14 Gigs To Book Now For Montreal Jazz Festival 2025
Portrait of American jazz musician Ellis Marsalis Jr (left) and his son, fellow musician Wynton Marsalis, after a rare performance as a duo at The Blue Note nightclub
Festival goers are in for a real treat when Wynton Marsalis, with 15 of today's finest jazz soloists and ensembles, the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, performs a vast repertoire, ranging from rare historical compositions to original works.
AZYMUTH and Alex Malheiros performing in London
The legendary Brazilian trio will make their first-ever appearance at the Festival. Pioneers of a sound combining groove, samba and jazz-funk, Azymuth is Alex Malheiros, bass; Kiko Continentino, keyboard and Renato Massa, drums.
Makaya McCraven performs during Barcelona Jazz Festival
American drummer, composer and producer, Makaya McCraven has been described as a'beat scientist' thanks to his clever fusion of jazz, hip-hop, and electronic music. His newest album, In These Times, is the triumphant finale of a project of more than seven years in the making. McCraven says he's also 'really drawn to folk music. Music of aural tradition, music that is of the people where it's more of a collective experience of music and dance and culture that we all participate in and know as part of our being or as part of who we are.'
Samara Joy performs at the 2025 GRAMMY U Conference - Showcase on April 26, 2025 in New York City.
Bronx-born vocalist Samara Joy a rising jazz star of the new generation returns after her thrilling performance at the MJF last year. She won Best New Artist at the 2023 GRAMMY Awards and her new album, Portrait, highlights her talents as a lyricist in clever arrangements that blend her lyrics with the music of Charles Mingus, Sun Ra and her late mentor, Barry Harris.
Swedish musician Jay-Jay Johanson performs during his concert at Bobylon Bomonti in Istanbul, Turkey
Swedish singer-songwriter Jay-Jay Johanson is known for his melancholic vocals. His music has integrated the trip hop genre. For his Montreal gig, he'll be drawing from Backstage, his 15th album, a gorgeous combination of jazz, triphop and pop.
Local funk band The Brooks have cemented their reputation as a super danceable groove machine. Inspired by legends like James Brown, Fela Kuti, and Herbie Hancock, The Brooks perform a captivating mix of funk, soul, r'n'b, afrobeats and jazz.
Nas performs onstage during Hip Hop 50 Live at Yankee Stadium
Since the release of his debut album, Illmatic (1994) American rapper Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones, better known by his stage name Nas has been one of Hip Hop's leading voices. He has released 14 subsequent albums, 8 of which are multi-platinum and platinum including: Nastradamus, Stillmatic, God's Son and Street's Disciple. In Montreal Nas will perform with a full symphony orchestra.
Dianne Reeves, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Glynde Place, East Sussex
Five-time Grammy Award winning American jazz singer Dianne Reeves is one of the most versatile in the business. She's performed with Chicago Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Daniel Barenboim as well as with the Berlin Philharmonic conducted by Sir Simon Rattle. She has also been a featured soloist with Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra.
Avishai Cohen trio en concert live à 'l'Olympia' Paris, France.
Acclaimed bassist, singer, composer Avishai Cohen was a former member of Chick Corea's trio. For the festival the trio, featuring double bass, drums and piano, will be enhanced by a symphony orchestra that will perform contemporary jazz and world music compositions, orchestrated traditional Hebrew-Ladino songs, as well as classical works.
Drummer Nate Smith performs with The 8G Band on LATE NIGHT WITH SETH MEYERS
Betty Carter and Dave Holland were great influences on drummer Nate Smith and he joined Holland's quintet in 2003. In 2017, he released his first album as leader, Kinfolk: Postcards from Everywhere on Ropeadope Record. Smith fuses his original compositions with an eclectic mix of music, including everything from jazz to R&B to hip-hop to pop. His latest album, Kinfolk 2: See The Birds is the highly-anticipated follow up to his 2017 Grammy Award-nominated album.
