OTTAWA, April 3, 2023 – Despite its name, since 1994 Ottawa’s RBC Bluesfest has served up an expansive buffet of stars from most music genres.
Take this year when it returns from July 6 to 16, with such far-ranging headliners as Shania Twain, Foo Fighters, Weezer, Pitbull, Robert Plant and Alison Kraus, Death Cab For Cutie, Mumford & Sons, The Smile (made up of Radiohead members Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood), and Blackie & The Rodeo Kings (joined by Daniel Lanois).
“I think that’s the key to our success—a wide variety, and a lot of different genres,” says executive and artistic director Mark Monahan.
In all, 100+ acts will appear across five stages at LeBreton Flats, on the grounds of the Canadian War Museum.
This not for profit festival numbers 18 full-time staff and 3,000-plus volunteers, and attracts 25,000 to 30,000 people per day pumping some $40 million into the local economy – with a quarter of all Ottawa households having at least one person attending. While most of the crowd comes from Ontario. Quebec, and upper New York State, Monahan finds some come from further afield.
All this makes RBC Bluesfest not only Canada’s largest outdoor music festival, but one of the 10 most successful outdoor festivals in the world according to Billboard magazine!
The top-selling female country artist of all time, the Timmins-raised Shania Twain will kick off the festival’s opening night, as part of her “Queen Of Me” international tour taking in 49 cities across North America, the U.K., and Ireland.
“It’s one of the biggest acts we’ve had. (And) she has never played the festival,” he comments. “She’s obviously an icon. It’s great to have a huge Canadian headliner like that.”
Having sold more than 30 million records worldwide, Foo Fighters were a massive draw at the 2018 Bluesfest. Meanwhile, this marks the third festival appearance for Weezer, known for such Alt/Rock hits as “Buddy Holly”, “Beverly Hills”, and “Island In The Sun”.
Other big name acts will include Ludacris, The War On Drugs, Fleet Foxes, Alvvays, Alan Doyle, Charlotte Cardin, Badbadnotgood, and Billy Talent.
All this is a long way from the inaugural festival in 1994, when some 5,000 people turned out to see headliners Randy Bachman, Clarence Clemons, and Buckwheat Zydeco. Several marquee artists have helped take its’ profile to the next level, including the legendary Ray Charles in 1998, Sting in 2000, Van Morrison and Bob Dylan in 2007, KISS in 2009, and Rage Against The Machine in 2022.
Other stars who have played the Bluesfest includes Dr. John, Smokey Robinson, James Brown, Alice Cooper, Dixie Chicks, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Killers, The Offspring, Etta James, Jeff Beck, and Tom Petty, to name a few.
But it has also proven to be a valuable showcase for rising Canadian stars like Cardin, the Montreal-based singer/songwriter who claimed multiple 2022 Juno awards.
“The festival has always had a mandate to be a huge economic draw for the city,” Monahan adds. “But on the flip side, we’ve always had a focus on Canadian, and particularly local acts –which is not always the case. About one-third of our acts are local.”
A variety of passes are still available at ottawabluesfest.ca.
Other articles from totimes.ca – otttimes.ca – mtltimes.ca
by Mike Beggs
