Country Music Took over Happy Green Acres - Exclusive Coverage

It’s the summer of 2020, most events that involved crowds of any size have been postponed or cancelled outright. Leave it to a campground deep in the 1000 Islands of Ontario to save the day and find a way to keep live music happening!

Music festivals are nothing new to Happy Green Acres but this year they look a little different. The festivals aren’t open to the public but if you camp at the venue you get a front row seat to some of the best new artists Canada has to offer.

Last weekend 14 artists took to the big stage at Happy Green Acres for 4 days of tried and true live country music. What made this festival different from most is that the lineup was made up of almost entirely emerging artists.

The music started on Thursday evening with Chelsea Road. Chelsea Road is a Kingston based trio that performs Classic Country/Classic Rock covers from artists like Merle Haggard, Charlie Pride, Joe Diffie, Johnny Cash, Garth Brooks, Dwight Yoakam, Eddie Rabbitt, Waylon Jennings, The Kentucky Headhunters, Brooks & Dunn, CCR, The Eagles and MORE.

Ryan Anderson. Happy Green Acres. August 2020

Our involvement with the festival began on the Friday as Ryan Anderson took to the stage, although I missed most of his set thanks to my day job I caught a couple of songs and let me tell you there’s a reason why he’s seeing so much success on indie country radio around the world. Ryan is the real deal and it only took me a couple of songs to figure that out. I’m hoping we get a second chance to catch Ryan before this summer winds to an end and live music is put on ice for 8 months. Want to know more about Ryan? Check him out here: https://www.facebook.com/RyanAndersonsMusic

Suzi Khory. Happy Green Acres. August 2020

An artist that we personally recommended took to the stage following Ryan. Suzi Kory had just hosted her own drive-in festival a few weeks prior and we were so impressed we worked to get her booked for this festival before the sun came up the next day. Suzi was joined by guitarist Jeff Brown and between the two of them showed what Billy Ray Cyrus, Alan Doyle and, of course, we have been raving about for the past few months. Suzi isn’t letting a pandemic slow her down, she’s currently got gigs scheduled almost every weekend and is working on plans to bring her Love Revolution Festival to Tennessee and California before the year is out. Pretty impressive if you ask me. For more on Suzi and her incredible story visit https://www.suzikory.com/

Fred Delorme. Happy Green Acres. August 2020

Local artist Fred Delorme closed out the night with a solid performance of mostly country covers.

KLhloe B. Happy Green Acres. August 2020

Saturday started early for us as we welcomed one of our own artists to the stage for a 10:30am set. That meant early trip to the venue to get things set up and get her sound checked and ready to go. It may have been early but the minute Khloe B started to sing campers started to emerge from their RV’s and descend on the performance area. Khloe B is just 16 years old but she’s a star in the making. We’re currently working with Khloe and hope to have her debut single out before the end of 2020. Khloe will be back at Happy Green Acres September 19 at 7pm so be sure to reserve your spot now! For more on Khloe be sure to like her page: https://www.facebook.com/khloebmusicc

Courtney Bowles. Happy GreenAcres Campground. August, 2020

One of the people that was charmed by Khloe’s voice was, another one of our artists, Courtney Bowles. Courtney’s set was scheduled to follow Khloe but she was so impressed that she invited Khloe to join her onstage for a couple of songs including a rendition of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” that gave everyone present goosebumps.

Courtney Bowles. Happy GreenAcres Campground. August, 2020

Courtney continued the rest of her set on her own merit, Courtney is an extremely talented artist out of the Toronto area. Her latest single “Beautiful Daughter” was released this past June and has since been streamed nearly 30K times on Spotify. We’re working with Courtney on her forthcoming single which is currently scheduled for an early fall release. Courtney returns to Happy Green Acres the weekend of September 24 for the Ambush Fall Jam. Visit Courtney online for her full story https://www.courtneybowles.ca/

Jeff Callery. Happy Green Acres. August 2020

Unfortunately a prior engagement made me miss out on Jeff Callery’s set but I’ll be sure to catch his set at the upcoming Ambush Fall Jam on September 25.

Valley Mountain. Happy Green Acres. August 2020

I was back at the venue just in time for Ottawa Valley newcomers Valley Mountain. Made up of Rory Mahew and Julia Bobiak Valley Mountain currently has one single out, a cover of The Chicks’ “Cowboy Take Me Away”. The duo has been working behind the scenes during the shutdown to build their band and finalize recording of their sophomore single. These two are definitely ones to watch as they perfect their show in the coming months and years. To follow Valley Mountain on their journey be sure to like https://www.facebook.com/valleymountainband

Both of the two remaining acts for the Saturday are 19 years old. One has been writing and recording music for about 10 years, has toured Canada with artists like the Hunter Hayes and Dan and Shay and has had a single hit #87 on the Canadian BDS charts. The other released his second single to country radio earlier this year, has won the Magna Hoedown, Nashville North Kicxfm and Wasaga Idol.

