A new Calgary music festival is putting Indigenous musicians in the spotlight.
Stoodis Fest, which takes place in the University of Calgary’s MacEwan Hall on September 19, features more than 10 Indigenous musicians, an artisan market and cultural programming including a traditional drum group and smudging area.
“We started Stoodis Fest Society because we found that Indigenous musicians and Indigenous artists, they never know which direction to go, or the platform is never really presented to them,” says Blair Cunningham, president of Stoodis Fest Society, the organization behind the festival. “We want to give them the platform. We want to give them the stages to perform on.”
Performing at the first edition of Stoodis Fest are The North Sound, Wyatt C. Louis, Black Crow Funk, Turning Robe Drum Group, Pollux, Ekkohs, Redfoot, Sunflower Dreams, Lucid 44 and Culture Shock.
In an effort to make the festival accessible to everyone, Stoodis Fest is an all-ages, alcohol- and drug-free festival.
“Our younger generations need somewhere positive to go. Some of these performers can be idols of theirs,” says Cunningham. “When it comes to a lot of the things that we’re doing, we want to mentor the youth.”
Cunningham says they want to create opportunities for youth to get involved in future festivals.
“They can get in touch with us, and we’ll bring them on board and teach them how a stage is set up or how the event is set up,” says Cunningham.
And this inaugural indoor Stoodis Fest is just the start — there are plans for an even bigger festival in 2027. Stoodis Fest Society will partner with The Confluence for the 2027 festival, which will span multiple days and take place outdoors with a larger stage, more performers, a larger market, community organization booths and Indigenous food truck vendors.
“We just really wanted to get the community engaged and excited about what is yet to come and where we can be,” says Cunningham. “It’s to show people, ‘Look, this is what we can do in a small venue. Imagine what we can do with a huge venue.’”
MacEwan Hall, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr. N.W., stoodismusicfest.ca