Festivals
Ottawa Bluesfest 2025 – July 17 Recap & Photos
Day 6 of Ottawa Bluesfest 2025 brought a full-body workout disguised as a music festival. Between the relentless grooves, chilled-out jams, and occasional downpour, Thursday night at LeBreton Flats Park was a ride. Dancehall king Sean Paul made sure it ended in a sweaty, joy-filled mess.
Sean Paul took the RBC Stage under a Jamaican flag, hypeman in tow, and made it very clear: Ottawa still knows how to party. Even as the rain returned midway through his set, the crowd didn’t flinch. Armed with decades of hits like “Get Busy,” “Temperature,” “Baby Boy,” and “Like Glue,” he spun a high-energy, nostalgia-filled set that kept the crowd bouncing. The vibe was somewhere between high school dance and full-blown Caribbean carnival.
He shouted out the “sexy ladies” at least a dozen times but also gave a nod to moms because “they bring forth life… and they sexy too.” A true gentleman. At one point, he asked if Ottawa was ready to show the world it could still party, and judging by the jumping and screaming in the pit, the answer was yes. Newer songs didn’t land quite as hard but the diehards up front held it down.
Earlier in the night, Kardinal Offishall took his warm-up duties seriously with a lively main-stage set that was added after G-Eazy pulled out. Kardinal brought the fun, dropping hits like “Dangerous” and “Numba 1” while poking fun at Americans and questioning whether Ottawans had rhythm. He brought out Karl Wolf and even premiered a new track “SOAK, which had a sultry, summer-night energy that might’ve hit harder if the weather hadn’t cooled off so much. Still, it was a big win for the festival to have a Canadian hip-hop legend fill in.
Opening the RBC Stage was local duo DYSTOH, who set the tone early with a blast of rhythm, horns, and Afro-Latin fusion. Ray Tabana on baritone sax and Phil Motion on percussion were locked in from the first beat, blending soulful grooves and electronic textures into something that felt both deeply rooted and totally fresh. They even dropped a few SoulJazz Orchestra tracks, a nod to their shared musical past, but DYSTOH is very much its own thing.
Across the grounds, there was plenty more to catch. Over on the River Stage, Toronto’s LILYISHTHATYOU brought punchy alt-pop and Gen Z energy to her early set. She broke out with “FMRN” on TikTok back in 2021, but her newer songs like “No Favors” showed off a more confident, layered sound that’s built for big stages.
Alicia Moffet followed with something more reflective. The Quebec singer and former reality TV star leaned into the emotional material off her new album No, I’m Not Crying. Her smooth vocals and synthy ballads were a nice cooldown before the storm.
Peach Pit closed the River Stage with a jangly, lowkey set that pulled a massive crowd, including, apparently, Prime Minister Mark Carney, who tweeted that he was there. The Vancouver band mixed fan favourites like “Tommy’s Party” and “Alrighty Aphrodite” with newer material from Magpie. They’ve always walked the line between indie slacker charm and big-stage confidence, and on Thursday, they leaned into both. A few technical hiccups didn’t throw them off. They laughed them off, cracked a couple of dry jokes, and kept going.
At the LeBreton Stage, things took a more atmospheric turn. Harry Manx returned to the festival 20 years after his first Bluesfest appearance, and his set was just as hypnotic as ever. Blending Indian ragas, blues, and a bit of gospel, his performance was meditative. He was joined by singer and keyboardist Geneviève Jodoin, whose vocals added an ethereal texture. Between songs, Manx cracked jokes with deadpan delivery.
Moontricks followed with a much different kind of fusion: folk instrumentation paired with electronic beats. They’ve been refining this sound for years, and their set on Thursday showed how far they’ve come. Fans swayed, some danced, others just stood there soaking it all in. It was a vibe.
After nearly a week of sweltering heat, the cooler breeze and occasional drizzle felt like a gift. And despite the rain, Thursday might’ve been one of the most energetic days yet. From DYSTOH’s opening grooves to Sean Paul’s full-blown dance party, Day 6 of Bluesfest thrived in the weather.
Head to Ottawa Bluesfest’s website for more info on the rest of the festival.
Check out our favourite photos of Day 6 below or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery!
SEAN PAUL
KARDINAL OFFISHALL
DYSTOH
LILYISHTHATYOU
ALICIA MOFFET
PEACH PIT
HARRY MANX
MOONTRICKS
All Photo Credit: Kieran Delport
Festivals
FIFA Fan Festival™ Vancouver – Walk Off The Earth, Fionn, Felix Cartal, and France Fans
The FIFA Fan Festival™ at the PNE kept the World Cup excitement rolling on Saturday, July 4, as fans gathered for another full day of football, live music, and celebrations. With two Round of 16 matches on the giant screens and a lineup of Canadian artists filling the Amphitheatre Stage, the atmosphere remained lively from morning through the evening.
