Inside a large grey booth lit up with blue lights, Talon Nadeau spits out rhymes over a steady back beat.
The 18-year old, rapping an original verse he penned himself, is recording in a professional studio located in Vancouver.
"I am new to this and learning as I go," he said. "This place is great, as it is welcoming, everyone is friendly and it really is a place like no other."
18-year old Talon Nadeau records an original song at the BYRC Recording Studio in Vancouver.
The BYRC Recording Studio is a place dedicated to musical creativity and youth empowerment. Anyone ages 13 to 24 can access the studio and all its equipment, for free.
"As a young person, it is really hard to access professional studios because they are expensive, but this one is great and you get to meet youth from all different walks of life."
The studio, which is located in the Broadway Youth Resource Centre is run by 23-year old recording artist and audio engineer Sekawnee.
"This is an inclusive space for youth to record music, hone in on their craft and learn more about the music industry, " he said.
23-year old Sekawnee helped found the BYRC Recording Studio which is dedicated to celebrating young artists. (Melanie Nagy)
Sekawnee is from the Squamish and Tla'amin Nations. He says his passion for music is rooted in his culture's deep connection to song and dance.
"I feel like music has always been in my blood and my spirit. For as long as I can remember, it has felt like it was just a part of me."
With his strong background in traditional song, Sekawnee started creating his own modern music at age 14. He says when he wasn't in school. he would be on his computer, making beats, mixing tracks and mastering songs.
"All I wanted to do was make music and record professionally," he said. "It is expensive for any artist, particularly youth, to go out there and record an album or single."
In helping found BYRC, Sekawnee wanted to make music production more accessible for other young people. Not only is the non-profit studio filled with professional equipment that can be used to create polished recordings, he will mentor anyone interested in music production, recording and business.
"I share the knowledge I obtained from attending Nimbus School of Recording and Media. So whatever I have learned over the years, I will share with people who come in and want to record."
Nicolas Leonidas has been coming to the studio since it opened last September. The 20-year old, who is originally from Brazil, is a singer and musician.
20-year old Nicholas Leonidas has recorded 30 songs at the BYRC Recording Studio. (Melanie Nagy)
"When I moved to Canada last year, I found it really hard to find a studio that I could afford," he said. "When I met Sekawnee, he invited me to come to BYRC to record music and it has been such a great experience."
The studio is also meant to be an inclusive, safe space for young artists looking to expand their musical abilities. Leonidas says he has always felt supported when testing a new song or musical style.
"Here you are free to go in and sing whatever you want while getting production help from Sekawnee," he said. "So here you grow up as artists and you gain more knowledge and insight how to make more music."
While Leonidas has already recorded dozens of songs, Nadeau says he is just starting his musical journey.
"I am Plains Cree, and like Sekawnee, I have a connection to music through my culture, but since coming here, I have really expanded my musical knowledge."
Sekawnee says at least 20 young artists, with styles ranging from heavy rock to electronic dance music, are currently using the studio.
"I want to ignite a passion for music, while giving back to my community. I want to pass along whatever knowledge I have about music production as a way to support and give back to the next generation of artists."
Lauren Robilliard always knew she was adopted. As the B.C. native grew older, she developed a passion for genealogy, tracing her roots and paving the way for a career to help others find their own.
A Papua New Guinea government official has told the United Nations more than 2,000 people were believed to have been buried alive by Friday's landslide and has formally asked for international help.
By Labour Day weekend, Ontarians of legal drinking age could snag a six-pack at their local convenience store on the way to the cottage. But what are alcohol sales like across the country? Here's what we know.
A 60-year-old woman saw her dreams of becoming the oldest Miss Universe contestant in history melt away in a haze of sequins and selfies Saturday at Argentina’s annual beauty pageant.
You'll have a lot more energy throughout the day if you get a good night's sleep, but not everyone does due to a medical condition.
Depending on where you live, you can expect to get a mixed bag of weather this week, as local forecasts predict heavy rain, strong wind and severe thunderstorms across Canada.
The head of a Quebec-based sexual and reproductive health organization says she's disappointed New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs has deemed presentations she did in the province last week inappropriate.
