For fans of local and provincial talent, the Ottawa Grassroots festival kicks off on Thursday and runs through Sunday afternoon at The First Unitarian Convention of Ottawa, 30 Cleary Avenue.
The event will be hosted by Anne Marie Brugger Thursday through Saturday and features six evening performers and 17 more during the day on Saturday.
Even more artists can be seen at the open mic on Sunday, hosted by Pam and Jeff Gleeson also known as ‘quiet sky.’
Food and drinks are available for purchase on all days of the festival.
Three artists to watch
Ok Naledi and Alysha Brilla bring a variety of fusion to Friday’s concert. Ok Naledi, previously nominated for Newcomer of the Year and New Song of the Year at the 2022 Cranium Arts Project combines Afro-house and Afro-Fusion music with elements of 90s R&B.
With lyrics describing queer love and what it means to live in the west as an African individual, they touch on what it means to be a queer Motswana-Canadian resisting assimilation.
Alysha Brilla, a three-time Juno-nominated singer-songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist is known for her unique combination of world, folk and soul music.
The Indo-Tanzanian artist combines Indian, East African and pop elements to create her music, which focuses on both connection, healing, repair, love and finding one’s voice.
Performing on Saturday is multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter, and fiddler Irish Millie who blends folk, contemporary trad and Celtic tunes to create her music.
The seven-time Canadian Folk Music Award nominee sings about love, growing up, and support, all of which is showcased in her EP between then and now.
Free Workshops
The Ottawa Grassroots Festival is also holding free workshops open to the public, including a 3 p.m. songwriting workshop by Lynn Miles, a Juno and six-time Canadian Folk Music Award winner.
The workshop, in Fellowship Hall, will discuss, among other things, how to overcome roadblocks for participants who are stuck in the writing process.
The majority of the workshops will be held in the workshop room.
Erin Okrainec, an award-winning fiddle player from Winnipeg, MB, who’s traveled across North America and Ireland, is hosting an interactive workshop surrounding fiddling on Saturday at 4 p.m.
Erin’s workshop focuses on experiencing and learning different fiddle styles from Irish, Métis and Ukrainian to bluegrass, Manitoba old-time, and blues. The workshop is open to all ages and experience levels.
All daytime performances and workshops are free. Kids 15 and under are admitted for free to the evening concert if they are accompanied by a ticket-holding adult.
Tickets are $39.67 or $40 at the door for the Thursday and Friday concerts. On Saturday, tickets are $43.93 or $44 at the door.
There are also three-day passes for $106.77.
All prices listed including the processing fee.
For more information regarding workshops, location of performances, and the 17 different artists playing during the day on Saturday please go here: https://ottawagrassrootsfestival.com/program/
To Register for Sunday’s open mic please visit: https://ottawagrassrootsfestival.com/2026/04/15/the-ottawa-grassroots-festivals-wants-open-mic-performers
For those who want to volunteer please visit: :https://ottawagrassrootsfestival.com/volunteer/
Preview at a Glance:
Evening shows:
Doors open: 6:30 p.m.
Show starts: 7:30 p.m.
Headliner: 9:00 p.m.
Thursday
Céleste Lévis, 7:30-8:15 p.m.
Les Bilinguish Boys, 9:00-10:15 p.m.
Friday
Ok Naledi, 7:30-8:15 p.m.
Alysha Brilla, 9:00-10:15 p.m.
Saturday evening
Irish Millie, 7:30-8:15 p.m.
Meredith Moon, 9:00-10:15 p.m.
Saturday daytime events
Doors open: 10:30 a.m.
Shows start: 11:00 a.m.
Show ends: 5 p.m.
Sunday open mic
Doors open: 12:30 p.m.
Open Mic starts: 1 p.m.
Open Mic ends: 5 p.m.
