Westward Music Festival

The Westward Music Festival is a six-day music festival in downtown Vancouver that features both local and international artists.

After multiple years of cancellations, the Westward Music Festival returned in 2024! It took place on June 22nd and 23rd.

2025 dates and details are TBD as of early January.

Westward Music Festival

The Westward Music Festival celebrated its fourth year in 2024. It was the first edition of the event since 2019.

The festival features international bands playing multiple genres of music at venues like the Vogue Theatre, the Biltmore Cabaret, the Fox Cabaret and Red Gate. In previous years there was also a free street party with events and additional concerts in Yaletown, but that didn’t happen in 2024.

The headliners at the 2024 festival were Cherry Glazerr and Mick Jenkins. See below for more information on what the event was like last year. Details for 2025 have not yet been announced as of early January.

Festival Ticket Rates

2024 festival-goers could choose between weekend, single-day and individual show passes. Prices for the various bundles ranged from around $45 to $110.

There were four venues that hosted concerts on both days at last year’s festival. Nearly all of the concerts were part of a series of three, four or five shows in a row. All of them took place in the evening. 2025 details should be similar.

Ticketed Concert Schedule

The scheduled music lineup for 2024 is listed below. The festival used to be a nearly week-long event. Last year, however, it was shortened to just two days.

Saturday, June 22nd, 2024

7:15 pm – Devours at the Vogue Theatre.
7:30 pm – COTIS at the Fox Cabaret.
8:00 pm – Bloom Effect at the Biltmore Cabaret.
8:00 pm – Rempel and the Rousers at Red Gate.
8:15 pm – Haley Blais at the Vogue Theatre.
8:15 pm – NADUH at the Fox Cabaret.
8:50 pm – Tess Roby at the Biltmore Cabaret.
9:00 pm – Sid Simons & The Darlings at Red Gate.
9:10 pm – Cartel Madras at the Fox Cabaret.
9:15 pm – Debby Friday at the Vogue Theatre.
9:40 pm – Hotel Decor at the Biltmore Cabaret.
10:15 pm – Acid Tongue at Red Gate.
10:30 pm – Cherry Glazerr at the Vogue Theatre.
10:40 pm – Corridor at the Biltmore Cabaret.
11:45 pm – Worrywart at Red Gate.
12:00 am – Janky Bungag at the Biltmore Cabaret.

A Westward Festival Concert at the Vogue

Sunday, June 23rd, 2024

7:00 pm – Temia at the Vogue Theatre.
7:00 pm – Shimbashi Station at Red Gate.
7:30 pm – Non La at the Biltmore Cabaret.
7:45 pm – Ben Beal at the Vogue Theatre.
8:00 pm – Avey at Red Gate.
8:00 pm – Sunday Service at the Fox Cabaret.
8:30 pm – Biblioteka at the Biltmore Cabaret.
8:45 pm – Godly the Ruler at the Vogue Theatre.
9:00 pm – DACEY at Red Gate.
9:30 pm – Spank Williams at the Biltmore Cabaret.
10:00 pm – Mick Jenkins at the Vogue Theatre.
10:30 pm – Nobro at the Biltmore Cabaret.
10:30 pm – Pastel Blank at Red Gate.

Yaletown Street Party

In 2019 the Yaletown Street Party took place in Yaletown Park (at 901 Mainland Street) on the Friday between 4:00 and 10:00 pm. The free music continued the following day on Mainland Street between Nelson Street and Davie from noon until 10:00 pm. There was no street party in 2024.

When it happened, at the event there were alcoholic drinks for sale, a few food trucks and a stage or two with live music. Admission was free, but there was usually a covered area for folk who’ve paid for VIP tickets.

Whether or not this part of the festival will return in the future is unknown.

Westward Music Festival Street Party — Yaletown Street Party

Tips and Advice

Below are some suggestions and extra information to help you make the most out of your experience at the Westward Music Festival.

TIP #1: The festival features music from a wide range of genres. Unless you like all kinds of music, check out the background of individual artists in advance if you aren’t familiar with them. Not everyone likes rap, not everyone likes heavy metal and not everyone likes the acoustic guitar. There is something for every taste, but not everything is necessarily for everyone.

TIP #2: Don’t drink and drive. Have fun, but plan how to get home in advance. And take Public Transit if you can.

TIP #3: Some of the bands attract big crowds and tickets to their shows sell out. With other bands though, especially the non-headliners at the starts of the night, the audience can be pretty small (but not always). It depends on the artist, but also the time and the venue. If the cover charge for the show costs $15 or less, expect things to be slower, especially early in the evening. For concerts costing $40, expect the place to be packed and for the show to sell out.