It's The Third Annual
SPEAK Music Be Kind Festival
Saturday, February 12, 2022
WATCH HERE
IT'S FREE!!
w/ Suggested Donations to
The Anishnawbe Health Foundation
PERFORMERS 2021
Friday, February 5
Rollover photos for performer bios
Emilyn Stam and John David Williams' latest album Honeywood showcases original compositions and traditional tunes for European folk dances, and was nominated for a Canadian Folk Music Award. Their unique sensibility and interplay, merging clarinet, violin, and accordion, has been described as beautiful, playful, and witty.
Desirée Dawson is passionate about music’s role in collective healing, by encouraging listeners to find a connection within themselves and the people and land around them. Desirée has been featured on numerous CBC Music programs, has her songs on regular rotation, and won the CBC Searchlight contest in 2016. Desirée’s music is made to get us feeling and healing.
Communism wants you to dance. They want you to feel love, purpose, action, and ecstasy. Their strong message of togetherness, respect, and being helpful to each other, is magnified by primal rhythms, jaw-dropping visuals, and heartfelt, optimistic energy. Communism is Don Kerr - drums + vocals, Kevin Lacroix - bass + synth + vocals, Kurt Swinghammer - guitar + synth + vocals, and Craig Small - visual wizardry.
Pressgang Mutiny, from the port of Toronto, have been roaring out sea shanties since 2013. With high energy and rousing choruses, the group has become a favourite both at home and on the East Coast. They maintain a vital tradition of both singalong, and some lesser-known, workingmen’s songs that are the world's first truly multi-cultural music. Their performance will feature three core members: Stefan Read, James McKie & Richard Kott.
Alysha Brilla is a three-time JUNO Award-nominated artist, multi-instrumentalist, music producer and creative wellness facilitator, currently working on her fifth self-produced full-length record, The Body; blending global roots sounds with expansive lyrical themes and meditative undertones.
Saturday, February 6
Al Qahwa is Arabic for “the coffee house.” It was inspired by café culture in the Middle East, where people would go to hear the latest news, music, poetry, and stories. Their repertoire began with traditional songs from Syria, Egypt, and Iraq; then in 2018, the group started adding original repertoire. Al Qahwa Ensemble is Maryem Tollar on vocals, riqq (Arabic tambourine) and qanun (Arabic table harp); Ernie Tollar on wind instruments; Demetri Petsalakis on oud; and Naghmeh Fahrahmand on percussion.
Mama’s Broke is a powerful folk duo that deliver a compelling performance with heart and raw energy. Although highly influenced by their Canadian roots, Lisa and Amy are based out of nowhere and everywhere. Their two strong voices blend to create haunting harmonies, while they artfully juggle fiddle, banjo, guitar, and mandolin, and incorporate traditional dance and foot percussion into their performance.
International Museum of the Baroque
JV’s Boogaloo Squad formed in 2015, when Hammond B3 organist Joel Visentin joined up with guitarist Adam Beer-Colacino and drummer Jeff Halischuk. The musical connection was immediate and electric, the chemistry palpable, and all three instantly recognized that they had stumbled on something. They've since honed their vintage-yet-modern sound on the club circuit, becoming a fixture at The Rex, and playing the likes of the TD Toronto Jazz Festival.
International Museum of the Baroque
Mimi O'Bonsawin is an award-winning roots songstress. You can find Mimi out on the road bringing songs and stories to divers audiences all over this country and abroad. Her songs are heavily influenced by her French Canadian and Abenaki roots and flow through a centre of love and creativity. Her compositions are nurtured by the beauty of her home landscape, and her performances honest and raw.
International Museum of the Baroque
OKAN are named for the word "heart" in the Afro-Cuban religion of Santeria. The women-led ensemble fuses Afro-Cuban roots with jazz, folk, and global rhythms, in songs about immigration, courage, and love. JUNO nominees and Independent Music Award winners, OKAN's current LP Espiral debuted at No. 1 on the !Earshot International charts, and was included in CBC Music's Top 20 and NPR's Top 10 Alt Latino's Albums of the Year. https://youtu.be/_Kcm_3q9Sjo