Departure Festival Adds Tegan and Sara, Fefe Dobson, Arkells' Max Kerman to First Year of Programming

Quavo and Murda Beatz will headline the closing night, with DijahSB and Felix Cartal also added to the slate of performers

BY Karlie RogersPublished Mar 20, 2025

Departure Festival and Conference, formerly known as Canadian Music Week, has announced its first round of artists and speakers for the very first iteration of the festival. Running from May 6 to 11, the festival will be hosted at Toronto's Hotel X and other venues around the city. 

Canadian Music Week was rebranded as Departure Festival and Conference in November under Loft Vision and Oak View Group (OVG). In partnership with Elevate, Departure Festival is described as a "dynamic and innovative launchpad bursting with diverse talent, audience favourites, and modern creative industry thinkers." The Conference portion of the festival will feature industry professionals from Canada and abroad, while the Festival will include musical performances and comedy sets.

UPDATE (3/20, 10:11 a.m. ET): As we inch closer to Departure Festival and Conference, organizers have announced even more additions to the lineup of its inaugural rebranded year. Tegan and Sara, Fefe Dobson and Arkells' Max Kerman have joined the event's slate of speakers, with Elvira Kurt and Scream star Jamie Kennedy adding to Departure's comedy lineup. Quavo and Murda Beatz have been announced as the headliners for the closing night's performances, which will also feature DijahSB and Felix Cartal.

UPDATE (3/4, 11:11 a.m. ET): Departure Festival and Conference has added Dallas Green, Shad, Shaggy, Jully Black, SPEXDABOSS and Justin Bua to the lineup, as well as How Did This Get Made? – Live and comedy stars Trevor Wallace, Pete Holmes and Harland Williams, plus music industry commentator Bob Lefsetz, CEO of Hipgnosis Songs Fund Merck Mercuriadis and more.

The first roundup of performers at the festival includes Tia Wood, Death from Above 1979, Papooz, Avenoir, Rural Alberta Advantage, Freak Heat Waves, Bria Salmena (FRIGS, Orville Peck, God's Mom), THWH Nailgun and former Exclaim! cover star Mustafa.

Conference attendees will be able to see record producer T-Minus in conversation with Brian "B.Dot" Miller, as well as Bryan Adams in collaboration with Radiodays North America, restauranteur and The Bear star Matty Matheson, OVG Chairman and CEO Tim Leiweke, tech leader Matt McGowan and crisis PR expert Molly McPherson.

In addition to music, comedy and tech, Departure will also host film presentations including Alex Ross Perry's excellent Pavements. Further film programming will be revealed in the upcoming weeks. 

Executive Producer at Loft Entertainment Kevin Barton shared in a release, "Our first edition of Departure is about honouring our roots in music and growing into other creative spaces while fostering the relationship between artist and industry." He continued, "This year's lineup showcases a wealth of established and emerging talent from across the country and beyond, creating opportunities for meaningful dialogue, sharing innovative ideas and building deeper connections within Canada's dynamic arts community. We look forward to sharing more programming announcements in the weeks to come."

President of Oak View Canada Group Tom Pistore added, "With its vibrant cultural scene, Toronto is the perfect home for the Departure Festival and Conference. We look forward to bringing together the most diverse and talented group of artists, innovators, and industry leaders to create a launchpad for the next wave of music, art, tech, and comedy."

More details about the festival and conference's lineup will be released in the upcoming weeks. Priority and conference passes, as well as more details about the festival and conference's programming, are available on Departure Festival's website.

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