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Osheaga’s 19th edition was one for the books.
The three-day music and arts festival and Montreal just wrapped up its 19th year by logging one of its most successful editions, drawing its second-highest-ever attendance with over 151,000 fans. It’s proof that one of the biggest festivals in Canada continues to get even bigger, with two out of three nights fully sold out this year.
Osheaga was Canada down this year, and Tate McRae helped make history. The Tate-headlined Saturday date (Aug. 1) was sold out nearly three weeks in advance, the fastest sellout ever for an individual day. The sales were largely driven by the Canadian hitmaker’s headlining slot and its massive hype. Evenko, the promoter behind the festival, already forecasted the sellout in May.
McRae took the stage for her first-ever festival headline appearance in her home country while simultaneously becoming the first Canadian to headline the festival since Arcade Fire replaced the Foo Fighters in 2022, and The Weeknd headlined in 2017.
The local spirit was remarkably high this year, with about 50% of this year’s crowd comprised of Quebec fans, up from about 40% last year. One of the weekend’s most anticipated moments came in the form of Quebec heroes Angine de Poitrine, who played a surprise set on Saturday. The band was booked in May, prior to their legendary record-setting set at Montreal Jazz Fest. They were saved as a last-minute surprise because sales were already steady, so they added some last-minute buzz. Osheaga initially soft-launched their appearance by including their name within the lineup on select merch pieces just one day prior to their performance, and later revealed them the following morning, giving ticketholders a guaranteed opportunity to see the world’s most viral band.
The festival has proven its knack for booking bubbling acts right before they spike in popularity, and this year’s edition followed suit with that trend. Rising singer-songwriter Stella Lefty, who is currently charting in the top 5 of the Billboard Canadian Hot 100 and Billboard Hot 100, filled up the Mountain stage during her ripe 3 pm set, and Malcolm Todd played the primary main stage after earning millions of new listeners in the past months, since the lineup first dropped.
As nostalgia continues to blanket 2026, this year’s Osheaga was a full-circle edition including several throwbacks to its own programming from 10 years ago, including Lorde’s return as a headliner and other Osheaga alumni making their way back to Parc Jean-Drapeau.
“Zara Larsson played in 2017. She’s had a great career, but now all of a sudden she’s huge,” Osheaga founder Nick Farkas tells Billboard Canada. The Swedish pop star pulled one of the weekend’s biggest crowds amid her major chart resurgence. Fans rocking bright colours and flowers filled the audience across both main stages, eager to hear Larsson’s hits both old (“Lush Life”) and new (“Midnight Sun” and “Stateside”). The Heated Rivalry craze also led Wolf Parade to the festival once more, with Farkas adding that it was “so much fun having Wolf Parade back.” The band famously played the inaugural edition of Osheaga and made their second decennial return this year, now having played in 2006, 2016 and 2026, a run that speaks to their own longevity as well as that of the festival.
Read more here. — Stefano Rebuli
OVO Golf Classic Doubles Its Support For The Remix Project and Scarborough Shooting Stars Foundation in 2026
October’s Very Own upped the ante for its second OVO Golf Classic last Thursday (July 30).
The clothing and culture brand co-founded by global superstar Drake took over all three award-winning courses at TPC Osprey Valley, home of the Canadian Open, for a spirited day of music, sport and community in support of the Remix Project and the Scarborough Shooting Stars Foundation. It was hosted by eTalk’s Tyrone Edwards, a Remix alumnus himself, and sports broadcaster Rod Black, the voice of the Scarborough Shooting Stars.
The event was produced by creative marketing and experiential events agency That Good.
While 2025’s first edition set a standard for the event, the second year was even bigger. There were 91 teams (up from 36 last year), totalling 364 golfers.
That included some major names from music, culture and sports: the NBA’s Devin Booker and Jordan Clarkson, football star Johnny Manziel and soccer star Jozy Altidore, OVO Sound artists Smiley, Nineteen85, Roy Woods and Jordan Ullman of Majid Jordan, social media stars Glamzilla, MD Motivator, Kyle Foregard of the NELK Boys and many more.
Following an 11 a.m. shotgun start, golfers spent the day playing through a superpowered version of the acclaimed golf course. Every hole was activated with exclusive giveaways and challenges, adding an extra layer to the action on the course. Billboard Canada was the partner for hole 11, letting participants star on their version of a Billboard cover between swings.
All the money raised went toward the Remix Project and the Scarborough Shooting Stars Foundation, the charitable arm of a Canadian Elite Basketball League team, funding youth programs that provide access to sport, mentorship and opportunity for under-resourced youth in the community.
At the end of the day, a helicopter dropped a set of balls onto the course, each with a potential big prize including a suite for 20 people for a Toronto Blue Jays Game, tickets to any NFL game, a $1000 OVO gift card, a Gretzky Hockey School jersey signed by Wayne Gretzky and a one-night, two-round stay for four golfers at TPC Osprey in 2027.
After everyone was done on the course, a special meal and reception fed and entertained the star-studded crowd.
Read more here. — Billboard Canada
Departure Executive Producer Steps Down After Two-Year Run
Kevin Barton has stepped down from his role as executive producer at Departure.
Barton held the role for both years of the conference and festival since it was bought by Oak View Group and Loft Entertainment in 2024 and rebranded from Canadian Music Week. Barton remains a partner and shareholder at Loft, the Toronto-based music company co-founded by former Bell Media and Universal Music Canada executive Randy Lennox and film producer Jeffrey Latimer.
“I’m concluding my role as Executive Producer of Departure Festival + Conference,” Barton tells Billboard Canada. “After spending the past two years helping guide its evolution, it feels like the right time for me to begin a new chapter.”
In March, shortly before the second edition of Departure, the Canadian Arts & Fashion Awards (CAFA) announced Barton would be taking an expanded role as chief strategy officer. At the time, Barton clarified on Instagram that he would continue in his roles at Departure and Loft.
Barton says his decision to move on from Departure was not driven by his expanded role at CAFA, but rather by a desire to focus on new projects.
“I’ve reached a point where I want to focus on a broader portfolio of work, including CAFA, strategic advisory projects, and developing new initiatives around culture, business and innovation,” he says.
Throughout his career, Barton has bridged the worlds of music, fashion and art, building the Urban Music department at Universal Music Canada and also working in film and photography.
Canadian Music Week’s transformation into Departure also shifted from its longtime identity as the Canadian music industry’s leading conference into one that also focused on media, technology, film, fashion and other cultural subjects.
“When I joined, one of my priorities was helping reimagine the festival’s identity to better reflect where culture was heading,” Barton says, expanding across creative sectors to reflect “how today’s artistic communities actually collaborate and create.”
Billboard Canada learned there were layoffs following this year’s edition of Departure. Barton attributes that to seasonal staffing, which he says is common across the live events industry. “Organizations expand to deliver the festival and then realign afterward as they transition into planning, partnership development and long-term strategy for the next edition.”
Read more here. — Richard Trapunski
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