With Manitoba musicians beginning to spread their wings — new freedoms allowed under recent COVID-19 public health easements — the 7th Annual (Aug. 27-28)
Whoop & Hollar Folk Festival is a perfect place to hear those wings beating.
But, and this is a big but…admission is limited under health restrictions and tickets to the drive-in park in your pod weekend quite possibly might become hard to get.
Once again festival organizers have booked a stellar lineup of Manitoba musicians.
FRIDAY
Jeannine Guyot
Francophone/roots/singer-songwriter Jeannine Guyot from Fannystelle opens the festival at 5 p.m. Soulful vocals, accompanied by artistic piano arrangements, are the essence of Guyot’s performances. She invites us to explore her authentic messages, speaking to us of francophone roots, culture, and rural life as only a person from “Chez Nous” can.
Sharing her warm and inviting personality, she composes lyrics and music that take you on a journey, connecting your experience to hers. Guyot released her first solo album, “Chez Nous”, comprised of original songs along with her favorite covers. Despite being unable to tour to promote her new album, she continues to perform in virtual settings, such as the Whoop and Hollar Winter series, all the while working on her new material. She is preparing to record an EP.
Guyot was selected for Le100Nons “projet découverte” in 2020-2021. Working with industry professionals through this exceptional program has inspired creativity and fueled her passion to further her career!
Guyot has performed at numerous festivals, concerts, and events in Manitoba for many years as solo, duo, trio, or full band.
MUSIC SAMPLE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrirDFsw6l0&t=63s
Double the Trouble – SUBMITTED
Double the Trouble
From performing at Government House on a personal invite to a Main Stage slot at Whoop & Hollar, Double the Trouble is a talented family band.
From Winnipeg, Double the Trouble is composed of identical 17-year-old Cree and French-Metis twin musicians Luc and Aidan Wrigley. Their blend of traditional Metis fiddling, contemporary, and classic folk music has been uplifting audiences across the prairies, nationally, and into the United States and Mexico.
Luc and Aidan began fiddling at age three and by age six they performed at the Indigenous Peoples Music Awards. At age of seven they began regular performances at Festival du Voyageur, a gig they became crowd favorites at for years to come. By age 9 the duo recorded their first independent album “Keep Calm and Fiddle on” and a second full album entitled “Juniper Woods” when they were only 11.
Over the years, they have performed at Trout Forest Music Festival in Ontario, the Maple Sugar Festival du Sucres in Calgary and Nanaimo, and the Winnipeg Folk Festival. In 2018, at the age of 13, Luc and Aidan wowed a crowd of seventeen thousand people with an amazing performance at the Canada Summer Games, then performed with Ashley Macisaac and the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra and were also featured alongside Juno nominated Indian City in the finale at the Indspire Awards. Other notable appearances include an Animal Shelter Fundraiser in Tofino, B.C., and at the Northern Trade and Commerce Convention, Rankin Inlet, Nunavut.
Most recently, they were highlighted in a Forbes Magazine article about an International Indigenous Tourism Conference held in Kelowna, B.C. where the boys enjoyed a stellar performance receiving a double encore and double standing ovation. With conference attendees from around the world, the boys sold out of all merch to a very long and adoring line of new fans.
Luc and Aidan began to write songs when they were 16, both on guitars that their dad passed down to them.
Music Sample (“Memoire”): https://youtu.be/1hqhf4FSQRk
The Prairie Joggers
The Prairie Joggers – SUBMITTED
Who says duos can’t produce a full sound?
The Prairie Joggers will pack a pretty big punch during their Friday night performance at the festival
As founding members of local blues-rock group Odder than the Otters, Goertzen (vocals, guitar) and Hill (drums) have played on stages across Manitoba, including Festival Du Voyageur and Rockin’ the Fields of Minnedosa. Their debut single, “Hola Luna”, was listed on the top 50 songs chosen by judges/panelists for 2018’s CBC Searchlight Competition.
Goertzen and Hill return to their roots with The Prairie Joggers, the next step in a songwriting partnership that has developed through garage bands, coastal beach towns, countless bars, and riverside rendezvous. Released in November 2019, the duo’s first single, “Moments Happen”, is a raw and energetic first step back into the music scene, a preface for the release of their debut EP.
Recorded by Micah Erenberg at Mustard House Studios, The Prairie Joggers debut EP combines down and out barroom blues with beachy daydreams. Blending easy listening melodies with warm drum tones, raw acoustics, and tremolo leads (performed by Erenberg himself), the release acts as an overview for the duo’s range in mood and style.
