A Festive and Eclectic Lineup for the Big Return of the FEQ

Québec City, April 6, 2022 – The 54th edition of the Festival d’été de Québec (FEQ) presented by Bell in collaboration with Coors Light will be a memorable one, noted the organizers. Today, the FEQ unveils a generous line-up with major headliners Rage Against the Machine, Maroon 5, Luke Combs and Halsey. To celebrate its big comeback, the FEQ is spoiling festival visitors, by exceptionally adding an evening to its program this year. The event will take place from July 6 to 17!

The Festival is adding a 12th evening to its program to welcome one of the most beloved artists from Québec to the Plains, the talented Charlotte Cardin in carte blanche mode. Lennon Stella and Jessia will warm up the stage for an all-women opening night. On July 7, Jack Johnson will perform on the Bell Stage, a first visit to Québec City for the king of acoustic surf. He will be preceded by Tash Sultana and Geoffroy. On July 8, the FEQ welcomes country superstar Luke Combs, with Matt Lang and TALK opening. July 9 will be a big pop night with the band Maroon 5, preceded by Gayle, Alicia Moffet and Dizzy. July 10 is the hip-hop night with American duo $uicideboy$, preceded by two other popular names in rap, 2 Chainz and Denzel Curry with Canadian Night Lovell just before. On July 11, Halsey, a big name in pop music, will make her first stop in the provincial capital. Colourful Californian Remi Wolf will get the evening started with her rule-breaking avant-pop. On July 12 we will present another carte blanche, this time for Québec artist Loud and his guests. Belgian rapper Roméo Elvis will hit the stage just before, and the evening will begin with the sound of Montreal hip-hop with 20some and Rymz. July 13 is the electro party with the hugely popular Marshmello, preceded by one of the few female DJs, the impressive Alison Wonderland, followed by Oliver Heldens from the Netherlands and electronic music creator Millimetrik from Québec City. On July 14, the Plains will vibrate for the first time to the rhythm of Latin pop with none other than Luis Fonsi. The Despacito singer will be preceded by Colombian DJ Alex Sensation. On July 15, another 100% female evening with a giant of alternative rock, Alanis Morissette, preceded by Garbage and The Beaches. On July 16, a much-anticipated concert by Rage Against the Machine will blow up the Plains for what will be their only stop on Québec soil. It should be noted this is a rare appearance for the seminal Los Angeles band, back after a very long absence. Fans will be thrilled to know the mighty Alexisonfire will perform just before, an amazing chance to see two bands of this stature on the same night, which will start strong with Grandson. On July 17, the honour of closing the Festival has been given to excellent indie rock band Half Moon Run, also in carte blanche mode, with the bands Walk the Moon and Walk Off The Earth opening. The content and guests of the carte blanche shows will be revealed at a later date.

This summer, the FEQ will be implementing a reconfiguration of its secondary stages. As Place George-V will be undergoing construction during the event, the team is taking the opportunity to redevelop its second stage and refresh the Parc de la Francophonie, which will host two stages side by side: the Loto-Québec Stage and the Sirius XM Stage, installed directly on rue Jacques Parizeau. As for the Hydro-Québec Stage, which is usually located in Place D’Youville, it will take up residence in the Heart of the FEQ at Place de l’Assemblée-Nationale. In addition to its very eclectic and always free program, it will present a youth component during the day on weekends.

“The redesign will allow us to create an entirely new festival experience: the first benefit will be to present an alternating and continuous program on our second stage at Parc de la Francophonie, in addition to a stage at Place de l’Assemblée-Nationale, allowing us to concentrate and densify our offer. In this new Heart of the FEQ, there will be rest areas, concessions and the free Hydro-Québec Stage with an enhanced program. By reconfiguring our sites, we will be shortening the distance between them, allowing festival visitors to live the FEQ experience even more intensely,” explained Anne Hudon, President and CEO of BLEUFEU.

Loto-Québec Stage and Sirius XM Stage at Parc de la Francophonie

The Loto-Québec and Sirius XM stages will present shows alternately, each with a headliner every night. Some of the artists who will perform include: indie pop acts AJR and X Ambassadors on July 7, Australian Dean Lewis and from Louisiana The Revivalists on July 8, indie rock acts Patrick Watson and Spoon on July 9, a dazzling Francophone lineup of Ariane Moffatt and Émile Bilodeau on July 10, revered rock names Three Days Grace and The Tea Party on July 11, pop sensations Charli XCX and Tai Verdes on July 12, Québec favourites Louis-Jean Cormier and Vincent Vallières on July 13, American rappers Lil Tecca and Freddie Gibbs on July 14, an all-punk program with Sum 41, Pennywise and Millencolin on July 15, the indie pop band Milky Chance and hip-hop-soul-funk alchemists Clay and Friends on July 16, and ending in style with Québec rap artists Fouki, Koriass and Sarahmée on July 17.

Entirely free, the Hydro-Québec Stage program is loaded with spectacular and dynamic artists this year. One of the headliners appearing is groovy pop band Bon Enfant on July 7. Just before, the stage will belong to Pakistani singer-songwriter Arooj Aftab, who picked up the Grammy for Best Global Music Performance in the World Music genre this year. The one and only Hubert Lenoir will grace the stage on July 8, Acadian rocker Lisa Leblanc on July 9, blues-soul veteran Robert Finley on July 10, Afrobeat giants Femi Kuti & The Positive Force on July 11, a reggae evening with the legendary Tiken Jah Fakoly on July 12, Canadian folk band The Weather Station on July 13, rockers Gros Mené on July 14, the much-awaited return of Ukrainian group DakhaBrakha and its unique folk fusion on July 15, and Montreal collective Urban Science Brass Band will perform its clever mix of brass and hip-hop on July 16. From Angola, Pongo and its kuduro with pop and rap influences will complete the program on July 17. In addition, a youth program will be presented on the Hydro-Québec Stage on weekends, with more details about this program coming soon.

“We are very happy to resume our activities after not being able to present the Festival in 2020, with several great headliners that we had scheduled but had to be cancelled. We have worked hard to give our program lots of depth and a wide variety of genres, including among others, a country evening with Luke Combs, a Latin evening with Luis Fonsi, a major new addition to our program,” noted Louis Bellavance, VP Content and Artistic Direction at BLEUFEU. “In addition, this year, we are enhancing the fan experience by starting the shows earlier at Parc de la Francophonie. The party will start at 5:50 PM on weekdays and as early as 5:15 PM on weekends, all continuously,” he added.

FEQ Extras at the Voltigeurs de Québec Armoury

Building on the success of 2019, the late-night series is back with a bang at the Armoury under the name The FEQ Extras. In addition to hosting the headquarters of BLEUFEU, the team behind the Festival, indoor shows will be presented there every evening after the regular shows. The FEQ Extras program will be announced soon.