THE WAY WE WERE

... IN FEB 2006

YOUTH AND YOUNG MANHOOD

On the cover is a young rapper from Western Canada, one few had heard of before he dropped his debut Breaking Kayfabe in early 2006. By the end of that year, he’d be nominated for the first-ever Polaris Music Prize, a spot he’d earn two more times on his way to becoming one of Canada’s biggest pre-Drake rap exports. He’s due for a new full-length to celebrate ten years in this game.

THE DYING THROES OF AN INDUSTRY

Ever wonder how exactly the music industry contributed to its own implosion in the last decade? DRM (digital rights management) is one factor. Starting around 2005, major labels tried to put digital locks even on music you bought, dictating how many times it could be exported to a computer, what stereos it would play on, even limiting access to the then-new iPod. How’d that work out?

READERS RULE

In our then-annual Readers Poll Results, our wise readership demonstrated excellent taste in naming Sufjan Stevens’ Illinois, Kanye West’s Late Registration, M.I.A.’s Arular and Propagandhi’s Potemkin City Limits amongst the year’s best. See how this year’s results reflect 2015 on page 14. JAMES KEAST