Rhiannon Giddens, singer of Carolina Chocolate Drops, is touring in support of her solo album Freedom Highway.
Today, organizers of the Vancouver Folk Music Festival announced the lineup for this year’s event.
Headliners for the festival, which runs July 13-16 at Jericho Beach Park, include British folk-activist Billy Bragg and American singer/songwriter Joe Henry, Grammy-winning singer Shawn Colvin, and Canadian favourite Kathleen Edwards.
Other guests include Rhiannon Giddens, the lead singer of the Carolina Chocolate Drops, touring in support of her new solo album Freedom Highway. Also, the Barenaked Ladies. And there’s a French-Canadian component, too.
Gabrielle Shonk, Leif Vollebekk, Katie Moore, and Matt Holubowski will represent La Belle Province.
For world music fans, there’s the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Mbongwana Star, Bogotá’s Sidestepper, Greenland’s Nive Nielsen & The Deer People, Egypt’s Ramy Essam, Haiti’s Chouk Bwa Libète, and Spain’s Korrontzi (from the Basque region). There’s even a band from Scotland, RURA.
Other artists include Ferron and Her All Star Band, labour singer/activist Si Kahn, New Zealand’s Marlon Williams & The Yarra Benders, Grace Petrie, and our own much loved Roy Forbes.
Indie-rock fans will be excited to learn that Winnipeg’s John K. Samson is bringing his band Winter Wheat to the festival. Some other notable performers include Americana singer Tift Merritt, Canadian electronic pop artist Cold Specks.
Tift Merritt is coming to the 2017 Vancouver Folk Music Festival at Jericho Beach Park July 13-16.
Update: the Festival lineup also includes Native North America: A Gathering of Indigenous Trailblazers. This showcase features ground-breaking First Nations artists Duke Redbird, Willie Thrasher And Linda Saddleback, Willy Mitchell, Lloyd Cheechoo, and Gordon Dick Sr.
For more info, visit thefestival.bc.ca.
