Canada Day is always a day of celebration in the Nation’s Capital, but no party was bigger than the day’s finale, Canada Day: Feel the Rhythm, at Ottawa’s Lebreton Flats, featuring artists from across the country and the decades!
Broadcast across the country on CBC Television, CBC Gem, and Radio-Canada and hosted by former MusiquePlus host, Isabelle Racicot, the night’s performances were filled with nods to both the future of and the roots of Canada’s musical heritage.
The show started off strong with 2024 Canadian Music Hall of Fame inductee and Governor General Performing Arts Award recipient, Maestro Fresh Wes, who wowed the audience with his legendary hit single, “Let Your Backbone Slide.” Wes would return later on with a performance of “Stick to Your Vision,” which famously features samples of the Guess Who’s “These Eyes.”
Quebecois alt-country superstar, Sara Dufour, also paid homage to the celebrated roots of Quebec’s music contributions with a rendition of Félix Leclerc’s “Le p’tit bonheur,” and would later return with her single “Semi-route Semi-trail”; while Halifax’s own, Neon Dreams, brought a taste of rock into their electro-alt-pop stylings with Nickelback’s “How You Remind Me,” and their latest single, “The Art of Letting Go.”
Meanwhile, celebrated electro-funk duo, Chromeo, brought their smash hit singles “Fancy Footwork” and “Jealous (I Ain’t With It”) to the party, while Francophone rapper, FouKi, brought his hit singles “Copilote” and the fan-voted “80s”; while the Godfather of modern R&B in Quebec, Corneille, serenaded the country with his singles “Parce qu’on vient de loin” and “Le bonheur.”
Spotlights were also placed on rising Innu-singer-songwriter, Kanen, and innovative Inuit throat singer, Qattuu, with the mashup of their singles “Grande Fille” and “Tshinanu”; while Franco-Manitobian Metis singer-songwriter, Willows, brought the gentle “Li bwè”.
The unstoppable Kiesza also took to the stage twice, first with her latest single, “Strangers,” and then with a resounding tribute to the legendary Leonard Cohen with a spectacular performance of “Hallelujah”; while the evening headliners, the legendary Metric, gave the Ottawa crowd a thrill with “Help, I’m Alive” and the fan-voted “Black Sheep.”
Capping off the evening before a spectacular fireworks display over the Ottawa River, was a star-studded medley of iconic Canadian songs, featuring Willows and FouKi performing the Cowboys Fringants’ “Les étoiles filantes,” Sara Dufour and Kanen performing Jean-Pierre Ferland’s “Le petit roi,” Metric performing The Band’s “The Weight,” and concluding with Maestro Fresh Wes, Kiesza and Neon Dream’s Frank Kadillac absolutely rocking out to Loverboy’s “Turn Me Loose.”
With Canada Day coming to a close for another year, the Nation’s Capital and Lebreton Flats is now in full festival mode with the start of Bluesfest arriving Thursday with a headlining performance with the eccentric Mother Mother!