Up Here announces a series of pop-up sessions with local musicians
Up Here, Sudbury’s urban art and music festival, will be releasing a series of music video performances starting tomorrow. The RBC Pop-Up Sessions featuring six local artists were shot in fun and surprising locations around Greater Sudbury.
The RBC Pop-Up Sessions will be released daily from Thursday, August 13 to Tuesday, August 18 and will feature intimate performances by folk songstress Julie Katrinette, indie-rocker Melanie St-Pierre, Juno-nominated electronic artist Bryden Gwiss, rapper and singer Jor’Del Downz, Peruvian-Canadian powerhouse Patricia Cano and crust punks Salted Wounds. The locations will be revealed as the sessions are released on the festival's Facebook and YouTube channels.
“With live events currently on pause, the creative community is in need of support now more than ever,” said Scott Simon, Regional Vice President, RBC. “This year’s Up Here festival is an amazing example of committed people working to fill that void, to help bring exposure to Sudbury and local talented artists. We’re excited that the RBC Pop-Up Sessions featuring emerging Northern Ontario musicians will bring us together, even while we’re apart.”
Local artists performing at RBC Pop-Up Sessions
Julie Katrinette is the folk-country infused solo project of local songstress, Julie Houle. Having stockpiled a collection of heartbreak songs, she is ready to offer them up as a musical letting go of sorts. Her upcoming album is an “adios” to grief gone by and a big “well hello there” to growth and to new beginnings.
As Melanie St-Pierre gears up to release her sophomore record with the force that is Casper Skulls, she has been hard at work on a self-reflective journey. With her new solo project, she shows she knows when to swirl into the echoing beauty of the ambient world and create a powerful yet delicate performance.
Bryden Gwiss has grown up on the pow wow trail: learning songs, drum teachings, and dancing Men’s Traditional Style for over 30 years. His music fuses traditional pow wow songs with modern hip-hop production. Bryden is originally from Neyaashiinigaming (Cape Croker, Ontario) and Sipekne'katik (Indian Brook, Nova Scotia) but currently resides in Sudbury. Bryden was nominated for Indigenous Music Album of the Year at the Junos in 2017.
Patricia Cano is a many-award-winning Peruvian-Canadian vocalist, songwriter, actor and total powerhouse. With a body of work that is rich and diverse, Patricia has stunned audiences around the world with everything from an 18-member orchestra to a one-woman show. If her smile alone doesn’t knock you off your feet, you can bet her voice will.
Jor’Del Downz seamlessly blends singing, rapping, percussion, and beat making. Born and raised in Sudbury, JorDel was totally blind until the age of four, when he gained back 50% of his sight. He always played his toys like instruments, showing an intuitive musical sense that’s only gotten stronger. He raises awareness about different kinds of blindness, something that never held Downz back.
A crusty quartet cobbled together by friendship and laughter, Salted Wounds convenes Rob Seaton (Statues), Andrée St-Onge (The Ape-ettes), and Adam Dempsey and Brady Middaugh from Skin Condition for a brand new project plumbing the depths of love, loss, and forgiveness. Taken with a grain of salt, these tunes burn a bit, but help the healing.
Rock’n’Robics with Ms. Holub
Local gym teacher Jennifer Holub became known locally when she started releasing hilarious workout videos for kids last April right as the pandemic hit. School’s out, but you can rock along with Ms. Holub this weekend in an Up Here exclusive interactive event on Saturday, August 15 at noon. No special equipment is needed; just bring a beating heart and a sense of humour!
Up Here 6
The sixth edition of Up Here has been reimagined for the ongoing pandemic and will see the creation of murals and painted hydro boxes around the city, intimate musical sessions by local artists, film screenings in collaboration with Sudbury Indie Cinema, a virtual panel discussion about Black art, an interactive, live-streamed game of porketta bingo, and more. The festival will continue to offer programming throughout the end of the summer and into the fall.
Community Support
Up Here has been able to thrive with the support of countless allies. A special thanks to Canadian Heritage, the government of Ontario, Ontario Creates, the City of Greater Sudbury, the Ontario Arts Council, Barrydowne Paint, Equipment World, Greater Sudbury Utilities, Collège Boréal, Studio123, Sudbury Integrated Nickel Operations a Glencore Company, RBC Royal Bank, Eastlink, Radio-Canada Ici Nord de l’Ontario, Duplicators, Bureau des affaires francophones de l’Université Laurentienne, and many more.