TO Live has announced the return of the UpFRONT Festival, an Indigenous-led celebration of arts, music, and culture. For its second iteration, the festival of song, storytelling, and visual art will be presented outdoors, and all events will be free of charge.
The multidisciplinary festival of Indigenous community, culture, and creativity will feature over a dozen performances, interactive installations, an Indigenous arts and crafts market, and live graffiti art on the walls of the St. Lawrence Centre.
“The UpFRONT Festival is a celebration!” says Clyde Wagner, President and CEO of TO Live in a statement. “It’s an honour to support our partners TKMF Productions to create a fun space that celebrates Indigenous identity, invites meaningful dialogue, and showcases the vitality of Indigenous storytelling in today’s urban public spaces. With inclusion and accessibility at its core, the UpFRONT Festival brings Indigenous culture to the forefront of Tkaronto’s downtown arts scene.”
The festival will take over Berczy Park and Scott Street in the heart of downtown Tkaronto from August 15 to 17, 2025.
Headliners
Susan Aglukark
Uuliniq Susan Aglukark, OC blends the traditions of her Inuit musical heritage with contemporary songwriting for a style that is uniquely her own. Born in the Keewatin Region in the Northwest Territories, Susan sang in her father’s church choir, and first began to study the guitar at a Bible camp at the age of 15.
The JUNO Award-winning Inuk singer and songwriter sings in both English and Inuktitut. Her 1995 album This Child sold more than 300,000 copies in Canada, and became the first No. 1 hit for an Inuk performer. Among her many accolades is a Governor General’s Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement in 2016 and the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award at the 2022 Juno Awards, and she was named an Officer of the Order of Canada.
Sebastian Gaskin
Sebastian Gaskin is an award-winning, multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter and producer originally from the Manitoba Tataskweyak Cree Nation, today based in Toronto. His music has been noted for a combination of insightful and emotional lyrics with a genre defying musical style that draws on elements of R&B, rock and hip hop. Lyrically, he balances political commentary with expressions of joy. Sebastian won the 2025 JUNO Award for Contemporary Indigenous Artist of the Year for his 2024 single Brown Man.
Other musical acts include:
- Brothers Wilde, an Ojibwe country-rock duo from Kettle & Stony Point First Nation;
- Métis singer-songwriter Kaeley Jade;
- Mi’kmaq hip-hop artist Wolf Castle;
- Mattmac, a blind Anisininew music producer whose melodic pop-trap beats have earned him over 30 million streams;
- Electronic music innovator Classic Roots (Ojibwe/Blackfoot) brings a fusion of powwow-infused techno and house music;
- Shawnee Kish, a powerful Two-Spirit Mohawk soul singer and three-time Juno nominee;
- Mohawk and French-Canadian songwriter James Wilson;
- From the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation, MR. SAUGA is a singer-songwriter who brings together traditional knowledge of the Michi Saagiig people and activism in his music;
- Beatrice Deer, an Inuk/Mohawk icon from Nunavik, whose music combines indie rock, Inuk tradition, and throat singing.
More…
Families will enjoy Rabbit and Bear Paws, created by Henvey Inlet First Nation’s Chad Solomon, and performances of traditional dancing by Odawa Wiingushk.
There will be a showcase of visual arts in the lobby of St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts and Berczy Park for the duration of the Festival from August 15 to 17, and a free Indigenous art exhibition at the Meridian Arts Centre Gallery by TO Live’s Indigenous Cultural Curator Sierra da Silva-Canadien from July 28 to August 24, 2025.
The work of Indigenous artists, including photography, beadwork, sculpture, and more will be on display.
“TKMF Productions was founded with one purpose: to put Indigenous artists on the main stage. Our reciprocal partnership with TO Live allows us to amplify our efforts by promoting Indigenous artists from across the country in the heart of downtown Tkaronto,” notes Candace Scott-Moore, TKMF Productions.
Sista’s MexiKanata food trailer will supply a tasty fusion of Indigenous and Mexican cuisines, and an Indigenous arts & crafts market will be operating in Berczy Park from Friday to Sunday of the festival.
- Find more information about this free festival [HERE].
Are you looking to promote an event? Have a news tip? Need to know the best events happening this weekend? Send us a note.
#LUDWIGVAN
Get the daily arts news straight to your inbox.