The day had already delivered plenty of drama before the concerts began. Morocco had stunned host nation Canada earlier in the day to book a place in the quarter-finals, ending Canada’s historic World Cup run after its first-ever appearance in the Round of 16. A few hours later, France defeated Paraguay to secure the final quarter-final spot, setting up a meeting with Morocco in one of the tournament’s most intriguing matchups. As the final whistle blew, fans quickly shifted their attention from the football to the music just a few steps away.
Vancouver-based band Fionn, consisting of twins Alanna and Brianne Finn-Morris, was first on stage, offering an engaging performance that fit the late afternoon perfectly. Their warm vocals and heartfelt indie-pop songs gave the crowd a chance to catch their breath after another emotional day of World Cup action. Many fans who had spent hours watching the matches stayed put, creating an attentive audience that truly enjoyed the show.
Right after, Walk Off The Earth took over and instantly changed the pace. The Ontario group has built its reputation on creative arrangements and infectious energy, and they delivered exactly that. Their performance blended pop, rock, folk, and plenty of crowd interaction, turning the Amphitheatre into a giant singalong. The band’s playful chemistry and multi-instrumental approach kept fans engaged from start to finish, with many dancing along and singing every word.
At the Park Stage, Vancouver-born DJ and producer Felix Cartal took over. A familiar face on festival lineups across the country, Cartal delivered a polished electronic set that kept fans dancing until the festival closed. His mix of melodic house, upbeat remixes, and crowd-pleasing drops provided the perfect soundtrack to cap off a day that had already been packed with football drama and live music.
The FIFA Fan Festival has consistently shown that it offers far more than football. Saturday’s schedule paired knockout-stage drama with live performances that gave supporters another reason to stay long after the matches had ended. Even with Canada’s elimination still fresh in many minds, the festival remained a welcoming place to celebrate the global game, discover Canadian talent, and enjoy a summer evening surrounded by thousands of fellow fans. With the quarter-finals now set, anticipation continued to build for another unforgettable week at Vancouver’s Fan Festival.
Check out our favourite photos of the night below or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery!
WALK OFF THE EARTH
FIONN
FELIX CARTAL
FRANCE FANS
All Photo Credit: Caroline Charruyer
Festivals
Montréal Jazz Festival 2026 – Patrick Watson
July 3, 2026
If you thought the outdoor main stage at Jazz Fest was packed earlier in the week, it had absolutely nothing on the sea of people that squeezed into the Place des Festivals for Patrick Watson. The site was packed right to the limit. The last time he played the festival back in 2021, it was to a strictly limited, socially distanced crowd, and he actually took a moment to contrast that eerie, quiet landscape with the overwhelming wall of faces looking back at him this time around. The massive turnout made it feel like the city had just been waiting for the perfect moment to properly welcome him back.
The whole night felt like a massive, curated homecoming celebration with his favourite people on earth. By the third song, he already had the crowd cheering when he brought out Montreal’s own Martha Wainwright, who has been heavily involved in the local scene and festival circuit this year, to share the stage. Right after that, he raised the bar even higher by bringing up a string quartet for a stunning performance of “Ode to Vivian.” He took a second to tell the story behind the track, explaining how it was inspired by the street photographer Vivian Maier, who secretly kept her incredible work to herself until she passed, only to posthumously become an inspiration to thousands of photographers worldwide.
The emotional peak of the set came during “To Build a Home.” Watson talked about how deeply the experience of growing up in Montreal shaped him both as a person and a musician, noting that his music could only ever be written in a city with this exact type of creative spirit. As the song played, vintage 1960s video footage of Montreal rolled across the massive backdrops, which gave the whole performance an incredibly nostalgic, cinematic weight. He kept the collaborations rolling through the night, too, pulling the brilliant November Ultra onto the stage for “Silencio,” and later bringing out the rising indie-folk artist Solann.
The years might be passing, but Patrick Watson proves every time he steps on a stage that he remains an absolute force of nature. He doesn’t care about shifting trends; he just cares about his craft. A few people floating around the crowd might have been a little disappointed not to hear some of the older classics like “Lighthouse” or “The Great Escape,” but honestly, what better setting is there to test out your newest material than the Montreal Jazz Festival in front of your home crowd? Besides, when the performance is that stunning from start to finish, you really can’t be mad about it.
Check out our favourite photos of the night below or head to our Facebook page for the full gallery!
PATRICK WATSON
All Photo Credit: Andres Amaya