Dig your roots at summer’s final festival
The Ottawa Citizen
At the Ottawa Folk Festival, Friday, Aug. 21 to Sunday, Aug. 23, you can not only listen to music, but also get involved by dancing in the Dance Tent, singing in the festival choir or building your own ukulele. This year’s mainstage lineup includes
Joel Plaskett, Steven Page,
The Arrogant Worms and Bruce Cockburn, while daytime sessions touch on everything from gardening to yoga. A weekend pass (which includes three separate
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Tip 1: The Folk Festival is going plastic water-bottle free. Bring your own water bottle and get it filled with tap water at refill stations.
Tip 2: Folk not your style?
The second annual Ottawa Reggae Festival, featuring Shaggy and 34 other performers, is on the same days with the same admission prices, but at LeBreton Flats on the grounds of the Canadian War Museum.
Source: Ottawa Citizen website: Dig your roots at summer’s final festival
The Ottawa Reggae Festival is hosting the first annual Sneak Peak Summer
The Ottawa Reggae Festival is hosting the first annual Sneak Peak Summer Showcase in Ottawa at St. Laurent Shopping Centre (1200 St. Laurent Blvd).When: Sunday, July 19th from 12 – 2 pm
So what is it?
It is a free concert for everyone to attend. Some of the best artists will be performing, so you can get a taste of some of the great artists performing at the festival.
This event will be a great opportunity for the artists to gain exposure and to expose you to some of the new music coming out today.
You will have a chance to meet the artists, take photos, win prizes and experience live entertainment for FREE.
There will be a mix of artists performing, including reggae, soca and hip hop.
12:00 – 12:15 Intro
12:15 – 12:30 Lady Shelz http://www.myspace.com/laydshelz
12:30 – 12:45 Mr. Flowas http://www.myspace.com/fluxmobbclan
12:45 – 1:00 Chris Quammmie http://www.myspace.com/crisquammie
1:00 – 1:15 Manchilde http://www.myspace.com/manchildemusic
1:15 – 1:30 Onda Cool http://www.myspace.com/ondacoolworld
1:30 – 1:45 Tam-T http://www.myspace.com/tamtmusic
1:45 – 2:00 Diction http://www.myspace.com/youngdiction
The festival will be bringing more live music to the capital throughout the year. This is just one of many great events to come.
So be sure to check it out, tell your friends and I’ll see you there.
Reggae fest highlights burgeoning hometown talent
TRACEY TONG from METRO OTTAWA
More than 30,000 people from as far as Montreal, Toronto and New York are expected to attend the festival, which was planned as a one-day event but grew to two in its first year. The 2009 event runs three days, from August 21 to 23 at LeBreton Flats.
Although the festival includes national and international acts like Shaggy; Kardinal Offishall, one of the biggest hip-hop acts in Canada; dancehall artist Baby Cham and Jamaican reggae singer Tanya Stephens, 75 per cent of the festival’s acts are Canadian, said Vicha, including Ottawa artists Diction and Cris Quammie.
“We want to give people a chance to see Canadian talent,” said Vicha, “and to promote culture, arts and diversity in Ottawa.”
Read full story on the Metro Ottawa website: Reggae fest highlights burgeoning hometown talent
SHAGGY SET TO PERFORM AT REGGAEFEST
The Ottawa Reggae Festival is back for its second year taking place on Friday, Saturday and Sunday Aug. 21 -23 at Lebreton Flats Festival Park. This year’s festival will showcase some of Canada’s hottest artists and international stars. The festival has extended to three days, allowing for a bigger artist line up.
“We want to offer more opportunities for Canadian artists to perform,” says festival director, Danielle Vicha. “There will be a nice blend of Canadian artists representing the music community.”
The festival will kick-off with one of Canada’s biggest artists, Toronto’s Kardinal Offishall who recently released his new album Not 4 Sale. Opening acts include Atlanta’s upcoming rapper Hustle Boy and Ottawa’s hip hop artist Diction who just released and new track featuring Grammy Award Winner 112.
There will be live entertainment all day Saturday and Sunday. The entertainment begins at 1:00 p.m. Tanya Stephens and Baby Cham will be headlining Saturday night. Performances during the day include Grammy Award winner and internationally acclaimed dancehall artist Shaggy will close the event Sunday night. Loudlove and Mellow Man from Manitoba.
The festival showcases international artists but focuses on promoting Canadian talent. “It’s not hard to find great talent in Canada, what’s hard is choosing which ones will perform,” says Vicha, who has been promoting Canadian artists for over 10 years. “We want to promote Canada’s cultural arts and diversity.”
The festival will dip more into different genres of music, including reggae, dancehall, reggaeton, soca, kompa, world beat, R&B and hip hop and feature DaVerseCity dub poetry showcase with performances by Nth Digri, Doretta Charles and Manchilde, and some of Ottawa’s hottest Dance crews.
“There are so many great performances,” says Vicha, “but best of all, there is only one stage so you won’t miss a thing.”
“There’s a little something for everyone,” says festival president, Benjamin Williams. “There will be a kids Zone for families. and front stage accommodations in Heineken VIP Lounge for patrons with disabilities.”
Friday and Saturday passes are $35 in advance and $45 for Sunday. Weekend passes can be purchased for $85, but are on sale for $65 until June 1. VIP tickets for the Heineken Lounge are on sale for $200, offering patrons first class service, private bar and front stage seating accommodations. Tickets are on sale now at Ticketmaster.ca.
About
The Ottawa Reggae Festival is non-profit, volunteer-driven, three-day music festival, taking place Aug. 21 – 23, 2009, at Lebreton Flats Festival Park. The festival’s mission is to promote cultural arts and diversity in Canada’s National Capital Region, showcasing international artists while maintaining 75 per cent Canadian content. The festival is committed to initiating cultural events, encouraging community involvement; provide a family-friendly environment; and reduce the environmental impact by using ecologically sustainable management theory and practices.
