Five nights, countless genres and one unforgettable CityFolk debut at Ottawa’s RA Centre grounds.
A diverse weekend of folk, country and the most legendary punk rock welcomed Ottawa’s concert goers to 2026 CityFolk at its debut at the RA Centre grounds.
Night one saw East Coast fiddle legend, Ashley MacIsaac, headlining the Westside Stage with his distinctive mix of traditional and contemporary Celtic and East Coast, while the unique fingerstyle guitarist Steph Strings opened ahead of headliners Alabama Shakes on the TD Main Stage.
Night two brought country and pop fans from far and wide to witness the TD Main Stage team up of new superstars, Stella Lefty, and Canadian, Cameron Whitcomb; while The White Buffalo owned the Westside Stage with their signature dark and story driven Americana.
The mesmerizing guitar stylings of Gwenifer Raymond rang over the Westside Stage ahead of the emotional and direct songstylings of Jensen McRae on night three; while the TD Main Stage belonged to the Nineties kids as alt-rockers Switchfoot and Third Eye Blind lead the singalong crowd through favourites such as “Meant to Live” and “Semi-Charmed Life.”
The Westside Stage on night three saw singer-songwriter, Jobi Riccio, presenting environmental themes in her set while Pokey Lafarge sang about economic hardships with tracks from his latest EP, Rent Money; while Austrailia’s Angus & Julia Stone’s mesmerizing lyricism and instrumentation warmed the TD Main Stage crowd ahead of Iceland’s Monsters and Men.
The fifth and final night at CityFolk belonged squarely to the punks of the nation’s capital. Ottawa’s own up-and-coming rockers, Steady Rain, and Welsh festival favourites, Panic Shack, gave Austin, TX, dark-folk mainstay, Amigo the Devil, a grand welcome to the Westside stage; while the closing night of the TD Main Stage belonged to punk originators, Sex Pistols (featuring Frank Carter with original members Steve Jones, Paul Cook and Glen Matlock).
Finally, the glam and horror theatrics of Alice Cooper positively thrilled the crowd.
With the 2026 festival season complete, Ottawa looks towards summer 2027 and what Bluesfest and CityFolk will have in store next for the city!
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