Nickelback, 50 Cent, Maroon 5, and Zac Brown Band among names announced
The day has arrived, Bluesfest fans. With just under five months remaining until the 30th edition of the Lebreton Flats-hosted festival kicks off on July 4, the organizers have released the full lineup of artists.
Following the early announcements of Kentucky-born crooner Tyler Childers as July 12’s headliner, Stittsville-raised TALK as his opener, and the ever-iconic (but potentially over-the-hill) Mötley Crüe for the following night, the festival has filled out the calendar of performers.
Mark Monahan, executive and artistic director of Ottawa Bluesfest, granted the Fulcrum an exclusive interview to discuss the upcoming festival, beginning with the lineup. “I think it’s just a really diverse lineup, with some obviously big names. But lots of different genres, lots of different artists, [so] that people [will] have a hard time not seeing something for them.”
The Fulcrum’s Andrew Wilimek (AW) and Annabel Holman (AH) have rated each night’s docket, on a scale of 0 (stay home and let your liver recover) to 5 (get there early so you can be in the pit!).
Thursday, July 4: Mother Mother
Also performing: Orville Peck, Tokyo Police Club, Leith Ross, The Dip, Priyanka, Campbell & Johnston, Country Club Pool Boy, Funeral Lakes, LH Express, OK Naledi, Sandra Bouza, MELO‑T
AW: 3.5 / 5, AH: 4 / 5
The Canadian rock band Mother Mother will be the “Little Pistol” that starts the classic festival. Although the band’s fans have traditionally been older, they have gained traction from the younger generation from TikTok. It’s expected that the band will perform music from their recent album Grief Chapter. From their hit “Verbatim” to “Hayloft II”, Mother Mother has something for everyone at Bluesfest.
The familiar guitar chords of Orville Peck’s “Dead of Night” will be heard across Ottawa, as well as Canadian singer Leith Ross’s “(You) On My Arm”. New and upcoming artists like Country Club Pool Boy and OK Naledi will take to the stage to perform their smooth and laid-back tunes.
Friday, July 5: Nickelback
Also performing: Warren Zeiders, Noah Cyrus, Ziggy Alberts, Bywater Call, Aleksi Campagne, Danielle Allard, Jaclyn Kenyon, May Davis Mia Kelly, The Artichoke Hearts, MELO‑T
AW: 4 / 5, AH: 3.5 / 5
One summer after performing at Oro-Medonte’s Boots and Hearts country music festival, the iconic Canadian rock band will perform at a festival perhaps a bit more suited to their sound. Led by raspy frontman Chad Kroeger, the band has escaped a perplexing and possibly unpatriotic “bad” label in recent years, and is once again hip.
Preceding the inevitable mayhem at Lebreton Flats that will surely be had during bangers such as “Burn it to the Ground”, “This Afternoon”, and “Animals” will be country singer Warren Zeiders. Zeiders, who went viral on TikTok with his breakthrough single “Ride the Lightning”, has added heartfelt tunes like “Pretty Little Poison” and “Dark Night” to his repertoire.
Saturday, July 6: 50 Cent
Also performing: Mt. Joy, Killer Mike, Shred Kelly, Etran De L’Aïr, Dwayne Dopsie & The Zydeco Hellraisers, City Fidelia, Hopper, Lynne Hanson, Nice On Turbo Street Funk, MELO‑T
AW: 4.5 / 5, AH: 5 / 5
The high score that means you should get there early to be in the pit is a must have for the lineup for July 6! 50 Cent is an artist whose work is identified by most generations and has become a club staple. From “In da Club” to “Candy Shop”, 50 Cent boasts several iconic tracks which will create an upbeat vibe on the opening Saturday of the festival.
Folk and indie lovers will be happy to see Mt. Joy and will likely hear their hit song “Silver Lining”, as well as others like “Strangers” and “Julia”. Canadian artist Lynne Hanson will sing her folk, self identified “Porch music” to go along with the laid-back energy of the lineup. For a bit of funk, Dwayne Dopsie & The Zydeco Hellraisers will perform in their unique zydeco style.
