It’s July, it’s hot, cowboy boots and short skirts as far as the eye can see…Ottawa Bluesfest is back!

Bluesfest organizers have had proven success with the country music demographic over recent years with acts like Jelly Roll and Shania Twain, among others, proving very popular in the Nation’s Capital city. For 2025 they opted to open the festival with the genre and rising star Lainey Wilson in the headline spot on the RBC Stage.

Our friends from northern Ontario, Sabrina and Dave aka, Rosewood Avenue kicked off the night. While I wasn’t able to make it to the stage in time from their set I did hear the entire set on my walk up from the LRT. It’s nice to see a duo like Rosewood get the opportunity to showcase themselves on the big stage; hundreds of thousands of streams not millions, no major label, no agency deal just raw Canadian indie country talent. Artists like Rosewood Avenue are often overlooked by large festivals for exact reasons I listed in the sentence before. Perhaps Ottawa Bluesfest can be a trend setter and show to everyone else that indie artists are just as deserving of the big stage as the major touring acts. Plus it’s a good luck to showcase some of our indie homegrown talent…now if only other festivals and events could follow suit.

I do my best to get to as many of the artists as possible at Bluesfest, which can be challenging in itself with multiple stages and overlapping set times. I guess Ottawa missed live music because it was busy on the festival grounds early. DB Cohen was on The River Stage by the time I made it to that side of the venue and the hill was already full of people. As I made my way through the venue I found the same story repeated itself in every area.

The area now known as LeBreton Stage area has a large Crazy Horse Bar tent as well as a Fireball Whiskey Patio and is nicely laid out with a boardwalk so, should we get a rainy day, you can ensure you’ll be mud free in that area. Chambers DesLauriers would’ve been on the LeBreton Stage when I got to the area but the two feature attractions were such a draw that it was almost impossible to get into the tent to catch a glimpse.

One notable performance that stood out to me in my travels through the venue on opening night was The Melbourne Ska Orchestra. Their early set brought a new level of energy to the River Stage, especially for opening night on a sweltering Thursday evening. This 26 member group from Australia has toured around the world in front of sold out shows and after seeing them last night it’s clear to me as to what their draw is.

The Red Clay Strays were a must on my list on the RBC Stage. With country music’s identity become more and more muddy with the hundreds, if not, thousands of variations many sounding like anything but country music the Red Clay Strays are a strong signal that country music’s early roots in rock, blues and gospel are regaining strength with this new generation of country artists and their fans. Lead by singer-guitarist Brandon Coleman’s incredibly power vocals this, Alabama based, group just mind find a spot at the top of our country playlists. I always consider music festivals an opportunity to preview a lot of bands and then determine which of those you want to see in an arena, or stadium, setting on their own tour. No question The Red Clay Strays fit that bill and I hope that we get a chance to see them on tour through our region again soon, with new venues like Hard Rock LIVE and the, forthcoming, History Ottawa there will be more reasons and options for these artists to come and visit.

Before I settled in to watch the RBC Stage headliner I had to visit the River Stage one more time. Father John Misty was performing the late slot on that stage. This is an act that is no stranger to the Bluesfest family of festivals having performed at both CityFolk and Ottawa Bluesfest in previous years and always an act that is recommended for me to check out. But yet I never have…until last night.

While Hozier might take Ottawa to Church tonight Father John Misty brought the Church to the crowd that packed the River Stage for his performance. Unfortunately, I was had to watch from behind the alter, so to speak, as I came in via the War Museum and the crowd was too thick to make it much further to get a decent glimpse. That said, I heard enough to know that I need to hear more and will keep my ears open for the opportunity to see him again in the future…I mean he’ll probably be back at CityFolk or even Ottawa Bluesfest in a year or two…one can hope anyway.

Speaking of country music returning to it’s roots and Ottawa Bluesfest supporting rising stars last night’s main stage headliner check all of the boxes. It’s hard to find an artist that’s rising faster than Lainey Wilson these days. Breaking onto the scene in 2019 with her third EP Redneck Hollywood and then almost immediately being picked up for tours with artists like Morgan Wallen and, of course, having her music featured on Yellowstone didn’t hurt either.

For me, personally, the love I once had with country music has started to fade…I just don’t have stomach for what’s been happening to the genre where songs that don’t seem to fit in any genre, or artists that can’t make it in any other genre seem to gravitate to country because…well it’s hot and, with a little bit of twang, some cowboy boots and a hat…and a song or two that mentions beer or whiskey, you can make it.

Lainey Wilson is not one of those artists. Lainey Wilson IS country music. She bleeds country music. Not this pop-country that we hear on country radio every day but real country. Dolly and Reba’s country. The country music that told a story, the stories that talked about life and meant something. Where every song makes you feel something.

For every artist like Lainey Wilson is another artist that inspired them. For Lainey it was Hannah Montana (aka Miley Cyrus) but at every Lainey Wilson show she crowns a Cowgirl of the Night. Where she goes out into the crowd and choses a young lady and inspires them…and at the same time everyone in attendance. Last night was no different. She chose a young girl, maybe 7 or 8, and empowered her to follow her dreams. If we could fast forward 10 years will that girl be making her Ottawa Bluesfest debut, or Opry Debut, and telling the story about July 10, 2025 when Lainey Wilson sparked that fire in her heart? Wouldn’t that be something special to be a part of? That’s what I love about music and it’s moments like this that make me love covering live music. You can watch the video in our Instagram stories here: https://www.instagram.com/stories/soundcheckentertainment/3674044331842424145/

And that’s a wrap for day 1. As I publish this I’m about to make my way down for night 2 of Ottawa Bluesfest where Hozier is the feature act on the RBC Stage in just a few hours!

More Photos by @reneedoiron