#1 Get Excited For The Vancouver Folk Music Fest (Post Pandemic)
Today we’re going to dive into the amazing Vancouver folk music festival, and why you should consider going post-pandemic. Located in the heart of Kitsilano at Jericho beach park, the festival unites a beautiful environment with interactive arts and lovely music. Happening once every summer in the hottest week of July, it’s an unforgettable weekend that we need to support after normal life resumes.
One thing that sets the folk fest apart from the rest is the beautiful location. Not very many music fests get to reside in a park connected to one of the nicest beaches in the city. Jericho is a big, sand-filled beach with accompanying grass fields and hills- that double as a great place to nap midday. Far from industrial or urban, you feel like you’re in a different place. A great escape from the tiring routine you see downtown or in greater Vancouver.
The folk fest isn’t really about a single headliner or big artist list: the all-round vibe is sweet enough to enjoy without the big “hype” that comes with big artists. That being said, there have of course been awesome and often Canadian headliners such as The Bahamas, Sam Roberts Band, Charlotte Day Wilson, Barenaked Ladies, or Lord Huron. The festival is a great opportunity to enjoy authentic and talented musicians that you probably haven’t heard of or have a few songs of.
It’s also a cultural celebration of community. The folk fest goes out of its way to support local and small businesses with a great selection of vendors. From handcrafted jewelry to local art to delicious must-try food and drinks, you will not be bored for a second. The best part is the market: a separate section of the festival (open to the public) literally filled with clothing and jewelry stands for cheap prices and awesome quality. I always satisfy my never-ending ring collection here, for way better prices than the city.
With the sunny weather, waves crashing nearby, and the feel-good folk music, the Vancouver folk fest is a must-see post-pandemic event. Great for parents, grandparents or kids, take your family or have fun with your friends and you’ll have the same memorable experience. You’ll feel the happiest energy, the carefree dancing, and the overall hippy vibe, and are guaranteed for a splendid weekend. Go check it out!
#2 Getting into Production?
For anyone getting into the multimedia scene and wants to experiment with the production side of the industry, but don’t have the location or resources, consider renting studio space at local underground studio 2Track, located on Francais St. in East Van.
The space operates in two sections: a creative space for photography or videography and then two fully functional and impressive recording studios. You can rent out the studio space with an audio engineer or the creative space with lighting help from the staff. There is also rentable equipment ranging from high-quality cameras, camera equipment, lighting, set accessories, and props, the perfect example of a happy client is someone using the equipment and space for a music video. There’s even a white backdrop to achieve industry-level photo shoots or videos, with changeable lighting and amazing staff to help you create the set of your imagination.
I recommend this for a few reasons. One being that I think a lot of people are interested in creating something (be it a music video, photoshoot, album/single cover, etc) but never really moves past the “garage band” stage and takes it to a more professional level. For anyone trying to build a career out of a hobby they’ve started, it’s vital to make the jump so you can begin to be producing professional work and get paid for your talent. Secondly, people often criticize Vancouver for lacking growth in the music scene and lacking any type of real hype in the industry, but what we don’t talk about is that is it literally our job to be more involved in the music industry, to create more jobs and to push for creative excellence in everything we can get our hands-on.
If you have a passion for creating- especially anything to do with music- you have to take the leap of faith and start (or continue) putting yourself out there.
You got this! You’re braver than you believe.