Festivals
Mary Brown’s Chicken joins forces with The Remix Project for the second installment of Tasty Mix, a project in support of aspiring Canadian DJs
10 emerging DJs from the GTA will receive mentorship, exposure and collaboration opportunities as the initiative expands in its second iteration
TORONTO /CNW/ – Mary Brown’s Chicken, one of Canada’s fastest-growing restaurant chains, announced they will be joining forces with The Remix Project, a Canadian organization that offers professional arts training across multiple industries to talented young creatives, for the second installment of the coveted Tasty Mix program. Designed to amplify the stories and sounds of emerging Canadian DJs, the second iteration of the program will spotlight 10 DJs from The Remix Project’s alumni program and offer even more opportunities for exposure, funding and creative collaboration.
Following suit of the first installment, Tasty Mix 2.0 will culminate in a 10-part YouTube series, where each DJ will perform a recorded set. Every other Thursday at 7 p.m. EDT, a new set will be released on the Mary Brown’s Chicken YouTube Channel.
“The Remix Project and Mary Brown’s Chicken share a passion for uplifting local communities and making sure their voices are heard,” says Jeff Barlow, Chief Marketing Officer of MBI Brands. “When thinking about how we could evolve Tasty Mix into something even more meaningful for Canadian artists, The Remix Project was the perfect partner to help guide us.”
“We are grateful for organizations like Mary Brown’s Chicken, who provide opportunities and support for creatives in our communities,“ said Bryan Brock, Director of Strategic Partnerships at The Remix Project. “Their vision for Tasty Mix is an exciting opportunity for aspiring Canadian DJs who are looking to learn and grow.”
In support of the program, Mary Brown’s Chicken has proudly donated high-tech production equipment to The Remix Project studio.
The 10 DJs joining the second Tasty Mix cohort include: (in alphabetical order)
- DCR Milda
- DJ K-stylez
- DJ Money Jane
- DJ Natty B
- DJ OTR
- DJ Shannyn Hill
- DJ Terra
- DJ Twxll
- Just Jenneh
- Killa Kels
Tasty Mix launched in January 2023 as a 10-part YouTube series featuring DJs from all corners of Canada. Participants were invited to mix it up with the renowned DJ Charlie B at Cherry Beach Sound studio in Toronto, where the sessions were recorded and streamed on the Mary Brown’s Chicken YouTube channel. You can watch all 10 episodes now at youtube.com/@marybrownsofficial.
More about Mary Brown’s Chicken
Mary Brown’s Chicken has over 244 locations across Canada and counting. The brand is 100 per cent Canadian-owned, being first established in St. John’s Newfoundland in 1969. The brand started out with only three stores but as its reputation grew for quality, mouth-watering food, so did the franchise. Mary Brown’s is renowned for its Big Mary®, named Canada’s Best Chicken Sandwich, and made-fresh methodology including hand cutting and hand breading its Signature Chicken and Taters from farm-fresh Canadian ingredients. Mary Brown’s is proudly the Official Chicken Restaurant of the Toronto Blue Jays.™ Mary Brown’s boasts 18 years of consecutive same-store sales growth and has been awarded the Canadian Franchise Association’s Franchisees’ Choice Designation for 13 consecutive years. To learn more about Mary Brown’s, please visit www.marybrowns.com.
About The Remix Project
The Remix Project is a non-profit charitable organization that helps level the playing field for talented youth who face barriers pursuing careers in the creative arts and entertainment industries. Through multidisciplinary arts training, students focus on personal and professional development, while strengthening the creative community and helping to make the next generation of industry leaders. The Remix Project’s flagship facility is located in the heart of the city in downtown Toronto, on the 5th floor of the Daniels Waterfront City of the Arts building. Remix provides a 5,000 sq. ft. training facility that includes collaborative workspace, state of the art recording studio, DJ lab, performance space, photography studio, and production suite. For more information about The Remix Project, please visit www.theremixproject.com.
