Q & A with CCMA Chair, Ted Ellis

Here's a brief Q & A taken from our member newsletter, The Source, with the Chair of the CCMA Board of Directors, Ted Ellis.

Being Chair of the CCMA Board of Directors is not a new role for you [Ellis previously held the position from 2011 – 2013]. Why come back to Chair again?
I had taken a break to focus on my work at Corus and my new role as a board member at the CMA in Nashville. After being away for a year I felt I could again commit my time and came back on as a board member for a year before coming back for another run as Chair. Change is good for everyone. It helps to build perspective and change allows thoughts and ideas to percolate within organizations. Country music remains my main passion and I always want to participate in a way that has enough influence to make a difference. The CCMA protects and builds our strength as an industry – so this is the best place to be.
 
What do you consider to be the biggest challenge for the CCMA right now? 
Simply put our costs are going up and our revenue is going down. The disruption facing the music industry is also hitting our organization. We need to find a way to develop new and sustainable revenue to insure that we can continue to act as a voice and a marketing platform for our genre of music.
 
What are you most looking forward to as part of Country Music Week 2016 in London?
London has proven itself to be a surprisingly huge supporter of music. They are extremely pumped to be hosting Country Music Week and the CCMA Awards Show, and I’m really looking forward to delivering our event in a town that really shares our excitement.
 
Since you have an “insider’s perspective” into the CCMA, what’s one thing you think most people would be surprised to hear about the organization?
I think my “insider’s perspective” provides me the insight to understand how such a small staff of people can put together such large scale fantastic events such as Country Music Week and the CCMA Awards Show every year. This small but mighty platoon, under Don’s leadership, feed off of their passion and dedication all year long in a marathon that begins each Sept and culminates the following September. It is an overwhelming amount of work and far more complicated than you’d ever suspect.
 
What are the goals you’ve made for the CCMA under your leadership?
We have committed to solving our revenue challenges. We will continue to create a national high tide effect for our artists and genre. We will continue to challenge the voting process to make sure we are providing a transparent and fair solution to our awards program that reflects the desires of the membership. We have endeavoured to fill out the board with a few individuals outside of our core pool of experience. We want to help our members build big, beautiful, meaningful careers in each of their unique areas of the business.