. I usually am not aware of nor care about the other pre-game festivities. Half-time is a different story. If the act turns my crank I'll go for a quick beer refill and get back to my seat. Otherwise I'll spend it out in the concourse and let those who wish to watch it enjoy themselves.

I fit your old fogey demographic (60+). I skipped watching Canada's Cougar Shania last year. Already had seen her do HT in 2002 at Edmonton so it was a been there, done that recycled act as for as I was concerned. I watched Fall Out Boy in 2016, One Republic in 2015, Imagine Dragons (easily top 2 or 3 HT acts of the 35 games I've attended) in 2014. I skipped Serena Ryder in 2013 in part because it was warmer in the Mosaic concourse. At GC 100 I watched Biebs, Jepsen, Mariana Trench and Gordon Lightfoot doing a great impression of Bernie in "Weekend at Bernie's" partly out of curiosity but also because Skydome allows one to multitask and half pay attention while up in the concourse getting a beer and going for a whiz. 2011 and Nickelback was another I watched. Their detractors are many but I think their style of hard rockin' music is purrfect for half-time. I had to watch Bachman and Turner in 2010 'cause I was a huge BTO fan in their glory days but passed on Blue Rodeo in Calgary in 2009. Can't remember if I watched Montreal's halftime show in 2008 but definitely watched Lenny Kravitz in TO in 2007, possibly the best HT show I've seen. Black Eyed Peas I watched in 2005 not because I liked their music but because of their stature. Generally if the act smells at all of country I'm gonna be in the concourse.

From the GC Half-Time did you know file: Shania (2003), Black Eyed Peas (2011), and Lenny Kravitz (2015) also performed at half-time at Super Bowls after doing GC HT. I was at Super Bowl XXVIII in Atlanta which featured Clint Black, Tanya Tucker, Travis Tritt and The Judds. Just my luck, Vulture.com ranks it 24th best out of the last 25 Super Bowl half-time shows. Ironically the Charlie Daniels Band was one of the pre-game acts. I had seen CDB at the Pacific Coliseum way back around 1975 or 1976 when they opened for BTO in their first big arena concert back after making it big. Needless to say the 15000 restless BTO fans who had been either lined up outside the Coliseum (all festival seating then) or inside for the better part of 3 hours by the time Charlie took the stage had no appetite for that style of music by then and more or less booed them off the stage.

Re. the B.E.P., I like them and recall their Grey Cup performance was decent. Neither terrible nor awe-inspiring.

But their Super Bowl performance was absolutely terrible! A case of the concept being ill-formed and poorly executed. Just play the hits and dispense with the Cirque de Soliel aspirations....

[Hambone]

I hear you Cardiac. I think at time Super Bowl goes overboard in trying to make half-time such a spectacle to the point they start to minimalize the headline acts.

[Huge Talent]

Nothing against her, and I understand the league's strategy of appealing to youth, but her music and football don't really go together imo. A half time show should fire up the energy. This is sleepy time boring r&b. Not a fan of this choice.

[Spud387]

So as a 32yr old who listens to new rock & pop/alternative I have heard her hits and find them catchy.

The CFL is seriously in danger of dying off with it's older demographic. I can count the number of friends my age or younger that are Lions fans on one hand. The league has to do what it can inch by inch to get more young eyes on the screen. Personally I like this choice.

[B.C.FAN]

So as a 32yr old who listens to new rock & pop/alternative I have heard her hits and find them catchy.

The CFL is seriously in danger of dying off with it's older demographic. I can count the number of friends my age or younger that are Lions fans on one hand. The league has to do what it can inch by inch to get more young eyes on the screen. Personally I like this choice.

Good endorsement. Personally, I watch for the football game only but there is always a contingent of people (younger women, primarily) at my Grey Cup and Super Bowl parties who pay most attention to the halftime acts.