Thomas Morgan, Bill Frisell and Brian Blade perform during the 2025 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival on April 27, 2025
Featuring the legendary guitarist and composer in the trio format he cherishes will be Bill Frisell, Electric Guitar; Thomas Morgan, Acoustic Bass and Rudy Royston, Drums. We can expect material from his new double album, his fourth release for Blue Note Records to be featured.
Branford Marsalis performs as part of the London Jazz Festival
The Grammy Award winner and Tony Award nominee is equally at home performing concertos with symphony orchestras and sitting in with members of the Grateful Dead but the core of his musical universe is the Branford Marsalis Quartet which is who we will hear at the Théâtre Maisonneuve at the festival.
Canadian singer Holly Cole performs live at the Goethe Theater, Germany.
Best-selling Canadian jazz singer Holly Cole will making a welcome return to the Festival this year performing a new repertoire from her album Dark Moon. Her smooth, melodious voice has earned her four JUNO Awards and the FIJM's prestigious Ella Fitzgerald Award in 2013.
Dhafer Youssef performing on stage as part of the London Jazz Festival
Nearly 20 years after his last appearance at the Festival, the master of the oud and an iconic figure in Tunisian music, will make a highly anticipated return.
Air Canada offers 12 direct flights a week from London Heathrow and direct flights from Miami, LA, San Francisco, New York and Atlanta.
Two great hotel options within a ten minute walk to the main festival venues are the 4-star Hotel Monville and 5-star Le Germain. Hotel Monville has 269 rooms with a hip urban vibe, housed in a sleek glass and concrete high-rise. Awarded a coveted Michelin Key last year, Le Germain features 136 rooms with the space, chic design and ultra comfort you'd expect from a boutique hotel.
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'The Institute': Canadian Fionn Laird steps into Stephen King's eerie world with a role that hides deep scars
Laird brings depth and nuance to his role as Nicky, navigating trauma, power, and secrecy in adaptation of King's novel Canadian actor Fionn Laird has stepped into the dark and fascinating world of the MGM+ series The Institute, based on the Stephen King novel, with the famed author an executive producer on the show as well. At the beginning of the series we meet Luke (Joe Freeman), a teen with genius intellect who gets snatched from his home and taken to a secret facility with a number of young people who have telekinetic or telepathic abilities. The kids held in the Front Half of the facility are given "tests," before they progress to the Back Half. Once their work is done, they do go home, but not before their memories of the Institute are completely wiped. Laird plays Nicky, a long-term resident who, rightfully so, is particularly skeptical of the authorities of the Institute, which includes administrator Ms. Sigsby (Mary Louise-Parker). And as it's hinted at early on in the series, Nicky has some scars and trauma he's holding on to. For Laird, being part of a show based on King's writing was particularly appealing for the actor. "When I researched the novel, it's a fairly newer one, ... but I like that it was kind of in line with classic Stephen King, like Carrie, which is my favourite Stephen King novel," he told Yahoo Canada. "Then specifically with Nick, ... he's just very much the opposite of who I am, in many ways. And so it was kind of fun to explore this completely new variety of character that I've never really had the opportunity to explore before." Nicky has a particularly impactful first moment in the show. After Luke arrives and he's meeting everyone else in the Front Half of the Institute, Nicky sits down at the table with them, entering with a tough attitude and a lot of bravado. "It was kind of the first time we were also all acting together, the ensemble of kids, ... so it was kind of my first impression on all of them as well, not just in the show," Laird recalled. "I was like, I'm just going to ... be relaxed, really sit in my body and kind of feel myself as the head honcho in this situation." "I remember, I took Birva [Pandya], who plays Iris, I took her glass of water the minute I sat down and took a sip of it. And I was like, you know, that sets the bar for what's going on. I was a little bit, I think timid at first going into it, but Jack Bender, who was directing that episode, ... he was like, just really get into it. You're all that, you're not just egotistical, you really are ... the head of the pack ... in this situation." But with that comes Laird's brilliant work to move through the show as a character that's holding secrets about his past. While he's not talking about his trauma, it's informing everything from how he speaks and thinks, to his physicality. "It's slowly revealed to the audience, what he's been through and why ... he has this kind of standoffish attitude towards not only the staff, but even Luke when he first gets there," Laird said. "And I think for me, ... he's been