Connect with Mary Brown’s Chicken on social
YouTube: @marybrownsofficial
Instagram: @marybrownsofficial
Facebook: @marybrowns
TikTok: @marybrownschicken
Connect with The Remix Project on social
Instagram: @theremixproject
Facebook: @theremixproject
Twitter: @theremixproject
SOURCE Mary Brown”s Chicken
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Foodie News
Sensei Debuts World’s Largest Autonomous Supermarket at NRF 2025
Sensei introduces a new customer experience with democratic entry, simplified real-time basket checkout, discrepancy detection and streamlining the grocery experience for customers.
NEW YORK /PRNewswire/ — Sensei (https://www.sensei.tech/), a global leader in autonomous retail technology, is proud to announce the official debut of its groundbreaking autonomous supermarket at NRF 2025: Retail’s Big Show, taking place in New York City from January 12-14. Sensei introduces real-time basket technology and an autonomous experience with assisted sales; transforming customer convenience and operational efficiency.


“Sensei’s technology goes beyond eliminating checkout lines – it enhances the entire shopping journey while providing retailers with invaluable real-time data to optimize their operations,” said Vasco Portugal, CEO and Co-Founder of Sensei. “We’re excited to bring this transformative solution to larger scale supermarkets and challenge the retail industry with what’s possible.“
At NRF 2025, Sensei will showcase a live demo of its autonomous store concept at Booth 117 in the FoodService Innovation Zone. Attendees will experience firsthand how Sensei’s technology creates a seamless shopping experience, combining:
- Autonomous Grocery Solutions: Consumers grab items like cereal, milk, or pasta, and their virtual basket updates in real-time.
- Assisted Sales Integration: Retailers can redeploy staff from checkout lines to high-value roles, such as supporting bakery or deli operations.
- Smart Integration: Automated systems like coffee machines can be seamlessly incorporated into the autonomous ecosystem.
Pioneering Retail Innovation
Sensei’s proprietary AI technology combines computer vision, machine learning and sensors to achieve 99% accuracy in tracking consumer interactions with products, a significant improvement over existing autonomous solutions. Shoppers enjoy transparency, as purchases are displayed in real-time, eliminating the friction of scanning and lines.
Exclusive Launch Announcement
Sensei’s presence at NRF coincides with the launch of its 1,200+ square-meter autonomous supermarket in Portugal, in partnership with MC (Sonae Group), the country’s leading grocery retailer. This groundbreaking achievement sets a new benchmark for large-scale autonomous retail environments. Store features include:
- Democratic Entry: No app, card, or registration is required to enter the store. The entry is open as in any regular supermarket.
- Diverse and Comprehensive Assortment: The store offers a range of products similar to a traditional supermarket, including solutions like weighable fruits and vegetables, a fish market with service, and bakery and pastry options sold in bulk.
- Simplified Checkout: Thanks to “real-time basket” technology, customers don’t need to scan products. At checkout, items automatically appear on the screen for confirmation, eliminating the need to remove products from bags or carts.
- Discrepancy Detection: The technology identifies discrepancies between what the customer picked up (e.g., fruits and vegetables) and what was actually weighted, ensuring greater control and accuracy throughout the shopping journey.
This innovative retail environment integrates AI-powered computer vision, shelf sensors, and real-time inventory tracking to provide unparalleled accuracy and convenience for consumers while delivering valuable behavioral insights and operational efficiencies for retailers.
Visit Sensei at NRF 2025
Sensei will host autonomous store demo at its booth (#117) in the FoodService Innovation Zone at NRF 2025. Explore how autonomous solutions can revolutionize grocery stores, convenience stores, and beyond.
About Sensei
Sensei is the leading European provider of autonomous retail technology, a pioneer in the industry, it was the first technology company to open fully autonomous stores in Europe, Latin America and Brazil. Through an advanced infrastructure that combines AI, computer vision, and sensor fusion, Sensei builds experiences that make shopping more intuitive and generate unprecedented store metrics and performance insights for businesses. www.sensei.tech
SOURCE Sensei Tech
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Entertainment
‘Love Is Blind’ contestants count as employees − new US government agency finding could shake up reality TV production
Reality TV contestants lack employee rights, but the NLRB’s complaint may change their classification and pay protections.

