The other day, I stumbled across the Ottawa BluesFest website. It's got quite an impressive lineup of talent; many of whom I'd love to see (Lee Harvey Osmond, Colin Linden, Chris Smither, Blue Rodeo, Doyle Bramhall, Neko Case, etc.). I was wondering though if it's really appropriate to call it a "blues" festival, in view of performers such as KISS, Ice Cube, etc.? This is a common issue I believe, as festivals often play "loose and fast with the rules" in order to attract a broader audience.
What do you think? Have you ever made the trek to Ottawa for this festival? Are there any festivals that you've gone to that required a lot of travel? If so, was the attraction specific performer(s) or the overall festival? Should this festival rename itself to a "music" festival and drop the "blues" reference or is that just nit-picking on my behalf?
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2 comments:
Steve: I don't think you're being a stickler. If all of those artists are "blues" artists, then the word doesn't mean anything anymore. Why not just call it a music festival? And don't even get me started on "rhythm and blues." When I was younger, R&B had a specific meaning. Now it's basically any rap song done by a female singer who can wail.
Dan, love your definition of R&B cause it's so true. Ottawa Musicfest would convey the same thing and be a more accurate represnetation of the dieverse performers IMO.
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