Richard M. Sherman, who helped write the songs for 'Mary Poppins,' 'The Jungle Book' and 'Chitty Chitty Bang Bang' — as well as the most-played tune on Earth, 'It's a Small World (After All)' — died at 95.
A cyclone flooded coastal villages, blew away thatched roofs and left hundreds of thousands of people without power Monday in southern Bangladesh and eastern India. At least seven deaths were reported.
Thousands of people who were forced to flee their homes due to a wildfire burning out of control near Fort Nelson, B.C., will be allowed to return Monday, according to officials.
Two people died after a plane went down in a remote area near Squamish, B.C. on Friday, authorities have confirmed.
Firefighters in Kelowna were busy on Sunday morning, knocking down two “major” structure fires.
Pro-Palestinian protesters who have been camped out at the University of Toronto for weeks say they have no plans to honour the terms of a trespass notice issued by the school and clear the demonstration site by 8 a.m. today.
Ontario's privacy commissioner says she will publish a special report about the use of non-government emails and deleted messages related to the Greenbelt.
A woman is dead after a vehicle crashed into a house in Oshawa early Sunday morning.
Calgary police have blocked off a road at the Deerfoot Meadows mall in response to a police incident.
More than 13,000 runners took to the streets throughout the city on Sunday for the annual Calgary Marathon.
Two people died after a plane went down in a remote area near Squamish, B.C. on Friday, authorities have confirmed.
The sole survivor of the Barrhaven mass killing is thanking the city of Ottawa for their support, only two months since losing his wife, four children and a family friend.
It will be a rainy start to the week with thunderstorms on Monday.
Alstom is hitting the brakes on redesigning the wheel hub assembly on Ottawa's LRT vehicles, which was once billed as a "final fix" to a problem that has caused at least three shutdowns on the Confederation Line over the past three years.
A judge has approved, in part, UQAM's request for a provisional injunction against the pro-Palestinian encampment on its grounds.
A researcher at Montreal's Concordia University and her team have developed an innovative technique for accurately identifying counterfeit coins using artificial intelligence (AI).
Linda Morais is proving it's never too late to follow your dreams — the Montreal wrestler has stamped her ticket to Paris to compete in the Olympic games this summer in what may be her final time representing Team Canada.
A man was shot and seriously injured by a police officer outside a gas station in northeast Edmonton Saturday night.
A man who had been shot was found in a parkade near 108a Street and 47 Avenue Saturday night.
A section of road in Grande Prairie was closed Sunday evening while fire crews worked on a fire in the Crystal Lake Recreational Park.
The head of a Quebec-based sexual and reproductive health organization says she's disappointed New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs has deemed presentations she did in the province last week inappropriate.
The latest high-value seizure of drugs at the Springhill Institute, a federal medium-security facility in Nova Scotia, included a modern technological twist.
By Labour Day weekend, Ontarians of legal drinking age could snag a six-pack at their local convenience store on the way to the cottage. But what are alcohol sales like across the country? Here's what we know.
Parishioners at Holy Trinity Anglican Church are praying for a monetary miracle, as their historic place of worship could collapse at any moment.
In mid-March 2022, a young Indigenous woman stood outside Winnipeg's Salvation Army and spoke with a man who invited her back to his home.
A cold, wet Saturday morning didn’t slow down hundreds of motorcycle riders from embarking on an annual trek.
An annual fixture in the Queen City, organizers for the Cathedral Village Arts Festival are saying the 2024 iteration of the week long event exceeded expectations – and then some.
Large portions of southern and central Saskatchewan were subject to weather advisories Sunday – warning of potential funnel clouds.
Over 200 people packed Northshore Park near Wascana Lake Sunday for Regina's annual MS Walk.
Two Purolator truck drivers being hailed as heroes, misconduct in a Kitchener strip club, and population growth for the Region of Waterloo round out the most-read stories of the week.
As pro-Palestinian protestors at University of Toronto plan to meet with administration, protestors at University of Waterloo joined together to voice their concerns.
The city of Brantford is remembering two fallen soldiers by unveiling new street signs in honour of their sacrifice.
A walking party of 200 people gathered at River Landing Amphitheatre on Saturday to prepare for either a one or four-kilometer walk to advocate awareness for Alzheimer's, dementia, and other neuro-degenerative diseases.