David Arditi, University of Texas at Arlington
When members of a reality TV show’s cast sign a contract to participate in a show, they typically do so more for the exposure than the pay – and in many cases they do not earn a dime.
Employers get away with what may appear to be a violation of basic labor laws because those contestants are classified as independent contractors, not employees. In the eyes of the law, they do not have the same protections most workers get with just about any other kind of job, such as the freedom to join unions.
It also means that the National Labor Relations Board does not have jurisdiction over them. This may soon change after the government agency filed a complaint against Delirium TV and Kinetic Content, the producers of “Love Is Blind.”
The NLRB complaint states that reality TV contestants are employees and therefore have the right to join a union. Former “Love Is Blind” contestants Renee Poche and Nicholas Thompson had filed a petition requesting this action. In addition to not being able to join a union, they couldn’t even discuss the terms of their contracts due to nondisclosure agreements.
As a sociologist who studies popular culture and labor, I have argued for years that reality TV stars and musicians should be classified as employees.
Reality TV participants, including many of the stars of those shows, are essentially the unpaid interns of the entertainment industry, even though it’s their stories, personalities and talent that attract and hook viewers.
Offering contestants paltry pay
Today’s economy is saturated with precarious employment practices where many corporations classify workers as independent contractors. From musicians to influencers, people work gig jobs where there is no guarantee of pay or employment.
“Cupcake Wars,” “Love Is Blind” and other reality TV shows thrive thanks to a simple business model: They are cheap to produce. One reason for that is most participants are independent contractors who work for free or earn paltry pay under the guise of chasing their dreams or gaining exposure.
This arrangement might change after the new NLRB complaint. The NLRB was created during President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal as an independent government agency tasked with protecting and regulating workers’ rights.
One of its key responsibilities is regulating unions and determining workers’ right to strike. It determines who can join a union and whether a strike is legal.
Providing a gold mine for networks
To conduct research for my book “Getting Signed: Record Contracts, Musicians, and Power in Society,” I interviewed contestants on “The Voice.”
Former contestants repeatedly told me that the television exposure did little to help their careers.
Prior to joining the show, many of the musicians were trying to scratch out a living through touring or performing. They put their developing careers on pause to chase their dreams.
However, the show’s contracts have stipulated that contestants cannot perform, sell their name, image and likeness, or record new music while on “The Voice.”
Furthermore, viewers might not realize just how profitable these reality shows are.
Take “House Hunters.” The show follows a prospective homebuyer as they tour three homes. Homebuyers featured on the show have noted that they earn only US$500 for their work, and the episodes take three to five days and about 30 hours to film.
The show’s producers don’t pay the real estate agents to be on it.
The low pay for people on reality TV shows matches the low budget for these shows. A former participant wrote that episodes of “House Hunters” cost about $50,000 to shoot. Prime-time sitcoms, by comparison, have a budget of up to $3 million per episode.
Organizing unions within reality TV
That massive budget gap between reality TV and sitcoms is not simply due to an absence of star actors.
Many scripted television shows are based in Los Angeles, where camera crews, stunt doubles, costume artisans, makeup artists and hair stylists are unionized. But shows like “House Hunters,” which are filmed across the country, recruit crews from right-to-work states.
Employees in those places cannot be compelled to join a union or pay union dues as a condition of employment. For these reasons, unions have far less power in these states than they do in places traditionally associated with show business, such as California and New York.
I think reality TV might become the next show business labor battle. If the NLRB forces “Love Is Blind” to treat its stars and other on-screen participants as employees, it could cascade.
Reality TV production companies could someday be required to pay all contestants wages and limit the hours they work. The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, the union known as SAG-AFTRA, could begin to recruit those workers as dues-paying members.
But it’s not certain that any of this will happen. There are many hearings, court cases and appeals in store before it becomes enforceable. And since President-elect Donald Trump will take office before the hearing is scheduled to occur, his appointees could change course.