John Anderson. Happy Green Acres. August 2020

The first out of these two talented young adults to hit the stage was Barrie’s own John Anderson. With a setlist that covered everything from Queen, thanks John I noticed, and classic country favourites to his own singles there’s no question that although the current pandemic may have slowed John down a bit it definitely hasn’t taken the wind out of his sails. John has a hometown performance next Saturday as he joins David Boyd Janes, Dustin Bird, Evan Farrell and more for a Night of Country drive-in at the Paul Sadlon Arena in Barrie. To keep up with John’s career and find out about future shows visit https://www.johnandersonmusic.com/

Abby Stewart, Happy Green Acres Campground. August 2020

Abby Stewart is a familiar name in Eastern Ontario, afterall she’s been performing in and around the Kingston area since she was 12 years old. Now 19 Abby Stewart is a veteran performer and entertainer having shared the stage with some of Canada’s elite country artists. Her experience shone through, as it always does, in her performance. Powerhouse vocals and a stage presence made her a crowd favourite of the evening. The second half of 2020 will see a long overdue new single from Abby, a song which those in attendance got a first listen to last weekend. If there is ever a perfect time or moment for an artist to spread their wings and take off this could be it for Abby. Be sure you don’t miss a beat and checkout Abby’s website for all of the information on where to find her music: https://www.abbystewartmusic.com/

Dedorah Lynn. Happy Green Acres, August 2020

Sunday would be no less shy on talent starting with another newcomer out of the Quinte area, Deborah Lynn. Deborah has only recently given the world a glimpse of her musical talents and boy can we say we’re thrilled that she did. With one single to her name and a number of amazing, self penned songs, in her repertoire Deborah walked out onto the stage and blew us all away. For someone with only a few years of performing under her belt she puts a lifetime of experience into her performance. Keep an eye on this one, there is zero doubt in my mind you’ll be hearing more of her on Country Music Radio in Canada and around the world. https://www.deborahlynn.ca/

Justine Blanchette. Happy Green Acres. August 2020

We were introduced to the second performer of the day last summer at Festival Country de Lotbiniere in her home province of Quebec. Justine Blanchet was born into a musical family, she has been crafting her warm vocals and songwriting style since her childhood. Her musical journey has earned her many distinctions and outstanding awards as well as notable appearances at the Nashville’s legendary Bluebird Cafe, Global News Montreal, Big Valley Jamboree, RBC Bluesfest (She’s the One) and Diamonds in the Rough showcase (CCMA). Justine just released her newest single “Got Away” to radio a few weeks ago and as of Friday you can find it on all digital service providers including on our Canadian Country and Girl Power Spotify playlists! Justine knows how to put on a show and, no doubt, her stage presence will only continue to improve the more opportunities she gets to perform. Want to know more? Check her out online at https://justineblanchet.com/

Yvan Petit. Happy Green Acres. August 2020

The closing act for last weekend was an artist who has spend his fair share of time on the road. Yvan Petit’s musical journey started at the age of 3 and his first public performance came at the age of 4. At the age of 23 Yvan met Johnny Reid and that meeting turned into a professional career as Johnny’s lead guitar player.This career has allowed Yvan to travel Canada, Australia, Jamaica, Mexico, Scotland, England, Switzerland, Nunavut, and many areas in the United States. As a member of the Johnny Reid band, Yvan has shared the stage with artists such as Brad Paisley, Dwight Yoakam, Keith Urban, Carrie Underwood, Martina Mcbride, Ricky Skaggs etc., performing for crowds ranging from 5,000 to 40,000 people. In 2006, Yvan fulfilled a country musicians dream by playing at the Grand Ole Opry. In 2015, Yvan recorded his first French language album to bring him back to his roots. Between other projects and a spring 2015 tour with Johnny Reid, the album took roughly 2 years to complete but October 25, 2016 was a rewarding day and Yvan finally launched “My Origins” for all to enjoy. For the, roughly, 90 minutes Yvan was on stage he played some originals and took requests. By the end of the night it was clear for both artist and audience it was a night to remember. For more on Yvan or to find his music visit https://www.yvanpetitmusic.com/

If you missed Yvan that weekend we’re thrilled to be teaming up with Mary-Rae Knapp, aka the Godmother of Canadian Country Music, to present Yvan Petit LIVE in Athens, Ontario September 13. For tickets: 1000ISLANDS.SNAPD.COM/EVENTS/VIEW/1329421

Josh Norrad, Happy Green Acres. August 2020

This weekend saw Rock and Roll take over at Happy Green Acres but Henry graciously allowed us to borrow the stage for a few hours on Friday afternoon to showcase our own rising star who happened to be passing through the region that day. We’ve been working with Josh Norrad since early March and getting him a slot on a stage was nothing short of incredible. From the minute his set began Josh engaged the crowd and had them hooked. For a little over an hour Josh rocked through his own songs as well as a few popular covers ranging from rock to modern country to classic country and the crowd ate it up. We’re currently working on the follow-up to Josh’s spring release “To The Wind” aiming for an early 2021 release. Until then you can stream, download or buy “To The Wind” or any of his previous singles here: https://www.joshnorrad.com/listen

The next big festival weekend coming to Happy Green Acres will be the weekend of September 18 and 19 as they host their first ever Open Mic weekend. Anyone interested in taking part should reach out to Henry at hboer@1000islandsrv.com, spaces are filling up fast.

This will be followed by the Ambush Fall Jam which will see the return of Courtney Bowles, Jeff Callery and the Happy Green Acres debut of our good friend MacKenzie Leigh Meyer. Camping for both events is on sale now at https://happygreenacres.com/