A Saskatchewan man made it to the summit of Mount Everest earlier this month.
A swimmer from Saskatoon has qualified for the 2024 Olympic Summer Games in Paris.
Ontario Provincial Police released a video showing a commercial motor vehicle driver nearly colliding with another tractor-trailer on Highway 17 near Thessalon, Ont.
Boaters who were stranded in the rapids of the Vermillion River were rescued by helicopter over the weekend.
One of the country’s homeless shelters has seen an uptick in the number of people through its doors, including more older adults over 50.
Damage is estimated at $75,000 following a fire in London over the weekend. Crews were called to the scene around 5 a.m. on Saturday to find a “fully-involved, detached garage fire.”
Several days after a motion was first put forward that would have limited the time of day when Londoners could use gas powered lawn equipment, the city councillor who proposed it is speaking out.
The province’s Special Investigations Unit has invoked their mandate after a suspect and a police officer were injured during an arrest related to a traffic investigation on Sunday morning.
OPP is investigating a multi-vehicle collision in Orangeville on Sunday.
The town of Wasaga Beach celebrated the upcoming opening of a new Royal Canadian Legion branch on Sunday.
Police arrested a man in connection with a series of thefts from a Barrie mall.
The blaze broke out Sunday around 12:30 p.m., according to multiple witnesses on scene who said the fire started in the garage.
A search is currently underway for a Michigan man who police said jumped into the waters of Lake St. Clair on Saturday afternoon and did not resurface.
Showers and thunderstorms in Windsor-Essex are expected to clear early Monday afternoon.There will still be a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms with winds gusting up to 50 km/h.
Two people died after a plane went down in a remote area near Squamish, B.C. on Friday, authorities have confirmed.
In the wake of major disappointment among soccer fans who were hoping to see Lionel Messi play at BC Place on Saturday, the Vancouver Whitecaps are offering what seems to be a consolation prize.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada has confirmed it is working with local Mounties and the BC Coroners Service after a plane crash near Squamish, B.C. Friday night.
Firefighters in Kelowna were busy on Sunday morning, knocking down two “major” structure fires.
One person is dead after a fight in Penticton early Sunday morning, according to authorities.
A suspect is at large after robbing a convenience store at gunpoint in Merritt, B.C., Friday, according to local police.
The entertainment and collector expo in Lethbridge got underway Friday afternoon.
A friendly competition between Lethbridge police officers and fire responders will take place Saturday, all for a good cause.
People trying to access a variety of online services offered by The City of Lethbridge may run into a digital roadblock this weekend.
Elliot Lake’s plans to grow the city will be presented at a city council meeting on Monday evening.
There was a strong show of support in Greater Sudbury for an NDP-led bill calling on the province to officially recognize June 1 as Injured Workers Day in Ontario.
Last week marked a quarter century of gambling and gaming in Sault Ste. Marie.
An unknown Newfoundland soldier, who fought and died on the battlefields in northeastern France during the First World War, is back home this weekend for the first time in more than a hundred years.
Canadian soldiers and government officials arrived in northeastern France this week for a historic mission: returning an unknown Newfoundland soldier back home.
79-year-old Madonna Wilkinson has been playing the accordion since she was 15, when she picked one up that had been left behind at one of her parents' rollicking parties in the oceanside town about 25 kilometres north of St. John's, N.L. She has played Sunday masses and St. Patrick's Day parties, and community events of all kinds.
A Saskatchewan man made it to the summit of Mount Everest earlier this month.
IAMGOLD’s Cote Gold open pit mine, located off Highway 144 between Timmins and Sudbury, had its official ribbon-cutting ceremony this week as production ramps up.
When one is extended an invitation to the Royal Garden Party in London, England, there's undoubtedly no shortage of pomp and circumstance. Barrie, Ont. natives Megan Kirk Chang and her husband Brandon experienced just that as they entered the prestigious event hosted at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday.
An unlikely celebrity emerged from social media to cheer on the Edmonton Oilers as they face the Dallas Stars tonight in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals.
The proprietors of Regina's sole discount theatre are aware they're carrying on a significant legacy.
