Navigating the Modern Music Business as an Independent Artist

Sault-Born Music Entrepreneur Matthew St Pierre Returns Home for the First-Ever Public Unveiling of Lisnin, a New All-in-One Platform for Independent Artists

Free keynote event “Navigating the Modern Music Business as an Independent Artist” — presented with Adrian Vilaca of The Art Hub & The Borderline — comes to 504 Queen St. E. on August 25, just weeks before St Pierre takes the stage at Germany’s Reeperbahn Festival. Capacity is capped at 60 and RSVP is required.

– PRESS ASSETS HERE – 

On Tuesday, August 25, The Art Hub (504 Queen St. E) will host Navigating the Modern Music Business as an Independent Artist, an evening for local musicians, creatives, and music & technology investors headlined by Sault Ste. Marie’s own Matthew St Pierre, founder of Lisnin and the Lonely Listeners Club. Doors open at 4:00 p.m. and the program begins at 5:00 p.m. The event is presented in partnership with The Art Hub At Spring and hyper-local arts radio station The Borderline.  Admission is free, but capacity is capped at 60 attendees and RSVP is required at lisnin.io/events.

The evening opens with a 45-minute keynote in which St Pierre shares his story of nearly a decade working in the independent music sector — and a candid look at the landscape independent artists are navigating today. For many artists, the music business can feel like a code to crack: release strategies, marketing and PR, catalogue management, publishing and PRO registration, sync licensing, brand identity and online presence, community building, ticketing and touring, and understanding music rights and catalogue valuation. St Pierre will break down these topics with practical insight aimed squarely at the artists who share the environment he grew up in — because he believes the Sault’s independent talent is as strong as anywhere, and that infrastructure and education are what unlock it.

The keynote is followed by a 30-minute live demonstration of Lisnin — the platform’s first public unveiling anywhere — and a 30-minute open Q&A. Attendees will have the opportunity to join the Lisnin waitlist, receive a free month on the platform at launch, and may get the chance at exclusive early access along with free tools, software, and support for their music.

– RSVP HERE –

A hometown story, a global stage

Born and raised in Sault Ste. Marie, St Pierre got his start managing his brother and operating an independent record label and recording studio in the Sault, with early support from the local economic development corporation. That beginning blossomed into a career spanning work with Vice and — through Toronto-based music supervision agency Wracket Music, where he is a business partner leading business relations and development — brands including Apple, Amazon, and MTV. He has worked with hundreds of artists, most of them independent, alongside artists from Def Jam, Atlantic, Warner, Universal, and Sony, helping artists reach tens of millions of streams. He has been booked to speak on independent music and technology at events across North America and Europe, including SoAlive Music Conference in Bulgaria and Departure Festival/Canadian Music Week in Toronto.

St Pierre is also the founder of the Lonely Listeners Club, a music community spanning more than 80,000 users across social media with an inner community of 4,000 members, which has helped independent artists raise over $200,000 through unique, decentralized, community-led crowdfunding.

Lisnin began in 2023 as a simple music marketing tool that placed top 10 out of 10,000 registrants in the Solana hackathon — and has since evolved into a full, unified music management platform: one place for independent artists to run their entire careers. The platform launches late this fall. St Pierre is currently part of the Innovation Factory’s Concept Catalyst program & the Creative Destruction Lab for its accelerator, and is under consideration for additional programs. The hometown unveiling comes just weeks before St Pierre presents on a major stage at Reeperbahn Festival/Music Frontiers in Germany in September — making Sault Ste. Marie the first audience in the world to see the platform in public.

“Everything I know about this business started here in the Sault — my own adventures with music, managing my brother, running a studio, figuring it out record by record. The talent in this city has never been the problem. What’s been missing is infrastructure and education, and that’s exactly what I’m bringing home first, before I take it anywhere else in the world,” said Matthew St Pierre, Founder of Lisnin and the Lonely Listeners Club.

“The Art Hub and The Borderline exist for one reason: to put local artists front and centre. Having Matthew unveil a platform of this scale here at home — to our artists, before anywhere else — is exactly the kind of story this community deserves,” said Adrian Vilaca of The Borderline.

Event at a Glance

• What: Navigating the Modern Music Business as an Independent Artist — keynote, first-ever public demo of Lisnin, and open Q&A
• Who: Matthew St Pierre (Founder, Lisnin & the Lonely Listeners Club), hosted with Adrian Vilaca (The Art Hub / The Borderline)
• When: Tuesday, August 25, 2026 — Doors 4:00 p.m., program 5:00 p.m.
• Where: The Art Hub, 504 Queen St. E., Sault Ste. Marie, ON
• Admission: Free — RSVP required, capacity capped at 60: lisnin.io/events
• Audience: Independent artists, musicians, creatives, and music & technology investors

About Lisnin — Lisnin is an all-in-one career management platform for independent musicians: distribution, publishing administration, artist websites, an industry directory, fan engagement tools, and more, in a single dashboard. Launching late fall 2026. lisnin.io

About the Lonely Listeners Club — The Lonely Listeners Club is a community for indie and underground music fans — 80,000+ across social media, with an inner community of 4,000 members — that has helped independent artists raise over $200,000 through decentralized, community-led crowdfunding. lonelylisteners.com

About The Art Hub At Spring & The Borderline — Located at 504 Queen St. E., The Art Hub At Spring is a downtown Sault Ste. Marie creative space featuring artist studios, an art gallery, and an event venue where the local arts community gathers. The Borderline is the Sault’s homegrown online hyper-local radio and podcast station — “Radio at the Heart of the Great Lakes”. Founded in 2020 to spotlight local music, arts, and storytelling, it features hundreds of local artists and reaches listeners in more than 20 countries, and has programs broadcast on National Public Radio (NPR) in the USA. theborderline.ca

Media Contact:

Lisnin Music Inc
Partnerships & Artist Relations – Everton Lewis Jr.

hello@lisnin.io
https://www.lisnin.io

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VISIT: facebook.com/SooFilmFestival

The 2026 Soo Film Festival organizing committee is Jason Markstrom, Allison Youngs, Pat Egan, Carrie DeWeese, and Susan James.

Soo Film Festival, Inc. is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote and host film and allied arts festivals in the City of Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. Soo Film Festival, Inc. seeks to showcase the work of independent and emerging filmmakers, especially from the Great Lakes of North America. Our Mission: Great Lakes, Great Movies!