Sunday, July 7: Maroon 5
Also performing: Future Islands, Chelsea Cutler, Pokey LaFarge, Blue Moon Marquee, Hussy Hicks, ALAMUSIC, Cinzia & The Eclipse, Brooke Blackburn, FOG Blues & Brass Band
AW: 3 / 5, AH: 3 / 5
Maroon 5 will take the stage to throw the crowd back to the early 2010’s. Make sure to wear skinny jeans with funky patterns as they perform songs like their iconic hits “Payphone”, “Moves Like Jagger” and “Sugar”.
Future Islands will be performing and it is assumed that they will sing from their new pop album People Who Aren’t There Anymore. To go along with Bluefests’s pattern of country artists, the Indigenous Albertan jazz group Blue Moon Marquee will be performing their swing-like songs.
Wednesday, July 10: Zac Brown Band
Also performing: Charley Crockett, Matthew Good, Medicine Singers ft. Lee Ranaldo, Yonatan Gat & Zoon, Texas King, Jon Muq, Nicolette & The Nobodies, Caroline Jones, Blackburn Brothers, ALAMUSIC, Murray Kinsley & Wicked Grin, Yarro
AW: 4 / 5, AH: 3.5 / 5
Chicken fried, a cold beer on a Friday night, a pair of jeans that fit just right, and the radio up. Zac Brown Band’s music is ubiquitous, whether it be songs celebrating good times like “Knee Deep” or “Toes”, or on songs where the painful lyrics clash with the joyful beat like in ‘“Colder Weather”, “Highway 20 Ride”, or “As She’s Walking Away”.
Joining the band on the first night of the second weekend is up-and-coming country and Americana singer Charley Crockett, and Matthew Good, of former Canadian alternative rock band The Matthew Good Band. What a night for people who enjoy naming things after themselves.
Thursday, July 11: Neil Young/Crazy Horse
Also performing: Josh Ross, Corb Lund, Steph Strings, Chambers DesLauriers, ALAMUSIC, Alexa Goldie, Jessica Pearson and The East Wind, John Allaire and the Campistas, Kaya Fraser, Merle Marlow Band
AW: 3 / 5, AH: 3.5 / 5
Neil Young will put the audience under the moon with his country and folk-like discography. Alongside Young, his associated rock band Crazy Horse will be performing. This timeless duo have worked together on a variety of collaborations, but are most known for their hits “Down by the River” and “Cinnamon Girl”. Their music is what is needed for the warm nights of Bluesfest.
Country music enthusiasts will be excited for this day as many of the artists are rocking the cowboy style in their music. More specifically, the upcoming Canadian artist Josh Ross will be on the stage and performing his new album. In addition, the new artist John Allaire and the Campistas have a fresh sound to add to the country genre.
Friday, July 12: Tyler Childers
Also performing: Bahamas, TALK, Jerry Portnoy, Bombino Annie Raines & Paul Rishell, Brittany Kennell, Empress Nyiringango, Raphael Weinroth‑Browne, summersets, Wild Remedy, DJ Eazy EL Dee
AW: 4.5 / 5, AH: 4 / 5
Country, bluegrass, or folk? Who cares. Childers is the real deal no matter which genre you label him with. One of the early announcements, Childers will stop in Ottawa as part of his sold-out Mule Pull ’24 tour.
At the time, Monahan said “Tyler has been on our wish list for several years now, and being able to bring him to the festival to perform for his legions of fans here in the Ottawa Valley is a real coup.”
Known for heartfelt tunes like “Feathered Indians”, “All Your’n”, “Lady May”, and “Shake the Frost”, Childers was one of the key figures in the resurgence of traditional country music. In an interview with The Guardian’s Rebecca Bengal, Childers railed against the commercialization of country music.
“The problem with country is we’ve turned the props into the play,” said Childers. “Let’s not just Solo cup and pickup truck it to death. Let’s handle this in a smart way. Nobody is thinking about lyrical content, or how we’re moving people, or what’s going on in the background of their minds.”
