Ottawa Live Music Festivals are back!

I couldn’t think of a better way to get back into the post-pandemic live music swing of things that a sunny late summer day at Lansdowne Park.

CTV cameras were present documenting the arrival of festival-goers and the festival team checking vaccine status and making sure everyone had their masks on. Other than a few teenagers in the front row who had to be reminded to keep their face coverings on, it seemed like everyone was just very thankful to be there and to take in the vibe. It’s been a long time coming.

First up was Töme, talented singer-songwriter originally from Montréal who bagged the award for Reggae Record of the Year at the Juno’s. Her french-canadian roots were much appreciate by the bilingual Ottawa crowd and her vibrant stage presence and smooth sound did much to endear her to the crowd and in no time they were up off the grass and dancing along.

Töme performs at Cityfolk in Ottawa. Photo by Renée Doiron

Next to the stage was Brampton-born Roy Woods. It was lost on no one that Woods is signed to Drake’s OVO Sound label. If the owl necklace and patch didn’t give it away, his electrifying performance would have. In 2015 Drake premiered Drama which was the first song from Woods’ EP Exis. Since then he’s seen much success including 9M YouTube views of his single Jealousy. I would describe his sound as a little bit of Michael Jackson infused with some Drake and Nelly.

Roy Woods performs at Cityfolk in Ottawa. Photo by Renée Doiron

DVSN, aka front man Daniel Daley and producer Nineteen85, then took to the stage. Also signed to OVO sound, that familiar owl pendant was visible from the back of the great lawn. DVSN brought a more mellow feel to the evening, with Daley making the ladies swoon as he interacted with them. Daley’s voice is quite incredible, moving smoothly in a slow jam between tenor and falsetto.

DVSN performs at Cityfolk in Ottawa. Photo by Renée Doiron

The headliner of the first night of this return to Ottawa’s beloved Cityfolk was Charlotte Day Wilson. Described as a contemporary R&B singer and songwriter, she has been nominated for a SOCAN songwriting prize, a Polaris music prize, and in 2021 a Juno for Traditional R&B/Soul Recording of the Year. Moving skillfully between keyboards (she is a classically trained pianist) and guitar, she enchanted the crowd with her gentle yet soulful performance.