When Jujhar Mann said he wanted to be a pastry chef on a grade school career project, he didn't imagine that pursuing his dream would land him on a popular Netflix baking competition.
A city known for its history, ties to outer space and southern barbecue, is also home to a Winnipeg chef dishing out dozens of perogies.
A Montreal photographer captured the moment a Canada goose defended itself from a fox at the Botanical Garden.
Public libraries in Atlantic Canada are now lending a broader range of items.
Canada is looking at the massive new U.S. import tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles imposed by U.S. President Joe Biden earlier this month, but is not making any commitment to following suit north of the border.
The U.S. ambassador to NATO says she has seen no indication that Canada has a plan to reach the NATO spending target of two per cent of GDP on defence.
Social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram and Snapchat are nothing less than 'virtual pushers,' according to Premier François Legault.
You'll have a lot more energy throughout the day if you get a good night's sleep, but not everyone does due to a medical condition.
Last month, the Canadian Medical Association warned that Canada's health-care facilities are among the oldest public infrastructure in use. Half were built more than 50 years ago, making them especially vulnerable to extreme climate events.
After another case of H5N1 avian flu linked to dairy cows was confirmed in a second dairy farmer in the United States, some Canadian experts say the federal government needs to expand surveillance of the virus north of the border.
Real quick — what did you have for lunch yesterday? Were you with anyone? Where were you? Can you picture the scene? The ability to remember things that happened to you in the past, especially to go back and recall little incidental details, is a hallmark of what psychologists call episodic memory — and new research indicates that it’s an ability humans may share with birds called Eurasian jays.
The Toronto-based research arm of life sciences technology firm Klick Health has found a way to analyze voices in a manner that’s so granular, it can tell whether it's a person or an artificial intelligence-powered machine.
NASA has launched the first of two research satellites to measure how much heat is lost to space from the Arctic and Antarctica.
A 60-year-old woman saw her dreams of becoming the oldest Miss Universe contestant in history melt away in a haze of sequins and selfies Saturday at Argentina’s annual beauty pageant.
Former 'General Hospital' actor Johnny Wactor was fatally shot in downtown Los Angeles while interrupting thieves Saturday, according to his agent and CNN affiliate KABC.
Movie theaters are looking more and more like a wasteland this summer. Neither "Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga" nor "The Garfield Movie" could save Memorial Day weekend, which is cruising towards a two-decade low.
A&W Food Services of Canada Inc. has signed a long-term development agreement with sandwich chain Pret A Manger (Europe) Ltd.
Indigo Books & Music Inc. shareholders are expected to vote this morning on whether the retailer should accept a sweetened offer from a holding company that plans to take the bookstore chain private.
The Beer Store says it is looking forward to the next stage in its “evolution” as the province rolls out an accelerated timeline for expanding retail alcohol sales in Ontario.
There are many decisions to make before deciding to buy a house and one of those is whether to buy a new or a resale one.
Hundreds of clowns gathered in the streets of Peru’s capital to mark Clown Day. They have sought for years to gain official recognition of the day.
Now that temperatures have warmed up even more this spring, you may be anxious at the thought of bugs invading your home or you may already be battling the pests. Here are expert tips on how to keep them away.
Josef Newgarden put his cheating scandal behind him to become the first back-to-back winner of the Indianapolis 500 in 22 years.
Alex Wennberg deflected home a goal 5:35 into overtime, and the New York Rangers reclaimed home-ice advantage in the Eastern Conference finals with a 5-4 win over the Florida Panthers in Game 3 on Sunday.
Mason Marchment scored the winner early in the third period as the Dallas Stars beat the Edmonton Oilers 3-1 on Saturday to even the NHL's Western Conference final 1-1.
Canada is looking at the massive new U.S. import tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles imposed by U.S. President Joe Biden earlier this month, but is not making any commitment to following suit north of the border.
In the early morning of May 14, Vicki Hill was startled awake by the sound of explosions outside her home in Bethesda, Md. The loud bangs, she learned later, had come from the airbags of the family’s SUV, a 2015 Nissan Murano that was parked in the driveway. It was on fire.
If you’re planning a road trip this summer, it won’t hurt to make sure your car is reliable and would take you there and back.
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