An internationally celebrated artist, Jess Moskaluke continues to break barriers in the country music world with her big voice, pop infused hooks, and sonic versatility, as seen across her new EP ‘Heartbreaker’. The first Canadian female country artist since Shania Twain to achieve Canadian Platinum single status with the hit ‘Cheap Wine and Cigarettes’, Moskaluke has since gone on to earn Canadian Gold certifications for ‘Take Me Home’, ‘Kiss Me Quiet’, ‘Knock Off’ and her first NUMBER ONE ‘Country Girls’. She was notably the first Canadian female country artist since 2008 to have a song in the Top 3 with ‘Drive Me Away’. The 2017 JUNO Award winner for ‘Country Album of the Year’, Moskaluke has taken home multiple CCMA Awards including ‘Album Of The Year’ (2018) and ‘Female Artist of the Year’ (3X consecutive) and is a 2017 SOCAN Award winner and the 2020 WCM Award winner for ‘Country Artist of the Year’. Her 2021 album The Demos included an ode to her hometown with the hit single ‘Mapdot’ and fan favourite ‘Nothing I Don’t Love About You’, and in 2022 Moskaluke embarked on the Mapdot Tour, her first national headlining run which saw multiple sold out dates across Canada. Continuing to build her international reputation with notable plays at the C2C Music Festival in both Australia and the United Kingdom and with deep roots in the US, Moskaluke’s creativity knows no borders. In addition to her music, Moskaluke is passionate about giving back to causes that are close to her including the MS Society of Canada and Telemiracle Saskatchewan. She continues to explore other avenues including her highly sought-after ‘Handpicked by Jess’ subscription box, where she collaborates with local businesses to share products that she believes in - previous versions of the box have sold out in less than 24 hours.
2024 JUNO-Nominated Mi'kmaq fiddler and singer Morgan Toney will be performing on the Youth Arena Stage, Saturday August 17 at 2:00 pm. Morgan Toney brings the fiery fiddling of Cape Breton Island with the old songs of the Mi’kmaq People together with brilliance and heart.
Music’s an almost alchemical force to Canadian Mi'kmaq fiddler and singer Morgan Toney. In just a short amount of time, Toney has invigorated both the Atlantic music communities and Mi’kmaq communities by bringing together the fiery fiddling of Cape Breton Island with the old songs of the Mi’kmaq, some dating back up to 500 years. He calls this fusion Mi’kmaltic (Mi’kmaq + Celtic) and it's his way of celebrating his language and heritage. “There are two worlds of Mi’kmaq music,” Toney explains, “song and fiddle. They had never come together before. People knew of each, but never had I ever seen a collaboration between Celtic and Mi'kmaq culture before.
First Flight, Toney’s 2023 East Coast Music Award-winning debut album, showcases this unique combination, both in the way he transforms traditional songs like the Ko’jua and the Mi’kmaq Honour Song, but also for the new songs he’s creating. “Msit No’kmaq” was written partially in Mi’kmaq and features a fiddle break from the great Cape Breton fiddler Ashley MacIsaac. “Kwana Li” is a traditional Mi'kmaq song that Toney added new English lyrics to and “For the Elders” is a newly composed waltz from Toney.