like this for so long, he has experienced this for so long, to the point where he's been forced to grow up." "So this trauma that he's gone through, for him, probably feels like ancient history, but has affected so much of who he is. And so it's always there with him. But it's in the back of his mind. It's kind of like The Wizard of Oz, like it's behind this huge curtain, but he just refuses to acknowledge it. ... So trying to find that from the get go, without being like, oh he's this poor, damaged soul. ... He's kind of witty and he smiles, ... but there's something darker below the surface, for sure." From theatre star to impressive on-screen talent Laird is a stage-trained actor, who studied at Toronto Metropolitan University's Creative School and has performed in theatre productions like The Louder We Get, Billy Elliot The Musical, A Christmas Carol, Julius Caesar, Macbeth and Richard III. And bouncing between stage and screen work is something he wants to continue to do. "I want to go back and forth as much as I can, ... even if there's a new performance medium they invent some day, I just want to do it all," Laird said. "It's nice to know that I can do both, and I'm not really pigeonholed into one specific medium. [I'm] very thankful I've had success in both fields, and I hope to keep it that way." Looking at the future of his career, Laird hopes that he'll have the opportunity to be in a production of a play by Branden Jacob Jenkins, with Gloria being one of his favourites. But the actor's theatrical experience is something he was able to bond with costar Mary-Louise Parker on, the Weeds star who has also had an extensive career in Broadway and off-Broadway productions. "Whenever I got the opportunity, I would talk with her about her career on Broadway and the plays she reads and that she enjoys," Laird shared. "And it was fun to see how much of her work in the theatre has affected ... her work in TV and film." In terms of transitioning from stage to screen, Laird identified that it's an adjustment he had to make quite quickly, particularly because of the pace of on-screen work. "Everything in TV, film is so fast paced, I feel like in theatre, because you're just building up to eight shows a week, you kind of have that grace period of like, well let's just make sure it's the best it can be," Laird explained. "Whereas in film [and TV] we're shooting this scene today and then we're done, or there's reshoots later, but typically they just want to do it then, because it's expensive with the equipment and the people." "I think for me, especially my first day on set, I'm like, I need to be in the TV and film headspace, otherwise this isn't going to work at all and I'm not going to be proud of the work I do. ... It helps when you're working with people who've done TV and film for a long time as well. But you just, you can't afford to have any of those habits from theatre coming to the work in front of a camera." 'When you're in it, you're really in it' But something unique about The Institute is that it's a story that puts a lot of its cast, particularly its younger actor, through some pretty intense and harsh circumstances at the hands of the staff at the Institute. Laird identified that the directors leading with "kindness" and "openness" on the set allowed the cast to go to those dark places for their characters. "There was just this environment of support, and whatever you need us to do to make you feel comfortable, we'll make those precautions," he shared. "Since it's such a large ensemble of young people in the cast, if you don't take the precautions to make sure that they're comfortable, or that when you are filming these scenes it's not a safe space, you're doomed to fail." "So I think they went into this project, in particular, with a mindset of, it's going to be as secure as possible when it comes to the heavy stuff." And with a show like this where such an immersive but closed off world is built for the story, it makes leaving the set an interesting experience as well. "When you're in it, you're really in it," Laird said. "It's kind of a step-by-step process. You leave [the set] and then you wipe all the the makeup off, ... and then my hair was all big and puffy, and then it's just dismantling every part of that, of Nicky, and what he's going through." "So by the time I got home, I was kind of like released from that oppressive space. [But] when you're sitting in there for hours and hours at a time, it really starts to wane on you, and the lighting needs to be a specific way. So then when you walk out and you're back into this natural lighting, it's like oh my goodness, the real world." Teasing what fans can expect for the rest of The Institute, the actor stressed that reaching Episode 5 means that the show has hit a significant "crux point." "[It's' a crux point for kind of every character, but specifically Luke," Laird said. "He kind of reaches an impasse of needing to make a decision and needing something to happen, he needs to take action. ... It kind of sets up the events of the entire rest of the series."
