School of Song

Jed and the Valentine 

There will be love and laughter in the air if ‘Jed and the Valentine’ are selected to play CFF. I recently saw these two in concert and the lid was blown off my expectations. I had been following their social media and really enjoying their music but to see them live is a whole other animal. They are playful, humble, funny, super talented, and they add foot-drum percussion along with a loop pedal into their songs. I promise you, these two will not disappoint – quite the contrary. They will be one of the hidden gem discoveries at the festival.  They are climbing on social media with 73K followers on TikTok and building a solid base on Instagram. These two are hands down one of my favourite new music discoveries! 

Kaeley Jade 

Armed with a soulful, velvety voice, Edmonton-based Indigenous singer/songwriter Kaeley Jade blends lush poetry and hooky melodies to craft music that is both playful, relevant and poignant.  Jade’s music has been featured on editorial playlists across DSPs including Spotify’s New Music Friday and Fresh Finds, and in numerous publications such as Tinnitist (500k+ Twitter followers), SAY Magazine and The GATE. Her debut single “Years Ago” was added to regular rotation on 102.3 NOW! Radio and her song “Highway 16” charted in the top 10 of the Indigenous Music Countdown. Reminiscent of artists like Maggie Rogers, Vance Joy and Taylor Swift, Kaeley explores the beauty and complexity of human relationships in her vibrant and polished indie pop. Produced by the Juno-nominated team at Velveteen Music, her music is available on iTunes, Spotify, Apple Music and all streaming platforms. 

Brianna Lizotte  

Brianna Lizotte is a Metis fiddler who grew up in Sylvan Lake steeped in the traditional music of her ancestors. As the musicians in her family began to pass away, Brianna took it upon herself to keep them alive through the music they loved. A talented traditional fiddle player, Brianna’s musicianship and demeanor has led to some amazing opportunities including an emotional performance for the Pope in Rome and feature spots at the Edmonton Folk Music Festival in 2022. Brianna performs traditional jigs and reels accompanied by long time friend and solid rhythm guitarist, Justin Smith. Her most recent release ‘Scratch em’ is a lively homage to the traditional songs played by her uncles; grandfather and great-grandfathers. 

Mari Rosehill  

Mari Rosehill reflects on life’s subtleties and expresses it best through song. Ranging from soft, operatic highs, to full low tones, her introspective styled lyrics invite you to take a look into how she thinks. Insecurities that have held her back and beautiful moments that propel her forward. The now sober songstress continues on this search for ones self and her artistry helps along the way.  A regular at the Canmore Market and venues about town.  Mari was a participant in the 2021 Canmore Folk Festival’s Mentorship Project, mentoring with festival alumna Ndidi O, opened for Catherine MacLellan, and the Small Glories, and was selected to perform with Danny Michel for our Festival Friday Song contest in 2022.  Mari was awarded the Lamphouse Endowment for the Arts: Emerging Artist Bursary.  She joins the School of Song crew this year. 

Sammy Volkov 

Sammy’s newest release ‘Be Alright!’ debuted at #1 on the CKUA Top 30 Chart, #38 on CKUA’s Top 200 Albums of 2022 and #19 on Eartshot National Top 50 Chart. He’s a poet, a lyricist, musically obsessed and an artist through and through. One needs only peruse the quotes on his website to know that Sammy Volkov is one to watch. From his bio: Canadian-American artist Sammy Volkov is pretty weird. Rather than socializing, he spent most of his formative years collecting records and inventing secret songs in his mind. If he likes what he hears in a performance, he has the audacity to picture himself as a contemporary to that artist. It doesn’t matter how old the recording is, Sammy might borrow a couple of quirks from Sinatra, a little flourish from M. Ward or Neil Young, a riff from the Shirelles, and before you know it, you’re presented with an esoteric palette of sonic colours.