The TD Buskers Series at this year’s CityFolk hits a home run with Vicki Brittle in the lineup
Among the hustle and bustle of the Ottawa CityFolk Festival last week, the Busker Series brought the real essence of street performances to the forefront: fully acoustic and fully real.
With a rasp in her voice and soul medicine in her melodies, Vicki Brittle quieted the chaos as attendees gathered around her. Barefoot and beaming with joy, Brittle delivered a serene golden hour set, drawing in a mesmerized crowd.
With songs like “Soul Medicine” and “It’s Only Love,” Brittle enchanted the crowd of all ages. The Ottawa local started training in music at a young age. The mostly self-taught guitarist began playing gigs at 14.
Raised on 80s rock records, Brittle admits she never set out to be a folk artist. With her first and second album heavily featuring the Sass Jordan-esque female rock sound, Brittle explained that this was the genre she thought she would pursue. Then, on her third album, she began playing with folk.
“Part of what I love writing about is like the very realistic experiences that we have as humans … For me it felt like home to be singing about those experiences with folk melodies and the folk style of writing”, said Brittle.
She explained that her latest album “The Hardest Things”, which was released in August 2025, was reflective on life. In her younger years, Brittle remarked that she would look for specific things to write, but now life is providing the material.
“They are all around us. That’s part of the magic of life”, she commented.
Brittle advised new artists to trust their gut and know what they want and what management wants in an artist. When asked about the current live music scene, she referred to the inaccessibility of tickets and challenges with AI.
“We are in a time and a season in human evolution where we think there is such importance with lending AI to what art is, and art is everything but AI,” said Brittle. “Music and art is like real human experience and human emotion”.
She said that the answer to that is to keep doing what they are doing and fight it.
Reflecting on the 10th anniversary of her 2016 debut EP “Candy”, Brittle said, “That’s one of those things, and one of those moments where time feels like it goes so slow until you blink and it’s gone, and that’s one of those things where it’s like I feel like it was just yesterday when I recorded that album and released it into the world, and now all of a sudden it’s been 10 years. So, it’s pretty surreal.”
With Brittle’s favourite places to play being homegrown, hippie festivals in the middle of nowhere, she seemed to be in her element. After her pre-show ritual of absorbing the vibe of the event, she stepped up and embodied the raw emotion of folk music.
“Especially in a time when it is so fast-paced to be a human, we all just need to breathe and slow down and do things that fill our soul.” – Vicki Brittle
