There’s no doubt that Peterborough Musicfest staff and volunteers view, each concert of the annual summer concert lineup as special but there’s something particularly invigorating about opening night.
That buzz spills over to the festival’s audience, which typically turns out in droves for the inaugural show — a festive gathering of sorts, that over the past few seasons, has brought summer lineup openers Natalie MacMaster/Donnell Leahy (2023), The Spoons (2022), and City and Colour (2019) to Del Crary Park.
For its season 37 curtain lifter on Saturday, June 29th, Peterborough Musicfest is bringing music to the ears of country music fans, welcoming two-time Juno Award winning singer-songwriter Tenille Townes, joined by special guest Griffen Palmer.
In bringing Townes to its stage, the festival has scored a coup of sorts.
Raised in Grande Prairie, Alberta — the same Canadian neck of the woods that has brought us country music heavyweights Terri Clark, Paul Brandt, Gord Bamford, and Brett Kissel — Townes has seen her star rise steadily since the 2011 release of Real, her debut album.
People who knew, knew, that there were big things to come from the 17-year-old singer who, on the strength of that first album, was nominated for a Canadian Country Music Award in the Female Artist of the Year category.
VIDEO: “Somebody’s Daughter” – Tenille Townes
Townes released her follow-up album Light just two years later, but a deal signed in April 2018 with Columbia Nashville proved to be a game changer.
The Lemonade Stand, her June 2020 debut album with the label, featured not one but two number one Canadian hits in “Somebody’s Daughter” and “Jersey On The Wall (I’m Just Asking)” — the former released earlier in 2018 as a single on its way to becoming Townes’ first chart hit.
Industry accolades for Townes followed in due course.
The 2021 Juno Awards bestowed upon her two statues — Country Album of the Year and Album of the Year — for The Lemonade Stand. Just this past September at the Canadian Country Music Awards in Hamilton, Townes heard her name called as Female Artist of the Year — the fifth time she has claimed that award.
Subsequent singles “Girl Who Didn’t Care,” “When It’s Gonna Happen,” and “The Last Time,” and just this year, “As You Are” and “Thing That Brought Me Here,” have cemented the fact that Townes is well worthy of any attention she has well earned.
In a March 2024 interview with Clayton Edwards of American Songwrighter magazine, Townes revealed a new album is in the works, noting she has a template of sorts for the sound she wants to capture.
VIDEO: “As You Are” – Tenille Townes
“It’s like ‘What would it sound like if I just showed up and played this music that’s in my heart the way that I do, and how can we find ways to support that without it trying to be anything?'” she said, adding “I really enjoy how that feels.”
According to her website, Townes’ Musicfest appearance is, at this point, her last live gig for a bit before she begins a major Canadian tour this fall. As much as her studio work has brought her success, the 30-year-old’s happy place is clearly performing live, bringing her music and energy to new audiences while satisfying the thirst of the many already well know her work.
“It’s that sacred feeling that exists when everyone is realizing that they’re a lot more alike than they are different,” she told Edwards. “It’s like we’ve all got different movies in our head that a song is bringing up emotions and memories for. All of those movies are unique to each person, but the common thread of emotion is the same. There’s nothing like that feeling. It’s the high that I am constantly chasing.”
Meanwhile, opener Griffen Palmer, a Pickering native, released his debut album Unlearn just last year, enjoying chart success with the single “Second Guessing” — originally written for Florida Georgia Line — while catching the attention of the Canadian Country Music Awards, for which he was nominated as Breakthough Artist of the Year.
In November 2023, Palmer released his latest single, “Heart Of Exes.”
Of note, Palmer co-wrote each song for Unlearn with Grammy Award-nominated songwriter Geoff Warburton — a collaboration, he told Kim Cyr of Now & Then Magazine in May 2023, that grew from a first encounter at a house party in Pickering when they were introduced by his then girlfriend.
VIDEO: “Heart Of Exes” – Griffen Palmer
“He (Warburton) took a chance and got to know me,” recalled Palmer. “We figured out that we both played for the same rugby club, love a lot of the same music, and eventually realized we like writing together. Geoff is family to me. This record (Unlearn) wouldn’t exist without him.”
In the same interview, Warburton’s praise for his songwriting partner is as good an endorsement one can receive, considering who’s doing the praising.
“Griff continues to blow me away every time we write,” he said. “He’s mature beyond his years. I think so m any people will really resonate with his story. I’m so proud of him and these songs, and I can’t wait for the rest of world to hear them.”
Peterborough Musicfest is presenting 16 free-admission concerts during its 37th season, each staged on Wednesday and Saturday nights until August 17th.
Overseen by executive director Tracey Randall and staff, a board of directors, and numerous volunteers, Peterborough Musicfest’s stated mission remains “to provide diverse, affordable live music to enrich cultural and economic prosperity in our community.”
For more information on this concert or the 2024 season, visit www.ptbomusicfest.ca or phone the Peterborough Musicfest office at 705-755-1111.
kawarthaNOW is proud to be a headline sponsor of Peterborough Musicfest’s 2024 season.
