FACT SHEET
History:
TD IRIE Music Festival, a multi-day, multi-venue summer music festival proudly celebrates its 11th Anniversary year.
The very first TD IRIE Music Festival was presented in 2002 in collaboration with the Toronto Urban Music Festival. IRIE Music Festival has since continued to expose culturally diverse artists to hundreds of thousands of fans while providing the larger community with a unique opportunity to celebrate African-Canadian culture. The TD IRIE Music Festival is widely recognized as a world-class event offering the highest quality of reggae, world music genres including Latin and African, and gospel music to our community every summer.
With free and paid music events, educational, professional development, networking opportunities as well as an awards presentation, IRIE Music Festival strives foster, develop, support and champion a vibrant, dynamic contemporary music and arts community in Ontario, thereby building and enhancing communities through the arts. More than just a music festival, TD IRIE Music Festival also celebrates the Canadian-Caribbean and African Diasporic arts through a multi-disciplinary programming focus that includes the development of opportunities for music and multi-disciplinary artistic talents of culturally diverse Canadian artists. Annual programming includes works music, dance, visual and spoken word performances and exhibits.
The TD IRIE Music Festival runs now annuallyfrom mid July through the first weekend of August, and now includes two new festival stages at Mississauga’s Celebration Square and also the soon to launch the inaugural Irie Oshawa.The inaugural Irie Oshawa is set to take place at the Oshawa Memorial Park on Saturday, July 20 and Sunday, July 21, 2013.
Milestones:
2002First edition of the IRIE Music Festival presented as a free event at Nathan Phillips Square.
2006IRIE Music Festival presented as a paid event at Ontario Place in addition to free programming atNathan Phillips Square.
2007IRIE Music Festival presented at Queen’s Park in addition to Nathan Phillips Square and Ontario Place.
2008TD IRIE Music Festival returns to a fully a free event held at Nathan Phillips Square and Queen’s Park.
TD Bank signs on as the title sponsor.
2009TD IRIE Music Festival continues to grow. An estimated 50,000 visitors attend 3-days of programming at Queen’s Park despite the cancellation of Nathan Phillips Square programming due to the 35 day Garbage Collectors strike.
2010TD IRIE Music Festival presented at Yonge-Dundas Square for the first time in addition to Queen’s Park and Nathan Phillips Square.
2011TD IRIE Music Festival presented at Queen’s Park, Yonge-Dundas Square and Nathan Phillips Square. Programming at Nathan Phillips Square reduced to film screenings due to reconstruction taking place on the square. The inaugural IRIE Music Awards event presented at The Phoneix Concert Theatre to critical acclaim.
IRIE Music Festival Incorporated registered as a not-for-profit corporation in Ontario.
2012TD IRIE Music Festival celebrates 10th Anniversary and announces expansion of the festival to include a third TD IRIE Festival stage at Mississauga’s Celebration Square. Public Mobile comes onboard as a sponsor.
2013Irie Oshawa is firmed and adding this new City offers Irie Music Festival to be the first official music festival to blanket the GTA from Central to West to East. Growing to three Ontario cities gives the festival an opportunity to bring in more diverse artists to the GTA.