Post Malone played perhaps the biggest concert of the summer in North America on Friday, July 12th. He performed in front of over 100,000 people at the historic Plains of Abraham during the Festival de Quebec (FEQ) in Quebec City. This is a normal thing for FEQ, an annual 10-day event that brings together some of the biggest stars in a variety of genres, but outside of Quebec, he is relatively unknown.
Malone performed after opening sets from Canadian band Valley and up-and-coming pop/country artist Jesse Murph. His set began with the crowd singing along to “Sweet Caroline” before a string section heralded Post's entrance onto the stage. He kicked off with his 2018 hit “Better Now,” with giant fireworks erupting after each chorus. Over the next two hours, he played a variety of songs, from the Ozzy Osbourne-sampling “Take What You Want” to “Sunflower” and “Congratulations” to his recent hit “I Had Some Help,” which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
He performed some adorably silly dancing and reveled in the applause that followed each song, which seemed to freak him out. At one point, he summoned a Quebecer named Felix from the audience, who came onstage, drank from a red Solo cup and strummed an acoustic guitar as Post Malone sang “Stay.”
This year's FEQ took place from July 4 to 14, and featured headliners from 50 Cent to the Jonas Brothers, Nickelback to Zac Brown Band.
FEQ invites big-name artists to perform on its main stage, but artistic director Louis Bellavance says it's not enough to just bring in big names: “They all have a role to play in what we're creating,” he says.
He says it's all about finding the right genre and performance that resonates with Quebec audiences. Quebec audiences can be different than other parts of Canada and the U.S. — R&B isn't as popular as in other markets, and neither are many English-speaking Canadian rock bands — but that doesn't mean rock doesn't work. Mötley Crüe packed the stage on the final day, Sunday, July 14, with a more multigenerational audience than you'd expect for a band whose sound and performance peaked in the '80s.
New this year was a performance by Spanish artists on the main stage on Saturday night, featuring J Balvin, Iván Cornejo and GALE. FEQ has hosted Latino artists in the past, but never a showcase on such a large scale as this year's. It was clear people had traveled for the event, as Colombian superstar Balvin lit up the flag in the front row and fans came from Spanish-speaking countries around the world. Fans from Mexico, Spain, Peru, Puerto Rico, Nicaragua, Honduras and Colombia all “feel at home,” Balvin said.
Learn more about FEQ here. -Richard Trapunski
Canadian Country Music Association Awards 2024 nominees: Jade Eagleson, Mackenzie Porter top the list
The Canadian Country Music Association (CCMA) has announced the official nominees for the CCMA Awards 2024. Topping the list of contenders are Jade Eagleson and Mackenzie Porter, who are nominated in six categories each, with the latter co-hosting the ceremony with American country star Thomas Rhett.
Following them are The Recklows and Josh Ross with five nominations each, followed by High Valley, Owen Lee Riegling and Dallas Smith with four each. Other notable Canadian artists on the list include Dean Brody, Steven Lee Olsen, James Barker Band, Brett Kissel, Tenille Townes and Lindsay Ell.
The awards ceremony will be held at 8pm ET on Saturday, September 14th at Rogers Place in Edmonton's downtown core and will broadcast on CTV.
Cast members include Dasha, Jade Eagleson, Brett Kissel, The LeCrows, Mackenzie Porter, Thomas Rhett and Dallas Smith, with more names to be announced.
The two main categories for the CCMA Awards are up for public vote by country music fans across Canada: This year's nominees for Breakthrough Artist or Group of the Year are Haley Benedict, Dax, Teigen Gaze, Matt Lange and Owen Riegling, and fans can vote for their favourites at ccmafanvote.com.
The 2024 Fan's Choice nominees are Dean Brody, Jade Eagleson, High Valley, James Barker Band, Tyler Joe Miller, Steven Lee Olsen, Mackenzie Porter, The Reclaws, Josh Ross and Dallas Smith.
See the full list of nominees here. –Kelly Doerr
Schoolboy Q's Toronto show canceled due to feud with Drake and Kendrick Lamar
The canceled show appears to be related to rap music's biggest story of the year: the bitter feud between Drake and Kendrick Lamar.
Schoolboy Q was scheduled to play a sold-out show at Toronto venue History on Thursday (July 18). However, Q announced to X on Wednesday that the show had been canceled due to a supposed feud. “Canadian police don't want anyone from TDE,” he said. [Lamar’s label] “Performing…” he wrote.
Schoolboy Q was once in the group Black Hippie with Kendrick Lamar and was a former labelmate on Top Dogg Entertainment (TDE). Lamar left the label last year. The venue's history is a partnership between Live Nation and Drake.
Q has since posted about the show several times, referencing PartyNextDoor's recent performance at the Hollywood Palladium in Lamar and Schoolboy's hometown of Los Angeles: “If you wanna wow people just do it…don't cry if someone gets hurt…”
Q later clarified that he thought the cancellation was funny and that the post was meant as advice, not a threat. “I never said 'kill someone' I just said smH would be fine if that's what you wanted to do,” he wrote. “I'm a soccer dad.”
Schoolboy Q, who performed at Lamar's Pop Out concert on June 14, also appeared briefly in Lamar's video for the Drake diss “Not Like Us,” reigniting the fading feud. Q and Lamar have been friends for a long time, having previously collaborated on Black Hippie with Jay Rock and Ab-Soul.
Drake followed up Q's post about X with an Instagram Story, leading some to speculate that he was making fun of the rapper. In the story shared, Drake appears to be wearing blue sandals, possibly referencing Schoolboy's single of the same name.
He's also wearing a shirt that reads “Free Yayo,” a reference to hip-hop artist Tony Yayo, who said in a recent interview that he doesn't want to get caught up in the Drake and Kendrick feud.
“I don't want to say anything about Drake and it sucks that I can't go to Canada,” he told VladTV.
No official reason for the cancellation was given, but the concert's event page on Ticketmaster states it was canceled by event organizers.
“The decision to cancel this event was made by the venue, not Toronto Police,” a Toronto police spokesperson said.
Billboard Canada has reached out to Live Nation for comment.
The reason for the cancellation was the recent attack on Rick Ross, who released the Drake diss track “Champagne Moments,” during a performance of “Not Like Us” at a concert in Vancouver. Drake liked a post about the incident at the time. – Rosie Long Decter