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“I wrote this book because research shows that talented people are burning out in an industry they love. We’ve spent decades obsessing over the music while overlooking the humans making it. The Canadian music industry has a mental health crisis, and most of us are treating the symptoms while ignoring the cause — underdeveloped leadership is at the root of it. And that doesn’t happen by accident; it’s the result of an industry that has never systematically invested in growing its leaders. We promote people because of their talent, their relationships, or their hustle — and then leave them to figure out the rest on their own. Leading in Stereo is my attempt to change that conversation, because leaders deserve better tools and the people they lead deserve better experiences. The way we lead isn’t just a business issue. It’s a human one.”
Leading in Stereo uses the music industry as its case study but the leadership crisis it diagnoses is universal. Author Catherine Harrison draws on 35 years of cross-sector advisory work and original national research to make one central argument: burnout isn’t inevitable, it’s the downstream effect of how people are led.
The book connects mental health research, psychological safety, and practical leadership frameworks to show that the conditions driving dysfunction in high-pressure environments — unclear expectations, absent leadership, low trust — are the same whether you’re in music, healthcare, tech, finance, or a nonprofit.
The result is a human-centred playbook for leaders at every level who want to drive high performance and build cultures where people actually sustain it. Because good leadership isn’t just good ethics, it’s good business.
“This book reveals the depth of the mental health crisis in the Canadian music industry—not just through data, but what we can do about it. The author uses data from the largest study of its kind to chart a practical path forward. Leading in Stereo shows how we can begin to change the culture that created the crisis in the first place.”
Alan Cross,
host, Ongoing History of New Music
“Leading in Stereo is a must-read for leaders who are serious about building workplaces and spaces and a broader ecosystem that are not only successful, but sustainable, equitable, and humane.”
Dr. Jada Watson,
founder of SongData and Associate Professor at the University of Ottawa
“Catherine demands the right approach from leaders in the music industry. Now the question is: who is going to answer this call?”
Laura Simpson,
CEO/co-founder Side Door