Performers

Guitarist and singer Alpha Yaya Diallo, from Guinea in West Africa, is one of the hottest acts on the world music scene. Now based in Canada, he’s earned a matchless reputation for the excellence of his musicianship and the excitement of his live shows – whether performing solo or with his band Bafing. Diallo is a multi-talented artist. His dexterous acoustic and electric guitar-playing, with its fluid melodic lines and compelling grooves, places him in the front ranks of African axemen. In addition, he’s a skilled and experienced performer on a variety of percussion instruments, and on the balafon (traditional marimba). To cap it off, Diallo writes all his own compositions and sings with a supple, high, and beautifully modulated voice.

Tight-as-can-be three-part harmonic explosions wrapped in a gritty, primal, snarling exterior, Bad Buddy (Edmonton, Alberta) is what Clash Magazine (UK) describes as “… pack(ing) a colossal amount of information into concise, quicksilver pop songs. Merging the pathways between punk rama-lama and three-part doo-wop harmonies, they’re a quite outstanding bunch of musicians. But it’s more than mere technical chops – at their core, Bad Buddy are fascinated with the pop song as an artefact, resulting in the kind of dizzying fare The Lemon Twigs, say, would sell a kidney to master.” Picture The Shirelles meets The Ramones meets Queen.

Bandmates Andi Vissia, Geoffrey Hamdon-O’Brien, Chloe Yakymyshyn, and Emily Bachynski are “a perfectly calibrated chaos machine”,  according to DORK Magazine (UK).  “Their three-part harmonies detonate with mathematical precision while maintaining the raw, primal energy of a punk show at its peak. This is what happens when exceptional songwriting collides with Motown-meets-surf-punk aesthetics, creating feminist anthems that feel both vintage and visceral.”

Eva Kabande is a Mexican musician and performer with a career spanning over 20 years. Her powerful and emotive voice brings each song to life, creating intimate connections with audiences. From classic Latin American ballads to vibrant rhythms, Eva’s performances are always from the heart. Eva delivers intimate and emotionally charged performances, blending ballads with more rhythmic songs. Her repertoire includes contemporary hits as well as timeless Latin American classics. Every show is a unique moment of genuine connection with her audience.

Born and raised in Vancouver, B.C., Joe Abbott is an alternative folk/country singer/songwriter with a knack for crafting words over memorable melodies. With a passion for performing that can’t go unnoticed, Joe has delighted audiences from coast to coast making new friends along the way.

With over a decade of performing in the Vancouver music scene under his belt, Joe has managed to weave himself into different genres across the music community. From performing in the West Coast roots scene in bands such as Petunia and the Vipers, Blue Moon Marquee, and the late Harpdog Brown as their resident saxophone and rhythm guitar player respectively. To serving as a session player on works by Colleen Brown and Diamond Cafe, among countless others, Abbott has shown his exuberant improvisational stylings.

Through years of performing from coast to coast by way of planes, trains, and automobiles, Joe has developed a personal style incorporating themes of love loss and joy in the strange and mysterious twenty first century condition. Joe released his debut album “Bad But Good Boys” in 2020 showcasing his thoughtful songwriting alongside his crooner vocals. Joe’s follow up EP “A Toothache in Spades”, released in the fall of 2022, has garnered Abbott listenership across the nation. With nods from critical acclaim, and coming hot off of a tour opening for Cat Clyde, things are looking sunny side up for your pal Joe in the coming year.

Jory Kinjo brings a unique history to his music and draws from his experiences playing and performing Soul, Ska, Reggae and Rhythm & Blues all over the world.

Kinjo grew up in Calgary, AB. playing old-school soul music with long-standing soul band, Mocking Shadows. In 1999, he joined the band and warmed the stage for Canadian 3 tours with the B.B. King and other artists such as ZZ Top and Buddy Guy.

In 2007, Kinjo toured Europe playing bass for Montreal’s third-wave ska kings, the Planet Smashers. The Smashers toured with punk legends Bad Religion and headlined other European festivals. This experience ignited a love for ska & reggae and inspired a new direction in his music.

Kinjo formed “JK & the Relays” in 2009 and has toured such acts as Fishbone (LA) and the English Beat (UK). JK & the Relays were breakout performers at the 2012 Montreal Ska Festival and the 2013 Victoria Ska Festival.

Mocking Shadows has been entertaining crowds across Canada for over 13 years with their own brand of soul, reggae, blues and R&B. Drawing from their “old school” roots the shadows have developed and incorporated a contemporary sound that has attracted a younger demographic while still maintaining their original “old school”  fan base. The ability of the band to appeal to such a wide demographic has made them one of Western Canada’s more popular festival, corporate and special event bands.