Still, I think the NLRB’s action demonstrates that reality TV contestants are finally becoming recognized as workers who deserve to be treated better by their employers.
Some portions of this article first appeared in an article published on Sept. 21, 2023.
David Arditi, Professor of Sociology, University of Texas at Arlington
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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Consumer Corner
TESSAN Showcased New Charging Products at CES 2025, Enhancing Its Role in Modern Life and Travel
LAS VEGAS, Jan. 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — At CES 2025, TESSAN showcased its relentless pursuit of technological innovation and enhanced user experience, engaging with a diverse audience to reinforce its commitment to being a dependable companion in users’ lives and travels. The event was a vibrant platform for interaction, where TESSAN not only presented its latest advancements but also connected with media, social influencers, and attendees through various engaging activities.
The exhibition garnered substantial media attention, with TESSAN being interviewed by various outlets. In acknowledgment of its innovative contributions, TESSAN received an award from SlashGear, a leading technology media platform known for its in-depth reviews and news on tech, cars, gaming, and science since 2005. The event’s excitement was further amplified by social media influencers, who explored the exhibition and shared their experiences with their followers, significantly enhancing the reach and impact of TESSAN’s innovations.
A highlight of the event was the interactive “What’s Your Next Journey?” activity, which invited attendees to participate for a chance to win an exclusive poster of the American singer-songwriter Rachael Yamagata, who recently partnered with TESSAN to inspire travelers.
Central to the exhibition were TESSAN’s latest products that underscored the brand’s commitment to innovation and user-centric design. The Travel Adapters, with its lightweight, compact, and multifunctional design, was a standout. Designed for global use, it caters to frequent travelers, ensuring seamless connectivity across different countries. The 140W Universal Travel Adapter, in particular, captured significant attention as an essential tool for global connectivity.
The Charging Station was another focal point, offering multi-device charging capabilities, rapid charging technology, and safety features. Suitable for both home and office environments, it meets the needs of users with multiple devices. The 100W Charging Station, a 9-in-1 powerhouse, exemplifies this by charging multiple gadgets simultaneously at lightning speed, appealing to busy individuals and tech enthusiasts alike.
Additionally, the Smart EV Charger demonstrated TESSAN’s commitment to sustainable and efficient solutions. Compatible with various electric vehicle models, it provides a convenient and eco-friendly charging option for EV users.
TESSAN’s diverse product range embodies the brand’s vision and core values, aiming to be a reliable companion in both daily life and travel. By prioritizing simplicity and convenience, TESSAN designs products that eliminate complexity and meet modern efficiency needs. Innovation is key, with advanced technologies like GaN (Gallium Nitride) enhancing performance and compatibility. Sustainability is also central to TESSAN’s mission, as demonstrated by eco-friendly practices and partnerships with ClimatePartner and One Tree Planted. Notably, TESSAN has launched an initiative to plant 10,000 trees across the U.S. and beyond, reinforcing its commitment to environmental sustainability and climate action.
Beyond product innovation, TESSAN enhances its impact through strategic collaborations. A notable partnership with globe-acclaimed photographer and adventurer Mattias Klum underscores the brand’s reliability. Additionally, TESSAN has teamed up with Rachael Yamagata to launch a global initiative aimed at uncovering travelers’ stories and inspiring exploration of the unknown.
As TESSAN continues to innovate and expand its product offerings, it remains dedicated to meeting the evolving needs of users worldwide. The brand invites everyone to join in its journey of exploration and discovery, promising more high-quality products that enhance connectivity and enrich lives.
About TESSAN
TESSAN, a trusted partner in charging solutions, is committed to enriching experiences both at home and during travel. The brand offers a wide array of products, including multifunctional power strips, travel adapters, wall extenders, and smart home devices. Supported by a robust R&D and production team, TESSAN develops innovative socket products for users across the globe. With the trust of over 20 million users, TESSAN empowers their journeys from home to every destination, promoting environmentally conscious electricity usage.
