Semifinalists vie for a spot in SiriusXM Canada's Top Comic Finale headlined by Harland Williams

- Voting opens today to choose the eight finalists

- Canada Laughs broadcasting live from Just For Laughs Montreal

TORONTO, July 22, 2015 /CNW/ - SiriusXM Canada (TSX: XSR), the country's leading audio entertainment company, today has revealed the 24 semifinalists in SiriusXM's Top Comic nationwide comedy search. It's now up to Canadians to choose which comics make the cut to perform at the SiriusXM Top Comic Finale as part of Just For Laughs' JFL42 Comedy Festival in Toronto.

Beginning at 10 a.m. today until August 14, Canadians can vote online at siriusxm.ca/topcomic once a day for the comedians they would like to move on. The eight comics with the most votes will compete on stage at the finale for the title of SiriusXM's Top Comic and a grand prize of $15,000, plus a solo show at JFL42 2016 and a TV spot at Just For Laughs Montreal 2016. The always unpredictable and ever-original comedy star Harland Williams will headline the finale, which will take place at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre on October 1.

"Canada is a true hotbed of comedy and we are extremely excited to have chosen some outrageously funny comics to represent this great country," said Ben Miner, Canadian comic and host of SiriusXM's Canada Laughs channel. "It's going to be tough to narrow down the finalists to just eight!"

This past June, SiriusXM's Top Comic saw 96 Canadian comics compete in mic-to-mic auditions on stage in front of a panel of industry judges. Auditions took place in seven cities, Calgary, Halifax, Montreal, Ottawa, Vancouver, Toronto, and Winnipeg, and the judges chose three semifinalists from each audition night.

SiriusXM Top Comic 2015 semi-finalists:

Calgary – Ivan Decker, Nigel Lawrence, and Kelly Taylor

Halifax – Ian Black, Ryan Dillon, and Travis Lindsay

Montreal – Mike Paterson, Jess Salomon, and Derek Sequin

Ottawa – Nigel Grinstead, Jeff McEnery, and Daniel Woodrow

Toronto (two nights) – Rebecca Kohler, Trixx, and K. Trevor Wilson (Night 1) and Ryan Belleville, Gavin Stephens, and Steph Tolev (Night 2)

Vancouver – Matt Bilinski, Kyle Bottom, and Erica Sigurdson

Winnipeg – Ryan Ash, Tyler Penner, and Jordan Welwood

Finalists will be announced later in August. 

SiriusXM Canada's uncensored comedy channel, Canada Laughs (channel 168) kicks off live programming from Just For Laughs Montreal's annual festival today. SiriusXM hosts Ben Miner, Todd Shapiro, Ward & Al, and Ron Bennington will be live from the festival July 22 – 24 with some of the biggest stars in comedy today.

Top Comic is part of SiriusXM Canada's ongoing initiatives to provide exposure to Canadian talent. Last year, Montreal's Faisal Butt took home the title of SiriusXM's Top Comic and all finalists went on to open for Russell Peters on the Canadian leg of his Almost Famous World Tour. Previous winners of SiriusXM Canada's Top Comic contest include Pete Zedlacher, Eric Andrews, Matt O'Brien, and Brian Stollery.

Canada Laughs (channel 168) features uncensored Canadian comedy 24/7 including standup, sketch, musical comedy, and more, putting the spotlight on the rich pool of extraordinary talent from Canada. Canada Laughs is available to all Sirius and XM subscribers in Canada and across the U.S. and joins SiriusXM's hilarious comedy lineup, including Comedy Central Radio, Raw Dog Comedy, The Foxxhole, Jeff and Larry's Comedy Roundup, Laugh USA, and more. Those satellite radio subscribers who add SiriusXM Internet Radio access to their subscription can also listen to Canada Laughs on the SiriusXM Internet Radio App and online. 

To vote visit www.siriusxm.ca/topcomic.   

About SiriusXM Canada

Sirius XM Canada Holdings Inc. (TSX: XSR) operates as SiriusXM Canada. SiriusXM Canada, with more than 2.6 million subscribers, is the country's leading audio entertainment company and broadcasts more than 120 satellite radio channels featuring premier sports, news, talk, entertainment and commercial-free music. SiriusXM Canada offers an array of content from the most recognized news, entertainment and major sports brands including the NHL, NFL, NBA, NASCAR, CNN, CBC, FOX, BBC, Howard Stern, Disney, Comedy Central, and more.

SiriusXM programming is available on a variety of devices including pre-installed and aftermarket radios in cars, trucks and boats, smartphones and mobile devices, and consumer electronics products for homes and offices. SiriusXM programming is also available online at www.siriusxm.ca and on Apple and Android-powered mobile devices.

SiriusXM Canada has partnerships with every major automaker and its radio products are available at more than 2,500 retail locations nationwide. To find out more about SiriusXM Canada (TSX: XSR), visit our website at www.siriusxm.ca.

SiriusXM Canada has been designated one of Canada's 50 Best Managed Companies six years in a row and 2013 and 2014 rankings in PROFIT 500's list of Canada's Fastest Growing Companies.

Join SiriusXM Canada on Facebook at facebook.com/siriusxmcanada, on Twitter at twitter.com/siriusxmcanada and on Youtube at youtube.com/siriusxmcanada.

SOURCE Sirius XM Canada Holdings Inc.

SiriusXM Canada contact: Mike Calnek, Director, Publicity, Promotion and Sponsorship, 416-513-7459, [email protected]; Jennifer Rashwan, Touchwood PR, 416-301-4866, [email protected]