Before Childers, Stittsville-raised Nicholas Durocher — known as TALK — will take to the stage. The flashy and colourfully dressed TALK saw his debut single “Run Away to Mars” blow up in part thanks to TikTok during the pandemic, and now will perform in front of thousands of fans at his hometown festival.
Saturday, July 13: Mötley Crüe
Also performing: The Tea Party, JJ Wilde, Garret T. Willie, TJ Wheeler, Sean Pinchin, Tony D Band, Blues Harp Blow‑Off, DJ Eazy EL Dee
AW: 3 / 5, AH: 4 / 5
The iconic heavy metal band will be perfect for those who want to be sent into a time loop to the early 1990s. Their hit songs like “Kickstart My Heart” and “Girls, Girls, Girls”, will likely be accompanied by headbanging and lots of guitar.
The Toronto-based band The Tea Party is perfect for those who need a bit of soft rock in their playlists. Since producing music from 1993, their music is nostalgic and ageless. Another Toronto artist, Sean Pinchin, will show off his blues and rock songs. More specifically, it is expected that he will perform his twangy single, “Bad Things”.
Sunday, July 14: Nas
Also performing: Ben Howard, Geneviève Racette, Le Winston Band, JW Jones, DJ Eazy EL Dee, Training Season
AW: 2.5 / 5, AH: 3 / 5
Closing out the festival will be iconic New York City rapper Nas. Ranked as the third-greatest rapper of all time by Billboard/Vibe in 2023, Nas engaged in a ferocious battle with JAY-Z for “The Big Apple” in the early 2000s, dropping the wild diss track “Ether” in response to JAY-Z’s “Takeover”.
Now 50 years old, and still somewhat relevant more than 30 years after his debut, Nas released his 17th studio album in 2023, titled Magic 3. The album received an 86-of-100 review from Metacritic.
Country seems to be the theme at the 30th edition of Bluesfest, banking off the success of Canadian country superstar Shania Twain last summer. Monahan explained that they’ve always tried to provide quality artists for that demographic.
“I think we’ve always tried to cater to that crowd. Whether that was [ Twain], or Zach Bryan who we brought into CityFolk [in 2022], or you know, all the country artists we’ve had over the years. So this year, Zac Brown and Tyler Childers I would probably say are more or less appealing to that crowd. So yeah, we’re conscious of it and try to satisfy them.”
Monahan also touched on making sure the lineup is relevant to a wide variety of ages and demographics. “I think there’s a conscious effort to obviously bring the big names, the Mötley Crües and Nickelbacks of the world, but also to try and bring acts that are [ more ] relevant or current to a new audience as well.”
Monahan went on to highlight some of the exciting talent that may not be on fan’s radars yet. “Could be Chelsea Cutler, [ Zeiders ], Charley Crockett, there’s a lot of acts that are buzzing right now that are on the lineup that people may not know of — but hopefully they will by the time Bluesfest comes around.”
The festival has also announced changes to the infrastructure at the festival, which has been criticized in the past for overcrowding concerns. The changes include a reconfiguration of the VIP area, the addition of a Crazy Horse sponsored Western-themed bar in place of the former Ferris wheel, and the addition of ‘Platinum Pit’: a new area beside the stage available exclusively to a new tier of customers.
Monahan explained that having the facility be accessible to a wider variety of ages was the goal. “You know, we’ve been around for 30 years,” said the longtime director of the festival. “Our audience has matured over the years, and there’s a certain crowd that wants some creature comforts that maybe they didn’t want 10 or 20 years ago.
So there’s a crowd that, instead of aging out to the festival, can still go, if they want a more comfortable experience with access to amenities, private washrooms, and easier ways to get through [the crowd]. It’s just about appealing to a different audience.”Full-festival passes are available now and will be offered at a reduced rate until 11:59 p.m. on the evening of March 1. Passes can be purchased here, with single-day tickets to follow. Subscribe to the festival’s email list for the latest updates.