Although the line up has changed significantly over the years, the quality of music, showmanship and creativity has only increased. The result is a strong ever evolving sound that keeps their fans interested and engaged.  The Shadows’ have established a very special niche in the Canadian Music scene.

The line up features a variety of keyboards, full horn section, guitar, bass, drums and up to 6 vocalists. The band plays music festivals, theatres and venues of all styles and genres and have performed and shared stages with some of Canada’s musical elite including performances with: The Tragically Hip, ZZ Top, 54/40, Wide Mouth Mason, Jann Arden, Reba Macintire, Leanne Rimes, Randy Bachman, Lighthouse, Colin James, The Powder Blues Band, Doug & The Slugs, Trooper, Downchild Blues Band, and many others.

Some of the bands proudest achievements include two complete Canadian tours with the legendary BB King, once in 2001 and to prove it was no fluke, again in 2002.

Paris Pick may stand just over five feet tall, but her voice and presence are larger than life. Flamboyant performances that balance fire and vulnerability, Pick and her sequin-clad Pricks deliver a bold blend of yacht-pop charm and lyrical intimacy, music that feels like a whispered secret, wrapped in crunchy guitars and mid-70’s shimmer!

Born in North Vancouver and raised between Squamish and Port Hardy, Pick has forged a unique path in the Canadian indie scene. Dubbed the Yacht-Pop Princess, she’s toured for over a decade and has earned spots at high-profile events like BreakOut West, POP Montreal, Liverpool Sound City (UK), and Focus Wales (UK) to name a few. Her soulful-pop sensibility, unforgettable choruses and vocal bravado have drawn comparisons to Hall & Oates, while a few of her contemporary inspirations include Chappell Roan, Sabrina Carpenter, Mac DeMarco, and Bahamas. Or as she puts it: “Imagine the Eagles, but fem-fronted. The Walsh & Felder era of course…”

Pick’s songs speak to the messy in-between, where confidence and insecurity duke it out, where love and heartbreak hold hands. Her music doesn’t shy away from the emotional rollercoaster; it leans into it. Listening to her is like getting a comforting pat on the back while you scream out the truth about someone you used to love. Love, loss, and redemption served hot… heartbreak never sounded so good.

She’s opened for Canadian staples like Yukon Blonde, Apollo Suns, Brass Camel, Jennifer Castle, and Wax Mannequin to name a few and has earned nods from cultural figures like George Stroumboulopoulos (The Strombo Show) and Ed the Sock (MuchMusic). In 2025, Pick was featured on Exclaim!’s NEW FAVES: Hottest Canadian Artists You Need to Hear Right Now list. Previously, In 2022, she was named one of CBC Music’s Toyota Searchlight Top 100 Artists.

On September 5th 2025, Pick released her third full-length album, Third Time’s a Charm, via Neon Moon Records. The album was co-produced with Jordy Walker at Yukon’s Stackwall Sound and was partially funded by the Government of Yukon. It promises to be her most confident and captivating work yet.

ABOUT “THE PRICKS”

“The Pricks” add flavor to Pick’s original repertoire with tasteful 70’s inspired back-up vocals, disciplined electric guitar parts, anthemic solos and hot grooves provided by a super funky rhythm section. The band name isn’t a jab at the players themselves — it’s more of a cheeky nod to a few of Pick’s past lovers.

Imagine if Roy Orbison and Townes Van Zandt co-wrote a song – weird – but it works. Sammy’s first single ‘Weather Report’ caressed the ear like an homage to Brill Building songwriters while capturing his cinematic approach to music-making. Sammy’s ‘Be Alright!’ was the first album to debut at #1 on Alberta’s CKUA Top 30 Chart. Within a month, it reached #38 on CKUA’s Top 200 Album Chart for 2022 and debuted at #19 on Earshot’s National Top 50 Chart in Canada. His 2024 duets album of originals released with Dana Wylie ‘The Day Had To Come’ topped Bandcamp’s ‘Best Country Music of 2024’ list and remained in the CKUA Top 30 for 14 weeks. Sammy has shared stages with Boy Golden, Frazey Ford, Mariel Buckley and many others. He has appeared two years in a row at the Edmonton Folk Music Festival, performed at the Calgary and Canmore Folk Fests, and performed as part of CFMF’s Block Heater Concert Series. Sammy was awarded 2nd place for Penguin Eggs / Roots Music Canada Critics’ 2023 ‘New Discovery of the Year.’ His upcoming solo album was produced by Renny Wilson.

