Dana Wylie is a singer-songwriter whose work is rootsy and spacious, thought-provoking and soulful, with a crystal-clear voice that slides effortlessly between strength and vulnerability. Colin Lindon has called her a “bright light from the shining west,” and her latest album, The Earth That You’re Made Of, earned her a Canadian Folk Music Award nomination for Contemporary Singer of the Year.

Poet, songwriter, performer and producer Ben Spencer has released four full-length albums of original songs, playing nation-wide to a growing fan-base. A folk-festival mainstay and multi-media maker, Ben is passionate about lyrical invention and storytelling through song, delivered over a blazing guitar finger-style. After spending ten years in Montreal, he has recently relocated back to Edmonton.

Born into a family of musicians, you could say Gabriel Campagne comes by his talents honestly. Raised on the folk touring circuit, he refined his vocal skills studying classical voice at McGill University, but his compulsive writing habit in both French and English brought him back to the music of his people. Born to the folk music of Canada, forged in the fires of classical opera and steeped in the colors of his hometown of Montréal, Gabriel Campagne’s music threads the impossible timeless needle of being both ancient and new. You can listen to his original works in his solo material or singing with his band Les Barricades.

Zane is a member of Garden River First Nation and a direct descendant of Chief Shingwaukonse. As a recent graduate from Algoma University, he will be furthering his education in Indigenous Land Management. In the summer of 2022, he was working at Lake Superior Provincial Park as a discovery ranger learning about and teaching visitors the history of the park and sharing the stories behind the Agawa pictographs.

Dr. Bululu Kabatakaka has more than thirty years of experience in post-secondary education in Canada and in various French-speaking countries in Africa. He is passionate about inspiring people from all walks of life to pursue education for continuous improvement. His educational background includes a MSc in Project Management from the University of Quebec, a PhD in Human Studies from Laurentian University, a B.Sc. in Forestry from Laval University and an Advanced Diploma in Agronomy from ISEA Bengamisa (DR Congo).

Aleksi Campagne is uniquely qualified to offer a contemporary, indie-folk take on the time-honoured fiddle-singing tradition. At five years old, he began performing alongside his mother, Canadian folk icon, Connie Kaldor. At 19, Aleksi moved to Paris to study under jazz violin legend Didier Lockwood. At 21, Aleksi became the only student to have ever been accepted into the classical violin, the jazz violin and the jazz voice performance programs at McGill University. And, by 25, with only a six-song EP, Aleksi graced the lineups of some of Canada’ most beloved folk festivals—including the Regina Folk Festival, the Canmore Folk Festival, the Mariposa Folk Festival and the Northern Lights Festival among others.

When playing live, Aleksi floors audiences by singing while bowing his violin and leading his four-piece band. His original music blends folk song writing with an edgy, multi-layered sound resulting from his unique combination of voice, violin and looping-effect pedals. In a full-page spread in the Montreal Gazette, Brennan Kelly described him as “not just a folksinger with a guitar!”

Lucas Choi Zimbel is one of the hardest working musicians in Montreal’s English language folk scene. With monthly residencies in the city’s most respected cultural spaces and bars, he has been putting up an impressive number of shows since 2014. For his solo act, he mostly finger-picks his way through colourful chords on the acoustic guitar. He also plays bluegrass, gypsy jazz and fiddle tunes from all over the world. In addition to the guitar, he plays accordion and clarinet. His lyrics reflect the changing times.

Lucas Choi Zimbel est un des musiciens les plus travaillant de la scène de folk anglophone à Montréal. Avec des résidences mensuelles dans les lieux culturels et les bars les plus respecté de la métropole, il joue un nombre impressionnant de spectacles depuis 2014. Pour son show solo, il joue surtout des accords colorés avec un finger picking dans le vieux style country sur une guitare acoustique. Il joue aussi du bluegrass, du manouche et du trad du monde entier. En plus de la guitare, il joue de l’accordéon et de la clarinette. Ses paroles reflètent les temps changeant.

The Montreal-based synth-pop artist, who is also a core member of Canadian indie darlings Besnard Lakes, hit the spotlight in 2020 with the release of her debut full-length album, Nowhere in Time. The album garnered substantial press, national radio airplay on CBC Radio, and a Top 10 spot on the NCRA Canadian Campus Radio Electronic charts. The video for her single “Wrap Me Up” won a UK Music Video Award for Best Choreography (beating out Beyonce and Tove Lo, among others), and went on to receive a 2021 Juno Nomination for Best Video. She released her sophomore album “Future Is Now” May 27, 2022.

Born in Zimbabwe and currently based in Calgary, Hip-hop artist and TEDx speaker, KTheChosen writes lyrics that are both entertaining and enlightening. For two years now, Chinake has been making music that collaborates ideas from social justice movements such as feminism, racial inequality and releases ambitious concepts about loss, grief and identity.

Randy Morin is a teacher, storyteller and English-Cree translator from the Big River First Nation, Treaty Six area. He has a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Indigenous Studies and Bachelor of Education Degree. He is a Member of the Literary Translators’ Association of Canada and has over 10 years of experience in literary, radio and video voiceover translations from English to Cree and from Cree to English. He is a strong supporter of maintaining and teaching of Cree language and culture and shares his knowledge in his community in Saskatoon.