'Rejoicing to be back': What you can expect from this year's Winnipeg Folk Fest

The 2022 Winnipeg Folk Festival begins on Thursday, with a lineup that includes local performers as well musicians from all over the world.

This year’s event marks the first in-person festival since 2019 and features about 70 artists.

“We are so happy to be back here at Birds Hill Park again. We’ve got a full festival for everyone,” said Lynne Skromeda, the festival’s executive director, in an interview with CTV Morning Live on Wednesday.

Skromeda added this year’s festival features seven daytime and two evening stages.

“All the bells and whistles including our food vendors, our handmade village. We’re going to have thousands and thousands of people here rejoicing to be back at the Winnipeg Folk Festival,” she said.

Skromeda noted the lineup of performers was picked by the festival’s artistic director, who connected with many different people and travelled the world to check out new artists for the event.

This year’s lineup includes Tash Sultana, The Strumbellas, Kurt Vile and The Violators, and Bahamas.

Skromeda added that the festival is bringing back some of the people that were supposed to play at the 2020 Folk Fest, which was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It’s really happening. We are really back,” Skromeda said.

“We’re going to be on the site listening to great music with all kinds of amazing people tomorrow evening.”

The festival is also offering activities beyond the big performances, including an Indigenous welcoming ceremony on Saturday morning.

“It’s a really beautiful experience to welcome all the Indigenous artists to the festival,” Skromeda said.

Folk Festival kicks off on Thursday at Birds Hill Provincial Park.

- With files from CTV’s Ainsley McPhail.