It was on this Monday that Osheaga partners, Bell Alt Tv and Coors Light Canada, started to unveil bits and pieces of the 3 day music & arts festival held from July 31 to August 2nd. There is nothing like the hype and slight disappointment that everyone in Montreal feels when the Osheaga lineup is announced. As soon as we’re all in the metro going home from the Sunday show, we start wondering who will be there next summer. For the first time in a while, we didn’t have to wait till the end of February/beginning of March to decide whether we need to budget a 3 day pass or decide to save money and skip out on it entirely. The recent past editions have been amusing but also lacking in some sense. If you're well surrounded and are opened to pay the price to enjoy live music, depending on your personal taste, this year’s lineup is a hit or miss.
Osheaga in 2020 is celebrating its 15th anniversary, so bare with us if our expectations were a bit higher. Montreal is all about taking the right steps towards a greener future and adapting more sustainable practices but is recycling artists really necessary? Artists that played the festival in 2018 and are booked to play around the city in the months leading up to August will be performing at the festival. Festival lineups can be redundant but for the most part, they show an evolution in music and the artists of the moment. Looking through the festival’s lineups, it is clear that there is a great support for local artists and smaller “indie” bands, but as fans and people who discover music on the daily, there could be a way to adapt to the “trends” and really commit to the whole “indie” artist movement. That said, there is a remarkable variety of genres and styles that is represented each year at the festival through music.
Montreal’s most anticipated festival isn’t what we thought it would be. Seeing artists like Stevie Nicks, The Strokes, The 1975, Doja Cat and many more fill up other's lineups, it got us thinking big for Osheaga. Either way, there are still a lot of brilliant artists that will be performing.
Let’s go through each day of the lineup together!
Friday July 31: This year’s rock headliner, Foo Fighters, will be closing day one. Montreal and Toronto artists are well represented with Charlotte Day Wilson who released a new single this past September. PartyNextDoor, Jessie Reyez, Clay and Friends, Nana Zen and Pottery are a couple more to look forward too on the Canadian side. Vampire Weekend, Leon Brigdes and Rex Orange County are no strangers to the city and will ensure a great show!
Do not to miss: Parcels
Saturday August 1st: The ladies are taking over day 2! Lizzo is coming to the Osheaga main stage as one of her many headlining gigs this festival season. Canadian artists July Talk, Faouzia and Men I Trust will be performing. Clairo and Tove Lo are coming back and are sharing the Osheaga spotlight with Sampa the Great, Phoebe Bridgers, Mahalia, Yaeji and Brittany Howard (Alabama Shakes).
Do not miss: Sampa the Great
Sunday August 2nd: The last and possibly the best day where Kendrick Lamar is returning to the Osheaga stage after performing at the 10th edition. Caroline Polachek is going to be so hot it's going to hurt our feelings. Julia Jacklin is going to put those feelings in check, as well as Shura, Safia Nolin, Girl in Red and Soccer Mommy. Pop music lovers, Charli XCX, Pablo Vittar, Dominic Fike, Lauv and Lolo Zouaï are for you!
Do not miss: Inhaler