Music Sample (“Moments Happen”): https://youtu.be/-25qLTqfwNA
Juvel
Juvel – SUBMITTED
Hot club jazz with a fashionably modern twist, Juvel is an exciting up-and-coming group of young artists who take the stage at 8 p.m.
Juvel is the musical project of five dynamic Winnipeg musicians who strive to keep your toes tapping with the energetic sound of Romani jazz and early swing. Heavily inspired by musicians like Django Reinhardt and the Andrews Sisters, Juvel combines the dark, chromatic flavor of Romani music with the carefree liveliness of swing and rich three and four-part harmonies to bring the nostalgic sound of the ’30s and 40’s to their listeners.
Website and Music Samples: www.manitobamusic.com/juvel
Little Miss Higgins
Little Miss Higgins – SUBMITTED
Country, blues, folk and jazz, Little Miss Higgins, a consummate professional, can read a room and tune her performance to engage her audience.
Taking the spotlight at 9:30 p.m., Little Miss Higgins struts and serenades her way onto any stage playing music brewed up in early country blues, jazz and folk. For over 15 years, she has performed, toured, collaborated, recorded and released five independent albums. Her music has won three Western Canadian Music Awards and received JUNO and Maple Blues Awards nominations. Now, along with motherhood, Higgins has the newest addition to her list of accomplishments, My Home, My Heart. Recorded at The Song Shop in Winnipeg, Manitoba, My Home, My Heart is a collection of fresh songs from a unique artist, who remains true to her roots, but has ventured into new territory. Her voice has never been richer or songwriting riper, and the crew of Winnipeg musicians Higgins has brought together on this musical steamship shines with talent.
Co-produced with Scott Nolan and engineered by Jamie Sitar of Outta Town Sound, this album is an effortless addition to her impressive body of work. To top it all off, her hand-drawn ink artwork is used for the album cover design.
Little Miss Higgins (aka Jolene Higgins) was born in Brooks, Alberta, and raised in Independence, Kansas. Music entered her life early. “When I was about four my dad brought home an old mini-grand piano and told me it was mine. I carved my name in the side of it and then I had to start taking piano lessons.” Higgins now uses guitar and voice as her main instruments as well as her theatre background to bring a refreshing sound and story to the stage.
Higgins settled in Saskatchewan from 2002-2013 and that’s when music took the driver’s seat. Over that time she built her career touring across Canada performing in clubs, theatres and festivals. As a songwriter and musician, Higgins has been influenced by a range of artists from Memphis Minnie and Billie Holiday to Joni Mitchell and Dolly Parton as well as the vast array of Canadian musicians and bands she has had the fortune to see live or even share a stage with like Big Dave McLean, Corb Lund and the Deep Dark Woods to name a few. In 2011, Higgins opened kd lang’s album release tour in Britain and has appeared live on many CBC radio shows such as Stuart McLean’s Vinyl Café, Michael Enright’s Sunday Edition and Rich Terfry’s Drive. Her talents have also been put to use in the creation of a dust-bowl folk opera in collaboration with the Old Trout Puppet Workshop of Calgary, Alberta. Sharing her abilities with others, young and old, is another passion; she has taught songwriting at many schools and workshops including the Hornby Island Blues Workshop and Play & Record at the West End Cultural Centre in Winnipeg.
Higgins has since made the province of Manitoba her home with her partner and son. Though motherhood takes up most of her time these days, she continues to perform, write, paint, and cultivate her creative spirit.
MUSIC SAMPLE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kx9SatlINoo&t=7s
http://www.littlemisshiggins.com/
Alex Maher
Alex Maher – SUBMITTED
Alex Maher will get us up on our feet for a dance party in our pods He’s a musical prodigy, closing out Friday’s show on Aug. 27th @ 11 pm, and originally hails from Vancouver before recently moving to Winnipeg during the pandemic!
Alex’s music is a masterclass in instrumentation. Fusing jazz chops with classic soul influences, funk, and electro-pop, his song writing explores human connection in the Anthropocene.
A Filipino-Canadian multi-instrumentalist and loop artist, Alex’s solo performances showcase his musical instincts. Layer by layer, he performs percussion, electric guitar, soulful vocals, keys, synth, SPDS drum pad and alto sax. With lush layers, complex harmonies, and a driving rhythm, his music will make you move.
