News Article

Music PEI Board Of Directors Update

Music PEI Board Of Directors voting polls closed Friday, June 29 with a strong voter turnout.

We would like to congratulate the newly elected board members of the Music PEI Board of Directors. They are Andrew King, Pat Deighan, and Grady Poe.

The commitment and challenges are considerable but serving as a Music PEI board member is a privilege and an extremely rewarding experience as we continue to help the music industry grow and flourish on Prince Edward Island.
We would like to thank the nominees for their interest in serving.

Music PEI Annual General Meeting is Tuesday July 17, and the new board members will be introduced further to the membership at that time. The Music PEI AGM loctation will be announced next week.

BIOGRAPHIES

Andrew King

My name is Andrew King and I’m currently the Editor of Canadian Musician magazine
as well as three trade-specific music and entertainment publications by Norris-Whitney
Communications. I moved to Summerside from Ontario at the foot of 2009 and have
resided here since. I enjoy all aspects of music and its creation and am particularly
excited about what’s been coming out of the Maritimes and, more specifically, PEI over
the last few years.

Because of my profession and personal passion for this business, I have a solid
grasp of the current state of the industry here on the coast and, perhaps of more value
to MPEI members, the rest of the country and continent. I’ve been very pleased with
how MPEI has been operating over the last few years, creating valuable professional
opportunities for Island artists of all styles. Were I elected to the Board, I’d be striving
to use my skill set to continue along that tangent while also trying to expand those
opportunities into new markets through targeted outreach, exchanges, etc. Key to these
aspirations is ensuring our talent is trained to capitalize on such opportunities and,
subsequently, start creating their own.

I would also like to see more programming that engages music fans on the Island
and beyond. A lot of the Association’s initiatives are (rightfully) aimed at strengthening
the industry, though through further public outreach, we can also be enhancing the
consumer base for that industry in a mutually-beneficial partnership with more potential
for reward. Cheers!

Pat Deighan

A decorated veteran of the Prince Edward Island music scene, Pat Deighan cut his teeth in popular Island bands Strawberry, Eyes For Telecopes and Pat Deighan & The Orb Weavers. By day, Deighan can most often found behind the counter of Back Alley Music with his finger on the pulse about new Island music and upcoming concerts; by night, you can often find him playing drums in front of a packed house with popular Island cover band The Love Junkies (and, more likely than not, hosting the after-party).  He also regularly joins Nova Scotia’s In-Flight Safety on tour, and has performed across Canada, USA, the UK and Germany with the group in recent years.   

With his wife Meghann, Deighan owns and operates Trailside Cafe & Inn in Mount Stewart, one of the Island’s premiere small halls that offers music-lovers of all ages an intimate setting  in which to enjoy a wide range of Canadian songwriters. In their opening season, the Trailside has hosted sold-out showcases by Dennis Ellsworth, Matt Minglewood, Matt Mays, and many others, as well as inaugurating the weekly Hillsborough River Gospel Brunch, a Sunday afternoon hosted by Matt “Nudie” Putnam of Nudie & The Turks.

With unremitting energy and enthusiasm in support of music on Prince Edward Island—whether he is performing, hosting concerts, or selling other performers’ records—Deighan is an irreplaceable piece in the mosaic of Island music, and his efforts to share Island music show no signs of slowing.

Grady Poe

Grady Poe has had 20 years experience working full time in the music business on Prince Edward Island. His experience includes being manager for Barachois, Nils Ling (theatre), the Chucky Danger Band (now Paper Lions), Les Girls, Gadelle and Vishten. As well he has worked as a performance coach for various Island based artists. During his tenure as manager for Barachois the band achieved a nine year career as full time international touring artists based on PEI. In addition he has worked in the studio as a musician (Jerry Holland, Teresa Doyle, Colette Cheverie), producer (Gadelle) and executive producer (3 award winning CD’s for Barachois). He has also founded and managed the record label associated with the Barachois recordings.

Grady sat on the original board of Music PEI and helped guide its transition from an awards show to a music industry association. He also served on the sub-committee which created the grant programs now being administered by MPEI.

He stepped down from the board several years ago to allow for change and to focus on other personal activities. He is once again interested in serving on the board and thereby the musical community on PEI. As a former board member and given his past experience, he knows firsthand many of the challenges faced by MPEI and the music industry at large.