Dan Talevski
Dan Talevski is a Canadian singer-songwriter from Georgetown, Ontario, who comes from a Macedonian background. His career first began as an online YouTube sensation in 2007 posting covers of popular songs. Since then he has gone on to work with will.i.am, Soulja Boy, Shawn Desman, Keshia Chanté, Timbaland, Tyler Shaw, and was selected as direct support for Backstreet Boys on its 2010 This Is Us Tour.
History
Beginnings, debut single, and signing with Interscope Records
Talevski had already garnered a massive internet following in 2007 thanks to his first viral video; a short clip of him singing "What Goes Around, Comes Around" by Justin Timberlake. After receiving mass attention online, he began taking requests from fans and has posted several covers of popular songs to his channel. As his fan base continued to grow many people began to take notice including Polow Da Don who reached out to Talevski and flew him out to Los Angeles to meet Jimmy Iovine the President of Interscope Records. This would lead to his major label signing and allowed him to release his debut single "Do It Again" on November 8, 2010, featuring Soulja Boy and produced by will.i.am.This is Us Tour
In 2009 Backstreet Boys announced its world tour for the group's new album and announced select openers in different regions. Talevski made his debut to the stage joining the tour from August 6, 2010, to August 16, 2010, playing to thousands of people in arenas across Canada. Howie Dorough would introduce Talevski at the beginning of each set since he is a new artist beginning his career playing sold-out shows to many fans. Howie managed Talevski along with CJ Huyer as 3Street Management. This close relationship would lead to Talevski filling the support slots for the Canadian dates of tour and his chance to play some new songs live including "Do It Again".Return to Toronto and Much Music Digital Studios
After the release of his single and his first tour Talevski began to contemplate his career and decided he didn't want to sing on someone else's work and would prefer to discover his own talent once again. In 2011, Dan departed from Los Angeles taking the knowledge and experience he gained from working with Interscope Records and would return home to Toronto where he spent the next few years honing his craft. In an interview with Global News, Talevski discusses his reasoning for coming home, "I was being pulled in so any different directions I was being told what to dress like what to sing like and it just wasn't me and I knew at the end of the day I wanted to write my own songs and perform how I wanted to perform and I just knew it was time after four years being with Interscope."In 2015, Much Music began a new segment of showcasing online talent from established and emerging video loggers that would be featured on its Web site. This collective of online sensations featuring the best in Comedy, Music, Beauty, Video Gaming and more would be called MUCH Digital Studios. Talevski went on to be one of the first digital creators for MUCH hosting a segment of weekly video logs and behind the scenes footage of his music. This led to Talevski meeting fellow Canadian pop star Tyler Shaw, who he remains close friends with to this day. In a recent interview Dan reflects on his experience as a digital creator,''"Being a creator has helped my audience see me in a different light. It shows me on a personal level which I never let people see before. It was always about my voice and performance. Now it’s something deeper and something they can connect to."''