Based in western Canada, Alex has had a varied career both as a solo performer and a band member (DNA6, Flannel Jimmy). He’s opened for the likes of Weezer, Wide Mouth Mason, Bachman Cummings, Mother Mother, Sam Roberts, Robert Randolph, Shred Kelly, Begonia, Royal Canoe, and The Proclaimers, and played alongside performers like Tonye Aganaba, Kyprios, Daniel Wesley and Vince Vaccaro.
The seasoned professional has toured Canada and the U.S. and his music have been featured in shows like Roadtrip Nation and The Collector. February 2020 saw the arrival of Alex’s second EP, Dream Final.
Music Sample (“Reason”): https://youtu.be/eHCVj6H_ef4
SATURDAY
Cohen Sieg
Cohen Sieg – SUBMITTED
Opening the Festival’s Saturday program at 3 p.m. is folk/pop singer-songwriter Cohen Sieg.
At 19-years-old, Sieg, a rising star in the Manitoba music scene, has been writing and performing for almost half his life. Hailing from Sieg’s Corner, MB, he has become a local favourite and performs at festivals, events, and open mics across the country. A talented multi-instrumentalist, instruments including bass, keyboard, saxophone, and percussion, to name a few. Cohen is a solo musician but with the help of his looper, his performances encompass the sounds and impact of a full band.
Fired up by growing local accolades Cohen has quickly expanded his reach, including Los Angeles, CA, where he holds a certificate from the Musicians Institute, College of Contemporary Music, Perth, WA, where he toured in the fall of 2018 and Vancouver, where he co-wrote “The Thought of You” at Nimbus School of Recording & Media which featured Dave Genn, the bassist of the 54-40, and up & coming R&B artist Bukola. Following “The Thought of You” and his cover of The 1975’s “She Lays Down”, was his breakout single “Glad You’re My Girl”, which was recorded at Paintbox Recording in early 2020. The single has since gone on to be played on CBC radio and streamed globally many times since its release.
He has a passion for music that is undeniable, and you can hear it in the songs he plays such as The 1975’s “Somebody Else”, Phil Colins “In the Air Tonight,” and Charlie Puth’s “Attention.”
Music Sample (“Glad You’re My Girl”): https://youtu.be/05HBk_9OM0M
Glen McCabe
Blues / Folk / Indigenous (Métis) / Pop / Rock Winnipeg, MB Saturday @ 3:30 pm
Glen McCabe is a seasoned, grassroots singer and songwriter who has performed in many places in Canada, the U.S. and Europe. His songwriting has been diverse as he has used blues, folk, rock and pop as bases for his songs. In recent times, he has given a very contemporary spin to his song-writing, which has met with much praise and interest. His lyrics and music reflect human diversity, human rights, human development environmental issues and much more. Glen has worked with many well-known local performers, such as Bill Wallis, Jim Donahue, and Ron Paley, and has also worked and shared the stage with national and internationally known performers like The Irish Rovers, Valdy, Bruce Cockburn, and David Amram. Glen’s music has been influenced and informed by additional careers as a psychotherapist and a university professor. He holds a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and has been the recipient of international recognition for his academic work. However, Glen has never left music, which has been a personal and meaningful expression in his life.
Brennans’ Bounty
Brennans’ Bounty – SUBMITTED
A Portage favourite, Brennans’ Bounty, takes the festival stage next.
A family band, Brennans’ Bounty was in 2013 by Charlie Brennan. The band performs a variety of music, including original songs, country, bluegrass as well as classic rock. Joining Charlie is his wife Mavis, (vocals, keyboards), his stepson, Ian George (vocals, rhythm guitar, congas), his son Bryce (drums), Ken Campbell (guitars, pedal steel, mandolin and dobro) and Ken’s wife Glad on (bass guitar and vocals).
Brennan’s musical history including having performed in several bands, the most notable being Double Eagle Band. In the ’80s, Double Eagle toured with prominent artists as Alabama, Ricky Skaggs, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Conway Twitty and George Strait.
Double Eagle Band won several MACA (Manitoba Association of Country Artists) awards and was nominated for several CMA and Juno Awards.
Brennans’ Bounty has a genuine love of country music and a serious commitment to three-part harmony vocals. They have played many different venues in the past five years including clubs, festivals, fairs, concert halls as well as private functions.
The band has recorded a CD which includes all original material and was released April 25th, 2015 at the CD Release Party at The Glesby Center, in Portage la Prairie.
