Good vibes were in the air well before the sun went down on opening night of CityFolk , taking place for the first time at a green and spacious site on the grounds of the RA Centre.
The festival kicked off its post-Lansdowne Park era on Sept. 16, a beautiful mid-week day, but with a last-minute lineup change prompted by the cancellation of the Marcus King Band , who pulled out for vague reasons related to travel.
Festival organizers instead called Ottawa’s Blakdenim up to open the main stage, and slid Australia’s Steph Strings into King’s spot. Headlining the night was the soulful rock sound of Brittany Howard and her band, Alabama Shakes.
Although fans expressed disappointment at King’s no-show, it didn’t appear to stop many from turning up anyway. My guess was at least 10,000 came out for the full night of entertainment, not just to see one act.
It was also a chance to check out the new site in a quirky corner of the city tucked behind Billings Bridge Shopping Centre, off the beaten track for most Ottawa festivalgoers.
But first, of course, we had to find the entrance.
Arriving by bicycle along the Rideau River pathway, my friend and I completely missed the main gate and had to double back. Other friends who arrived by rideshare were dropped off at the wrong spot, nowhere near the gate. (Hint: it’s near the corner of Riverside Drive and Data Centre Road.)
Still others paid close to $30 for an official CityFolk parking spot at a nearby office building, while many simply pulled into the Walmart lot steps away from the gate, risking a parking ticket.
We arrived at the main entrance and were delighted to see a free, supervised bike-parking lot operated by volunteers. By the end of the night, it was overflowing with more than 500 bicycles, both regular and electric, and extra volunteers were brought in to keep an eye on the overflow area. People also locked their bikes to any tree or fence in the general vicinity.
We signed in, left our bikes and carried on down a long, open-air corridor. On one side was a series of panels depicting the history of the former Ottawa Folk Festival; the other side was the new Vintage Village, featuring some of my favourite vintage-clothing vendors from 613Flea, the popular biweekly event at Lansdowne Park.
Resisting the lure of vintage for the moment, we found ourselves on the main field, surrounded by a perimeter of food trucks, bar tents, Porta Potties and other festival necessities. The big TD Stage was situated at the western end, facing east. The sun blazed directly in our eyes.
Under the huge tent to the south, the music had already started at the secondary Westside stage, with Emily Jean Flack striking an appropriately folky note. The southern Ontario songbird and her backup musicians delivered a lovely set of emotional balladry decked out with strains of Celtic fiddle, acoustic guitar and piano.
The Westside Stage later featured some of the most rocking Quebec trad I’ve heard in a long time from Nicolas Pellerin et les Grand Hurleurs, followed by a lively set from Cape Breton fiddler Ashley MacIsaac, whose scorching style drew a crowd so thick it was almost impossible to see the stage.
Overall, it was heartening to see the folk-music focus, and realize that efforts were made to distinguish CityFolk from its mega cousin, Bluesfest. The two festivals are run by the same team and both have anything-goes booking policies, but organizers seem keen to maintain CityFolk’s unique identity as a folk festival.
Adding to that sense was a display of photographs, including a selection from the Ottawa Citizen/Sun archives, near the entrance of the Westside tent, paying tribute to the grandfather of the Ottawa music industry. The late Harvey Glatt is fondly remembered for his support of music, both live and recorded, and especially folk music. He died in 2025 at the age of 91.
On the main stage, after a punchy set of jazz-laced hip hop (or was it hip-hop-laced jazz?) from Blakdenim, the folk factor accelerated with the acoustic guitar work of youthful Steph Strings. Performing solo, the charming Australian demonstrated her dazzling, rhythmic fret work, infectious songwriting and endearing stage presence.
It was a return appearance for the 25-year-old Strings, who played Bluesfest a couple of years ago and the 27 Club earlier in 2026. This time was memorable for the warm response from the thousands who thought they’d be rocking out to Marcus King Band, not a solo woman performer. With a few words of gratitude and a dimpled grin, Strings declared it the biggest crowd she had ever played to in Canada.
As night fell, the most serious issue became the lack of light across the site. Making it seem even darker was the blinding effect of the lights from the sports field nearby. I wasn’t the only person caught in the glare who almost tripped over something in the dark.
At one point, CityFolk/Bluesfest boss Mark Monahan emerged from the darkness to assure me his team had taken note of the problem, and planned to fix it.
With the music wrapping up around 10 p.m., the site exodus was chaotic, mostly because everyone was heading the same way, whether driving, biking or walking. The corner of Riverside and Bank was downright perilous due to the narrow sidewalk, constant traffic and construction.
Adding to the confusion were the emergency vehicles called to a fire in a nearby highrise residential building.
The festival continues until Sept. 20. Non-folky mainstage headliners include Cameron Whitcomb on Thursday, Third Eye Blind on Friday, Of Monsters and Men on Saturday and a final-night rock blowout with Alice Cooper and Sex Pistols.
To find the folkier fare, head to the Westside stage, where you’ll see acts like The White Buffalo, Pokey Lafarge, Tennyson King and Wales’ Gwenifer Raymond. Bleacher seating is available in the tent.
For complete details on tickets and times, go to cityfolkfestival.com.
