I love going to music festivals. It’s a sort of mass celebration where everyone congregates to either enjoy their favourite musicians perform, or just simply for the vibe. For me, I’ve always been amazed at how this sort of congregation, where you can assemble thousands of people outdoors in front of a big stage to either see what’s new, or to just finally witnessing their favourite musicians perform. It’s a win-win situation here! But, I tend to see it more as some sort of “getaway,” especially when they’re are outdoor stages scattered around. You then start wandering off from one to the other, checking out the music. To me, this is a winning formula, because you’re tending to make music more accessible to the public. Think of the students, or anyone who’s strictly on a budget that can’t afford a $120.00 ticket. And at the same time, I’m not against it, because most of the time, the tickets to these music events get reinvested within their programming, making sure to get the artists that we want to see, what’s hot at the very moment, and witnessing up and coming ones too. Just like the “Festival d’été de Québec.” Sadly, I’ve never been, and I’ve always wanted to go! It’s been a staple in Quebec city since 1968, and their programming keeps getting better and better. However, the ride doesn’t stop there. Luckily I live in Montreal, and we’ve got so many music events, and to me, the best ones are these two. The “Festival International de Jazz de Montréal,” and “Les Francos de Montréal.” I’ve been going to these two music events since I was a kid, and never missed an edition. Both fascinate me for not only having stages scattered across the city, but how each one is dedicated to a genre of music making it more accessible to the public. The best concerts that I have seen up until now were at those events. For the “Jazz,” I’ve seen Anderson Paak, The Roots, Robert Glasper, Thee Sacred Souls, and the list goes on and on. And for the “Francos,” I’ve enjoyed Clara Luciani, Hubert Lenoir, Arianne Moffatt, and so on. Just these names should give you an idea at why both of these music events are my top favourite of all time. And it amazes me at how they’ve got only ONE RULE to follow, and that’s to vibe along with the music. Believe me, they’ve been doing that for a long time, PERIOD.