For more information, visit www.tessan.com or the TESSAN Amazon store, and follow TESSAN on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
The exhibition garnered substantial media attention, with TESSAN being interviewed by various outlets. In acknowledgment of its innovative contributions, TESSAN received an award from SlashGear, a leading technology media platform known for its in-depth reviews and news on tech, cars, gaming, and science since 2005. The event’s excitement was further amplified by social media influencers, who explored the exhibition and shared their experiences with their followers, significantly enhancing the reach and impact of TESSAN’s innovations.
A highlight of the event was the interactive “What’s Your Next Journey?” activity, which invited attendees to participate for a chance to win an exclusive poster of the American singer-songwriter Rachael Yamagata, who recently partnered with TESSAN to inspire travelers.
Central to the exhibition were TESSAN’s latest products that underscored the brand’s commitment to innovation and user-centric design. The Travel Adapters, with its lightweight, compact, and multifunctional design, was a standout. Designed for global use, it caters to frequent travelers, ensuring seamless connectivity across different countries. The 140W Universal Travel Adapter, in particular, captured significant attention as an essential tool for global connectivity.
The Charging Station was another focal point, offering multi-device charging capabilities, rapid charging technology, and safety features. Suitable for both home and office environments, it meets the needs of users with multiple devices. The 100W Charging Station, a 9-in-1 powerhouse, exemplifies this by charging multiple gadgets simultaneously at lightning speed, appealing to busy individuals and tech enthusiasts alike.
Additionally, the Smart EV Charger demonstrated TESSAN’s commitment to sustainable and efficient solutions. Compatible with various electric vehicle models, it provides a convenient and eco-friendly charging option for EV users.
TESSAN’s diverse product range embodies the brand’s vision and core values, aiming to be a reliable companion in both daily life and travel. By prioritizing simplicity and convenience, TESSAN designs products that eliminate complexity and meet modern efficiency needs. Innovation is key, with advanced technologies like GaN (Gallium Nitride) enhancing performance and compatibility. Sustainability is also central to TESSAN’s mission, as demonstrated by eco-friendly practices and partnerships with ClimatePartner and One Tree Planted. Notably, TESSAN has launched an initiative to plant 10,000 trees across the U.S. and beyond, reinforcing its commitment to environmental sustainability and climate action.
Beyond product innovation, TESSAN enhances its impact through strategic collaborations. A notable partnership with globe-acclaimed photographer and adventurer Mattias Klum underscores the brand’s reliability. Additionally, TESSAN has teamed up with Rachael Yamagata to launch a global initiative aimed at uncovering travelers’ stories and inspiring exploration of the unknown.
As TESSAN continues to innovate and expand its product offerings, it remains dedicated to meeting the evolving needs of users worldwide. The brand invites everyone to join in its journey of exploration and discovery, promising more high-quality products that enhance connectivity and enrich lives.
About TESSAN
TESSAN, a trusted partner in charging solutions, is committed to enriching experiences both at home and during travel. The brand offers a wide array of products, including multifunctional power strips, travel adapters, wall extenders, and smart home devices. Supported by a robust R&D and production team, TESSAN develops innovative socket products for users across the globe. With the trust of over 20 million users, TESSAN empowers their journeys from home to every destination, promoting environmentally conscious electricity usage.
For more information, visit www.tessan.com or the TESSAN Amazon store, and follow TESSAN on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
Welcome to the Consumer Corner section of STM Daily News, your ultimate destination for savvy shopping and informed decision-making! Dive into a treasure trove of insights and reviews covering everything from the hottest toys that spark joy in your little ones to the latest electronic gadgets that simplify your life. Explore our comprehensive guides on stylish home furnishings, discover smart tips for buying a home or enhancing your living space with creative improvement ideas, and get the lowdown on the best cars through our detailed auto reviews. Whether you’re making a major purchase or simply seeking inspiration, the Consumer Corner is here to empower you every step of the way—unlock the keys to becoming a smarter consumer today!
https://stmdailynews.com/category/consumer-corner
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