Born in West Virginia and raised on the Canadian prairies, Scott Cook quit a job teaching kindergarten in Taiwan in 2007 to embark on the life of a full-time troubadour. Since then he’s toured steadily across Canada, the US, Europe, Asia, Australia, New Zealand and elsewhere, living out of backpacks and campervans, averaging over a hundred shows and a dozen summer festivals a year, and distilling his experiences into empathetic, keenly observant verse. His 2020 album Tangle of Souls spent two weeks at #1 on Alberta’s province-wide community radio network CKUA, and earned Scott his third Canadian Folk Music Award nomination, for English Songwriter of the Year. Its second single “Say Can You See” was the second most-played song of 2020 on Folk Alliance International’s folk radio charts, and took top honours for the folk category in both the 2020 UK Songwriting Competition and the 2020 Great American Song Contest. Since January of 2022 he’s been touring with his sweetheart Pamela Mae on upright bass and vocals, covering 45 American states, 8 Canadian provinces, and a fair bit of the UK, Germany, Australia and New Zealand. In 2026 they’re releasing his eighth album Troubadourly Yours, packaged in a 260-page hardcovered book of liner notes. Fresh from the open road, these are sturdy, straight-talking songs that see the good in you.

“He sings his heart and soul, and in doing so lets light flood into your own… He has a good eye for imagery, a gentle human touch, a wry sense of humour, a whole lot of integrity, a warm, rugged voice and a bunch of memorable lines… Truly one of Woody Guthrie’s children.” –RnR Magazine

“These are whip-smart, bone-achingly lovely, socially committed songs presented with a bold, elegant directness evoking the very best of the folk music tradition. Last night’s performance in Notional Space was a thing of rare beauty.” —Mark Jacobs, presenter, Notional Space

Secondhand Dreamcar, an explosive 9-piece soul/roots/blues band based in Edmonton, is a true superband – a consummate constellation of veterans of Canadian music who have worked on some of the finest jazz, funk, folk, soul, and blues projects ever created in Alberta. Collectively, they craft a distinct, funky, and lyrically-driven sound that journalist and programmer Peter North has deemed the most exciting thing to come out of the city since k.d. lang and the Reclines.

One of CKUA radio’s favourite acts, Secondhand Dreamcar saw its debut album Answer The Call land at Number 6 on the station’s Top 100 albums of 2024. The band is also a dynamite live act, having cut its teeth as an ensemble in a 9-month residency at Edmonton’s legendary Blues on Whyte club, and since fostering an ever-growing following of devotees who won’t miss a show, as evidenced by their second annual two-night sell-out of the Yardbird Suite in April 2025.

The band enjoyed a promising first summer out on the festival circuit in 2024, punctuated by a rousing standing ovation in the middle of a Sunday afternoon at the Edmonton Blues Festival, and has a full roster of festivals stacked up for 2025. Meanwhile, the Dreamcar is writing and road-testing material for its second album, which will be recorded in the fall and released in 2026.

There is a pleasing straightforwardness to the music of Skinny Dyck. His voice is clean and clear (and usually nestled in a bed of lush reverb), the songs are held together with spacious instrumentation and smart, tasty hooks (including Dyck’s signature pedal steel work), and the band is right on the money, everything in its right place and not a note wasted. This shouldn’t come as a surprise, however: co-producer and bassist Aladean Kheroufi (a multi-faceted musician and songwriter in his own right) applied some of the old school, minimalist recording techniques he picked up while interning at Daptone Records years ago, and he has been at the core of Skinny’s live band (alongside drummer Clayton Smith) for the last handful of years. So when Dyck and Kheroufi hit the basement to lay down these songs, it was as easy as slipping into a pair of old jeans. And that sprightly, jazz-inflected lead guitar work comes courtesy of Winnipeg’s Austin Parachoniak, who helped bring a whiff of Merle Haggard’s ’80s band to the mix.

Stone Joy is a high-energy seven-piece instrumental funk-fusion band based in Edmonton, Alberta. Known for their dynamic live performances.

While playing/switching off between instruments allows for unique and unmatched tonal shifts throughout Stonejoy’s performances, fans and band members alike can attest that by the end of a Stonejoy show, Peter’s usually drenched…

From indie chart success and placements on MTV and HBO to stages at SXSW and major Canadian festivals, The Hearts have carved a unique path in the Indie-Folk/North Americana landscape. Their sound, a tapestry of heartfelt melodies and evocative harmonies, resonates across diverse venues, from intimate dive bars to sprawling festival grounds. Their fifth studio album, “Traces” (Nov. 2024), a #1 hit on CKUA Radio and garnering international attention including BBC Radio airplay, showcases their signature blend of melodic melancholy and earthy grooves.