Ron Kitchener
President @ RGK Entertainment
Ron Kitchener, Founder and CEO of RGK Entertainment Group Inc., is a pillar in the Canadian music business. Having managed the careers of multi-platinum, GRAMMY, and JUNO award winning artists, Ron surrounds himself with a team of passionate professionals who push boundaries to inspire an artist’s development to attain tier-one status. Kitchener himself has been honoured with several notable awards that have established his proficiency in artist management, including Manager of the Year at the CCMA awards 14 times.
In addition to the success of his management roster, Ron’s record company, Open Road Recordings, has sold over 2.5 million albums from artists like Taylor Swift, Johnny Reid, Tim Hicks, Hunter Brothers, The Road Hammers, Madeline Merlo, and many others. The company’s artists have garnered 5 Juno Awards (30 nominations) and more than 56 Canadian Country Music Industry Awards (173 nominations).
Open Road Recordings has seen a remarkable 20 #1 hits and more than 120 Top 10 singles on the Canadian country radio charts. 2023 marks the 20th year anniversary of Open Road Recordings with more new music from the entire roster on the horizon.
With a global focus, RGK Entertainment Group has become a highly regarded and innovative force in today’s competitive entertainment industry.
An entrepreneur and an innovator, Kitchener embraces the future of today’s business. He combines professional business strategies with a grass-roots philosophy, creating the best all-around opportunities and atmosphere for his artists. With all of his professional successes, it made sense when Kitchener was nominated and elected to sit on the board of the Country Music Association (CMA), as International Director in November 2009. He has also held positions on the MMF (Music Manager Forum) Canada Board and the CCMC (Contemporary Coalition of Country Music) board based in Sydney, Australia. He is a class of 2008 (Nashville) Leadership Music alumni and served as co-chair for Leadership Touring Day. Today, Kitchener is married with two children and enjoys spending time with his family at their cottage in New Brunswick.