A free Burnaby music festival announced its 2023 lineup this week, featuring a diverse array of performers, headlined by a Canadian music legend. Buffy Sainte-Marie will be the featured performer at the one-day Burnaby Blues and Roots Festival on Aug. 12. Now in the seventh decade of her music career, the acclaimed Cree singer-songwriter is still "touring constantly," according to her bio on the festival's website. She'll be joined at the event by Allison Russell, whose 2021 debut album Outside Child received three Grammy nominations and won two Juno, one for Contemporary Roots Album of the Year. She's the first Black artist to take home that award. Also performing will be Seattle-based R&B band The Dip, self-styled "minister of The Church of Better Daze" Boy Golden, and Arctic blues rock duo The Trade-Offs. Tickets will not be required for admission to the free event in Burnaby's Deer Lake Park, but attendance will be capped at 9,000, according to organizers. Gates will open at 1 p.m. and food and alcohol will be available for purchase. Guests are also welcome to bring their own food in soft-sided bags, but outside alcohol and beverages in glass bottles are prohibited. More info on the festival can be found on its website.
