“But every time I got onstage with him, it gave me a little more confidence.” “I was 9 years old the first time I went onstage, and I was shaking like a leaf - I could barely stand,” he says. 8, to introduce his Springsteen-savvy 2020 debut “International Hotel.” The guitarist has been in the spotlight since he was a little kid in Ontario, joining his father’s local band at gigs. This goes double when you’re a young rocker on the cusp of breaking big, like Canadian troubadour Billy Raffoul, who should have been one of 2020’s most celebrated new stars.

But given the mounting frustrations among those who have brand new material to premiere, the matter has truly become perform or perish. It’s not easy for musicians to head all the way out to San Francisco for live concerts in our pandemic era. Canadian troubadour Billy Raffoul comes to San Francisco to introduce his Springsteen-esque 2020 album “International Hotel.” (Courtesy photo)Ĭall it a variation on publish or perish.

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