Pop Montreal founder describes the beautiful diversity out-of-province students bring to Quebec
Pop Montreal music festival founder Dan Seligman credits his career to one simple decision he made as a young person: moving to Montreal from Toronto in 1996 to study at McGill University as an out-of-province student.
After his studies, he says he "accidentally" started working in the Montreal music industry, decided to stay and eventually founded the annual music festival.
READ MORE: Amid tuition hikes, former students share why choosing Montreal was the best decision of their lives
"I got lucky, but it was a lot to do with wanting to stay in Montreal and live here and figure this out," he tells CTV News.
Seligman says he worries that others won't be able to have the same life-changing experience he did.
New tuition hikes imposed by the Quebec government promise to raise fees by 30 per cent from $9,000 to a minimum of $12,000 per year for out-of-province students.
International students would now have to pay a base rate of $20,000, with the government collecting $3,000 in fees.
"It seems quite short-sighted and a bad idea in the long run," said Seligman. "It seems kind of vindictive."
He points out many of his friends came from elsewhere in Canada, fell in love with the city and stayed.
"What makes Montreal interesting is a mix of all kinds of different cultures: French, English, immigrants, students, young people, old people," he tells CTV News. "It's such a great mix of all these things."
Seligman says he worries the tuition hikes could take away from the city's diverse and vibrant arts and culture scene.
"A lot of people, whether they're artists or not, they want to come to Montreal... but secretly, they just want to be in a band," he said. "A lot of young musicians, students, do that because it's an affordable place to live. If tuitions go up drastically, people just won't be able to do that."
Seligman laments the increase could likely affect the festival's future, which is largely supported by young English speakers.
"The success of Pop Montreal is linked to the success of a lot of independent bands," he said, pointing to Arcade Fire, Grimes and Patrick Watson as examples. "A lot of these bands have made their careers in the Montreal indie scene."
The tuition fee increases are set to be implemented at the start of the 2024-25 academic year.
The Quebec government is also demanding that students graduating from English-language universities be evaluated at a Level 5 on the Quebec scale of French-language proficiency by the end of their undergraduate degree program.
Explore the stories of people who have made Montreal their home:
Can't see or scroll through the interactive feature below? Click here for the full-screen presentation.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
DEVELOPING Slovakia's populist prime minister shot multiple times in attempted assassination
Slovakia's populist Prime Minister Robert Fico is in life-threatening condition after being wounded in a shooting after a political event Wednesday afternoon, according to his Facebook profile.
Transport Canada's UFO 'lead' planned to meet with U.S. intel officials, called info requests a 'wild goose chase'
Canada's transportation department had a UFO 'lead' who tried to 'quell' media interest and planned to meet with U.S. intelligence officials.
'Very expensive lunch': Sask. driver handed a cell phone ticket for using points app in McDonald's drive-thru
A warning from a Saskatoon driver about using your fast-food app while in the drive-thru line — a trip to get some free lunch cost him a lot more than he bargained for.
'The Fly' has become notorious in France after a brazen escape. What's his criminal history?
A prisoner nicknamed “The Fly” has become notorious in France overnight after a daring and bloody escape from a prison convoy in Normandy that left two guards dead.
BREAKING Ontario's 'crypto king' Aiden Pleterski arrested
Aiden Pleterski, the self-proclaimed 'crypto king' from Whitby, Ont., has been arrested in Durham Region after allegedly running a Ponzi scheme worth more than $40 million.
BREAKING Barge hits a bridge in Texas, damaging the structure and causing an oil spill
A barge hit a bridge in Galveston, Texas, on Wednesday, spilling oil into surrounding waters and closing the only road to a small island, officials said.
Person responsible for 1996 drugging of 'Titanic' crew likely not a local: Halifax police
Halifax Regional Police believe a non-resident could be responsible for the infamous drugging of numerous crew members of the 'Titanic' movie with a hallucinogenic in 1996.
Latest updates on the biggest wildfires burning in Canada
Thousands of people in Western Canada remain displaced from their homes as wildfires threaten their communities, triggering evacuation orders and alerts.
OPINION Your attention span is shrinking, studies say. Here's how to stay focused: Sandee LaMotte
Regaining your focus requires you to be mindful of how you are using technology -- a daunting task if you consider the average American spends at least 10 hours a day on screens.