Music Sample: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-RVRxlPliNw
https://open.spotify.com/artist/4wznqxrHLJ6sTlToDKs3qb
Everything+
Everything+-SUBMITTED
Pop / Folk / Indie / Alternative Winnipeg, MB / Steinbach, MB Saturday @ 5:30 pm Everything+ is a pop/folk band with a passion for song writing and sharing their music. Andrea Dicks, Dylan Summers, Ian Ingram, and Paul Klassen met while pursuing music degrees at the University of Manitoba. With pop, folk, and alternative influences, Everything+ brings a unique sound to their covers and original music. The band combines rich music with compelling lyrics to create a fresh, new sound. This up-and-coming Winnipeg band is accelerating at an incredible speed. After starting out as a folk duo, they expanded to a full, four-piece band, which has allowed them to perform a wider variety of music and venues. With a growing repertoire of original content, Everything+ has music to suit any audience. They are a group that’s youthful, fun, and personable — on and off stage. Everything+ is passionate about the Winnipeg music scene and frequents venues such as Le Garage and the Handsome Daughter. Before the pandemic, they had the pleasure of playing on the mainstage at the Summer in the City Music Festival in Steinbach. This past year, Everything+ has taken a “behind-the-scenes” approach; honing their song writing skills and refocusing the direction of the band. As Manitoba re-opens, they are excited to jump back into performing live!
https://www.everythingplus.ca/
MUSIC SAMPLE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TWLc5mpcDI
Burnstick
Folk / Folk Blues / Indigenous / Roots / Francophone-Métis Winnipeg, MB Saturday @ 7:00 pm It’s folk music that’s brimming with the kind of chemistry that could only come from a husband and wife. Jason, a Plains-Cree guitarist, and Nadia, a Francophone-Métis singer-songwriter, create the are award-winning duo: Burnstick. Two performers whose voices and languages blend together with ease, Burnstick pushes the boundaries of contemporary folk music, weaving together the unique sounds of vintage Weissenborns with intriguing vocal harmonies, while allowing the beauty of simple melodies to shine through. It’s hard to deny the magic they create as they command the stage with their palpable performances. In 2015, the duo created an award-winning all-original lullaby album that married languages and bridged cultures. Coming back to their folk roots, Burnstick has released its long-awaited debut album, Kîyânaw, featuring thunderous singles “Pay No Mind” and “Some Kind of Hell”, topping the charts of NCI’s Indigenous Music Countdown in Canada. With this album, Burnstick encourages the reclamation of each other’s respective cultures while choosing to be stronger, together. Just this year, Burnstick won a Canadian Folk Music Award for Single of the Year (and nominated for the CFMA for Indigenous Songwriter of the Year) and was nominated for one JUNO Award for Indigenous Artist or Group of the Year.
MUSIC SAMPLE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbGPEL4ocMk&t=164s
D.B. + The Dead Beats
D.B. + The Dead Beats – SUBMITTED
Blues and folk go hand in hand.
D.B. + The Dead Beats perform a mixture of high energy blues rock mixed with mellow standards. Both originals and covers are found in their sets. The core of the band has been together for the past 10 years with a couple of new additions the past few years. In 2018 they released their debut album “Don’t Tell Nobody” to a sold-out crowd at Winnipeg’s famous Park Theatre. The band has also added an unplugged set to their repertoire to give audiences a different way to connect with and experience D.B. + The Deadbeats. There is no room too big or too small for D.B. + The Deadbeats to accommodate.
Website: https://dbthedeadbeats.bandcamp.com/album/dont-tell-nobody
Music Sample (“Don’t Tell Nobody”): https://youtu.be/g1ns9MY6gOo
Attica Riots
Alternative Rock / Indie Rock / Pop Winnipeg, MB Saturday @ 10 p.m. MUSIC SAMPLE: The members of Canada’s Attica Riots have what can only be described as a cosmic musical connection. Any musician will tell you that’s not always the case in a band scenario, where democracy can fail when egos, opinions, and dominant personalities do battle, thus sinking a band before it even sets sail. So, when you have that type of “on the same page” connection, you hold on to it. And that’s just what Attica Riots are doing. You can’t argue with the results, which are the fiery and infectious alt-rock anthems this trio creates.
http://www.atticariotsofficial.com
Pandemic restrictions pending
2-Day Festival now planned with in-person and virtual offerings, August 27, 28, & 29!
two days of drive-in mainstage performances at the Portage Fairgrounds on Friday and Saturday.
RV Camping available Friday and Saturday nights by registering at www.portageex.com.
Find tickets and more info at whoopandhollar.com!
Stay tuned for updates in this rapidly changing time.
Designed for COVID-19 health restrictions, it is a creative solution to adding and expanding Whoop & Hollar’s festival entertainment value.
Festival pod passes are available at www.whoopandhollar.com/tickets!!
