NewsletterJuly 17, 2025

🎶 Jazzfest + Pride + More things to do this weekend

Hey Halifax!

It’s Jazzfest and Pride weekend in Halifax, which means there is a ton to do! Let’s get right into the good stuff:

🎵 TD Halifax Jazzfest is in Full Swing!

Jazzfest kicked off last night with an amazing free show from Adam Baldwin and Aquakultre, and the forecast is looking great for the rest of the festival. If you’re on the fence and wondering which shows you should check out this week, here are our top picks:

Goldie Boutilier (Friday - TD Main Stage)
She’s technically the opener for The Decemberists, but we’re beyond excited to see Cape Breton’s Goldie Boutilier perform finally. She’s bubbling on the cusp of worldwide indie-pop stardom, selling out shows across the US and Europe, and the single most successful Atlantic Canadian solo artist on Spotify right now.

Big Boi (Saturday - TD Main Stage)
He’s being inducted into the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame later this year as one half of the legendary hip-hop group Outkast (Hey Ya!, Ms. Jackson, I Like The Way You Move, Roses, etc.), and this is his only Canadian date of 2025. This show will be nothing but classic hit after hit after hit!

Bill Ricky (Free Show - Saturday @ 1:10pm - TD Main Stage)
Nominated for Country Album of the Year at Nova Scotia Music Week later this year, Bill Ricky has everyone we talked to excited. Check them out for free Saturday afternoon. They’ll also be playing Blueberry Jam in Mabou, NS later this summer.

Mat Elliott (Free Show - Sunday @ 2pm - Hydrostone Park)
Freshly nominated for New Artist of the Year at this year’s Nova Scotia Music Week, his amazing EP South Endings has been in steady rotation over here since its release.

🏳️‍🌈 Pride Vibes

If Jazzfest isn’t your thing, the Halifax Pride Festival is also happening this weekend with a super fun lineup of events at The Garrison Grounds.

But our top Pride pick of the weekend is definitely Dyke Night Live. Think Big Shiny Tunes, Rankin’s Winter Warmers, or High School Mixtape, but make it Pride.

⭐️ Song of the Week

Sloan is back with their 14th studio album, Based on the Best Seller, dropping September 26. Live Forever, the lead single, is our song of the week. Here’s what the band’s Jay Ferguson has to say about the new album:

It's not a challenge to make a 14th album, but sometimes it's a challenge to think of a new overarching theme for a 14th album (and the Kinks' 14th album was Soap Opera, essentially a TV play and complete story arc set to music, so clearly Ray Davies didn't have that problem).

Our band has the capability to perform different styles within the rock/pop (or pop/rock) sphere, but it's often hard to harness the group to adhere to one particular style or theme. That's okay though. With four songwriters, we tend to make music that perhaps doesn't always naturally hang together under one (opened) umbrella but that's our style, and that style is continued on Based on the Best Seller.

Jay Ferguson

You can catch Sloan live at The Shore Club July 24 & 25, and at Red Farm Field Trip in Sydney, NS on August 3.

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Thursday, 7/17

Peggy's Cove Area Festival of the Arts @ Peggy's Cove
Runs until July 20

52nd Annual Nova Scotia Bluegrass & Oldtime Music Festival @ BeechBrook - 12 PM (Thursday-Saturday)

Up Close Magic Cabaret @ Trident Booksellers & Cafe - 12 PM

FESTOPIA Outdoor Day Party @ Moxy Halifax Downtown - 12 PM AT Outdoor day party with DJs, great vibes, and beautiful people. Come vibe, dance, and celebrate summer at Festopia!

A Beginner's Guide to the Night Sky @ The Bus Stop Theatre - 7:30 PM

TD Halifax Jazz Festival Presents Christine Jensen Quartet @ The Carleton - 8:30 PM

Halifax Jazz Festival: Mike Murley Trio Featuring Renee Rosnes @ Light House Arts Centre - 8:15 PM

Bearly's Trivia with Kieran! @ Bearly's House of Blues & Ribs - 6:30 PM

Iron & Wine w/ Sarah Harmer @ Halifax Jazz Festival - 7 PM

HALIFAX JAZZ FEST SIX STAR REVUE @ Seahorse Tavern - 10 PM

Brickworks @ Bearly's House of Blues & Ribs - 9 PM