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Canadian Beats covers Junos 2016 – Juno Fan Fare, Songwriters Circle & JUNOfest

Canadian Beats was lucky enough to attend many events during Juno week, including Juno Fan Fare, the Songwriters Circle and even a JUNOfest show. We kept very busy taking in all the amazing showcases of Canadian music.

Fan Fare is an event where your favorite Canadian artists get to meet the fans that make their jobs what they are. This year it consisted of Walk off the Earth, Dear Rouge, Marianas Trench, Shawn Hook, Scott Helman, Francesco Yates, Alessia Cara, Ria Mae. And for the country lovers, Brett Kissel, Autumn Hill, Chad Brownlee, Dean Brody and George Canyon. There was a little something for every music lover. Fans lined up by the hundreds waiting to get close to their faves. Some were crying, some were barely able to breathe, but everyone was beyond excited. Fan fare even included performances by Dear Rouge and Brett Kissel. The artists looked like they were having just as much fun as their fans taking it all in with selfies, and enough autographs to give them each a serious case of carpal tunnel.

The next event we were able to catch was the legendary Songwriters Circle. This was probably one of the coolest showcases I’ve ever seen. Hosted by Calgary’s own country superstar Paul Brandt, artists from all genres shared the stage to tell personal stories of their songwriting and playing acoustically. The event ran in two sets, the first set saw the likes of Old Man Luedecke, Autumn Hill and Alex Cuba. The second set included Ria Mae, Matt Good and Great Big Sea’s Alan Doyle. The lineup brought down the house with amazing stories, once in a lifetime takes on their hits and even more laughs. The crowd loved every minute of the show, even giving a few standing ovations. Songwriters Circle was definitely one of the highlights of Juno Week here in Calgary and is not something you want to miss out on if given the chance.

JUNOfest was yet another event that many, many music fans were taking in this week. So much so that nearly every venue was at capacity very early in the night, leaving it difficult to even get in! JUNOfest was held at over 15 venues around the city, with 100 bands playing in two nights. The bands playing consisted of local favourites and some great visiting acts. We were lucky enough to get into one of these shows; our friends Son of Ray are local legends making quite the name for themselves all over the place. They played to a packed house at the Nite Owl, and completely killed it. I am so proud of these guys and can’t wait to see what this journey is going to take them.

For many more photos from these events, head to our Facebook page!