Setting the Stage 2.0: Mentorship and Performance Program
Canadian Live Music Association
Feedback deadline: November 21, 2025
Application deadline: November 30, 2025
Building on the success of the 2024 pilot program, the Canadian Live Music Association (CLMA) is pleased to announce the second edition of Setting the Stage, a micro-grant “Mentorship and Performance” program, sponsored by RBC. The program aims to help artists reduce barriers, strengthen connections, and provide the foundation for sustainable career growth.
Setting the Stage provides micro-grants to CLMA members who are independent live music venues, promoters, or festivals, to support direct mentorship and one live performance for a local, emerging artist(s).
Apply now, visit Setting the Stage — Canadian Live Music Association
The goals of the program are:
- to create enhanced opportunities for an emerging artist(s) through live performance and dedicated mentorship,
- to offset risk for venues/promoters/festivals, and
- to encourage fans to discover and engage with a new artist(s).
The program will help to address the market challenges that persist in some areas of the live music ecosystem, challenges that are directly impacting live music venues, and challenges emerging artists face as they try to grow their careers.
Application Process
Setting the Stage is open to CLMA members from anywhere in Canada who are independent Canadian live music venues, an independent concert promotion company, or a festival who have been in operation for a minimum of two years. Applications from promoters/festivals must feature a performance that takes place in a CLMA member venue.
About the Artist(s)
Applicants will be asked to describe why they have chosen the emerging artist(s) they are applying to present and mentor. The selected artist(s) will be required to complete a section of the application. We know you support emerging artists and always have. This work is more important than ever today. [An emerging artist is someone in the early stage of their career, who has yet to establish themselves broadly within the music industry.]
Mentorship
Venues, promoters, and festivals have extensive knowledge and can help artists with their career development and guide them on how to build relationships across the industry.
The mentorship aspect of this program is equal to the performance opportunity and should be fully considered in the application. Topics of discussion can be determined between the artist and mentor. Some ideas include (but are not limited to): tour routing, budgeting a concert, digital promotion, strategies for audience growth, event production, and showcase strategy.
The core component of the Setting the Stage program is a commitment of a minimum of 2hrs of direct (one-on-one/in-person) mentorship by the applicant organization with the emerging artist(s), and a minimum of 2hrs of direct (one-one-one) mentorship by an external industry member (ie. agent, manager, publicist, publisher, label, marketer) based on the emerging artist’s needs.
Up to $500 of the grant can be allocated to the external mentor for their time, while another $250 of the grant to be applied to the applicant’s administrative costs for their portion of the mentorship.
A list of CLMA members can be found here.
