The Halifax Urban Folk Festival kicks off its 16th anniversary with a bang as we present an opening night songwriters circle at The Carleton featuring host Dave Sampson with Mo Kenney and Andre Pettipas. Show time is 7 PM and tickets are only $35 + HST. There will be songs, stories and plenty of laughs.
Dave Sampson writes heart on your sleeve folk/pop songs, delivered with a captivating and authentic voice that could blow down a brick house. His knack for crafting simple ear-worms and his high-energy shows have been winning him fans from coast to coast. Collaborating with some of Canada’s top exports such as Classified, Alan Doyle, Donovan Woods & Neon Dreams as well as being chosen as one of five in Canada’s Walk of Fame emerging artist program, Dave has be working hard to solidify his position as one of Canada’s top emerging songwriters.
In 2019 Dave released his much anticipated EP All Types Of Ways produced by grammy award winning songwriter and producer Gordie Sampson. The project was recorded in Nashville at the Sound Emporium Studio and has already garnered multiple television placements in Canada and the US. In the same year Dave has also signed a publishing deal with Sonic Publishing (Kobalt) and also signed with Paquin Artist Agency based out of Toronto.
In 2016 Dave’s song No Pressure (No Diamonds) was sampled by Canadian Hip Hop icon Classified and released as his first single via Atlantic Records with Snoop Dogg. Since the release, the song went certified Gold in Canada.
“Heartfelt, energized and emotional, Dave Sampson has obvious natural talent as a Maritime singer-songwriter. Recommended for fans of Joel Plaskett, David Myles and Hawksley Workman.” – Grant Lawrence (CBC Music)
“Dave Sampson writes a great, heartfelt pop song and has a warm, inviting, laid-back style that will no doubt appeal to a wide cross-section of people. It’s not hard to imagine his music lighting up the radio and drawing crowds” – the Scope, St. John’s, NL
On their fifth studio album, From Nowhere, Mo Kenney embraces the textures of ambiguity and the rich blur of being, failing, and becoming. As they shift through lush arrangements that touch on dreamy folk, sparse alt-country, and warm, hazed-out lo-fi pop, everything is up for interpretation and nothing is fixed. In their lyrics, Kenney opts instead to defy definition, making room for non-linear and fragmentary sentiments that challenge their own feelings about personal growth, acknowledge the slippery and shadowy nature of memory, and build love songs that conjure the bonds of friendship just as much as they hint at romance.
Aside from this brilliant new album, Mo is probably best known for the hit singles, Sucker (For Your Face) and Telephones.
Inspiring growth through perseverance, Under Control – the new album from Andre Pettipas & The Giants – ebbs and flows bending the rock/pop influences from generations before us combined with our personal flair to create a product that is uniquely ours. The band walks a thin line between a showboat and a shipwreck and we wanted that portrayed on the record. This album’s straight from the heart. It’s about reflection; digging deep and telling the stories of our most influential ups and downs of the last decade.
Lately, Andre has been honing his chops as a solo acoustic artist, paring his songs down to their essential element: one man and his acoustic guitar.