Canadian comedians get last laugh with radio station
MONTREAL Just For Laughs is assuring comics concerned by its takeover of a satellite radio comedy station that it will exclusively air Canadian content produced by artists outside of the Montreal entertainment company’s catalogue. Canadian comedians have been crying foul over this week’s announced partnership between Just For Laughs and Sirius XM Canada to turn the Canada Laughs channel into Just For Laughs Radio, saying the move would deprive homegrown talent of a vital source of exposure and income. Senior officials jointly announced Wednesday that the redubbed Just For Laughs Radio Canada would solely showcase independent Canadian comedians, who will be entitled to the same royalties as under the previous regime.
Just For Laughs president Bruce Hills and John Lewis, SiriusXM Canada’s senior vice-president of programing and operations, say the companies have been in contact the Canadian Association of Stand-up Comedians, which condemned the radio deal, about their plans for the channel.
The announcement walked back comments made by Howie Mandel, who is part of the partnership that owns Just For Laughs, suggesting some of the station’s content would now be drawn from the Just For Laughs archives, which include performers from around the world. “We’ve listened carefully to the concerns of Canadian artists and regret the stress we have caused the comedy community,” Hills said. “We are invested in the growth of Canada’s comedy industry and are working to include even more Canadian talent in all our initiatives.” A spokeswoman for the CASC said the organization is excited about the decision.
“We look forward to continuing the discussion with Just For Laughs to develop new and exciting opportunities to support opportunities for Canadian comics,” Sandra Battaglini said.