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Matt Rife Is Now The Caretaker Of The "Annabelle" Doll, And People Are Rightfully Concerned
Annabelle has a new babysitter! Comedian Matt Rife just announced that he and YouTuber Elton Castee purchased the home of Ed and Lorraine Warren. According to his video, Matt said he is now "the legal guardian for at least the next 5 years" of the Warrens' "haunted collection," which includes the seemingly haunted Annabelle doll. Related: Ed and Lorraine were paranormal investigators depicted in the Conjuring franchise by actors Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga. The pair founded the Warren Occult Museum where they housed the allegedly haunted artifacts from their investigations. "We do not legally own the items, but we are the legal guardians and caretakers of the items," Matt said, adding that fans will have a chance to "book a night or weekend" in the Warrens' former home, as an Airbnb. Why on earth anybody in their right mind would want to do that is beyond me. "If you know me, you know I'm obsessed with the paranormal and all things haunted. You also may know The Conjuring films are my favorite scary movies of all time. So I'm incredibly honored to have taken over one of the most prominent properties in paranormal history," Matt wrote in a caption alongside several Instagram photos of Ed and Lorraine. "Ed and Lorain[sic] Warren arguably put demonology and paranormal into the mainstream and are the very heart of some of the most famous haunted stories of all time, The Conjuring House, Amityville Horror, et…" Annabelle, which was actually a Raggedy Ann doll, was allegedly moving on its own, according to a student nurse in the '70s. The dramatization with Patrick and Vera led to sequels and other movies about the Warrens and their haunted artifacts. Related: In addition to the overnight stays, Matt and Elton plan to open the house for museum tours to learn of the "haunted history" surrounding the area. According to Tony Spera, the son-in-law of Warrens' said that he and his wife still own the doll and the Warrens' other alleged haunted artifacts but are leasing them to Matt and Elton. While the quirky comedian is obviously stoked to take on this project, his fans are rightfully creeped out given the history of the horrors within that house. One person wrote, "DONT TOUCH ANYTHING!! PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD DONT TOUCH ANYTHING!!" "RIP buddy. It's been nice knowing ya," another person wrote. Related: "If you disappear randomly we know why," someone else said. Of course, people couldn't help but find the humor in all this. Somebody said, "Would be very funny if he was very clearly actually possessed during his next special. Doing crowd work like 'Does anyone else here love being an evil doll?'" Republican personality Kimberly Klacik randomly said, "He's too hot to risk his life like this. These are ugly people activities." If you've seen Longlegs than you'll get this joke: Related: Other folks expressed concern that this might not be good for the Warrens' legacy and criticized Matt and Elton's involvement. "This makes me so sad for the doll like no way does she want this," one person wrote. Another person said, "Please honor them and don't turn everthign they've built into a joke." "I hope that people who book stays are respectful to the space." And finally, on a good note, someone said, "Congrats on the purchase. I know you guys are gonna resepct all the items that are in there." What are your thoughts about Matt Rife becoming the caretaker of Annabelle and the house of creepy artifacts? Sound off in the comments. Also in Celebrity: Also in Celebrity: Also in Celebrity: Solve the daily Crossword
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Aug. 3 (UPI) -- Pedro Pascal's Fantastic Four: First Steps is the No. 1 movie in North America again, earning an additional $40 million in receipts in its second weekend, announced Sunday. Coming in at No. 2 is The Bad Guys 2 with $22.2 million, followed by The Naked Gun at No. 3 with $17 million, Superman at No. 4 at $13.9 million and Jurassic World: Rebirth at No. 5 with $8.7 million. Rounding out the top tier are Together with $6.8 million, F1 at No. 7 with $4.1 million, I Know What You Did Last Summer at No. 8 with $2.7 million, Smurfs at No. 9 with $1.8 million and How to Train Your Dragon at No. 10 with $1.4 million.
