Host - Cliff Prang
Cliff Prang is a professional actor, comedian and amateur dad. His commercials can be seen on pretty much every major TV network and his season 4 appearance on the CW’s Supergirl finally shattered his ‘aspirational dad' typecast by playing the role as an ‘Alien… dad’. Other credits include, Girlfriend’s Guide to Divorce, The InBetween & Supernatural. He has been in love with making people laugh since birth and has a full menu of comedy options including stand up, improv, speaking, emceeing, auctioneering and delivers those services to a broad spectrum of audiences at Bars, Clubs, Schools, Churches, Fundraisers, Corporate Events, and now ZOOM. Cliff has over 22 years of improv experience with VancouverTheatreSports, The Panic Squad Improv and Funny Brothers Improv. As a stand up comic, Cliff has been lauded by Reader's Digest as one of 50 Canadian Comics to watch.
Website: www.cliffprang.com/
Barnaby McRae
Barnaby McRae is a soulful singer songwriter from Chillwack, BC. He's played hundreds of concerts across Western Canada both as a solo artist and with Ryan McAllister as part of his band 'North Country Gentlemen'.
Website: www.northcountrygentlemen.com
Facebook: North Country Gentlemen
Jenny Banai
Armed with a little guitar and a gorgeous, powerful voice, Jenny Banai “wields a magnetic power of like-ability both on and off the stage. With a guitar in her hands, there’s a clear and present energy that overtakes her” (Beatroute). Raised among the green pastures of BC’s Fraser Valley, she is an artist who lives and works in East Vancouver.
The contrast is aptly reflected in her work. Banai sets precise, homespun lyrics against vibrant, textured backdrops, pouring her observations and emotions into songs that give voice to the things many of us lack words to say. She’s remained wide-eyed since the release of her sprawling debut, “flowering head” (2015), capturing moments and fashioning her recollections into the remarkable new LP, “couchwalker.” Though it’s tempting to draw comparisons to the heights of Joni Mitchell’s ‘70s output, Banai’s work is unique. Like Joni, her songs aren’t quite easy-listening — they demand your attention.
Website: www.jennybanai.com
YouTube: Jenny Banai
Facebook: Jenny Banai
Instagram: jennybanai
Twitter: Jenny Banai
Magnus MacFarlane-Barrow
Magnus MacFarlane-Barrow OBE is founder and CEO of Mary’s Meals, a global hunger charity that provides a daily meal in a place of education for more than two million of the world’s poorest children. The nutritious meals bring children to the classroom, where they can gain a basic education that provides an escape route from poverty.
In 2010, Magnus was praised as a CNN hero for his role in founding and leading Mary's Meals and, in April 2015, he was named one of Time magazine's 100 most influential people in the world. Magnus’ first book, The Shed That Fed A Million Children, reached the UK’s prestigious Sunday Times bestseller list immediately after its release. His second book, GIVE: Charity and the Art of Living Generously, is also published by HarperCollins and currently available in hardback and audiobook formats. Magnus’ first book has been fully updated as The Shed That Fed 2 Million Children and will be published by HarperCollins on 30 September 2021. Magnus has given many public talks to audiences large and small, including delivering the keynote address at the World Food Prize in 2013. He has also spoken at youth festivals,Christian conferences and other events for a range of audiences including entrepreneurs, food industry experts and educators.
Instagram: magnusmacfarlanebarrow
Ryan McAllister
Ryan McAllister's sound blends folk, pop and southern rock. He’s shared his sense of humour and unique, heartfelt songs at thousands of concerts worldwide, playing stages alongside artists ranging from Willie Nelson to Sam Roberts.
His songs have charted on Billboard and his work as a producer recently won a Juno. Check out Ryan McAllister, North Country Gentlemen, and Dakona online to hear his music.
Website: www.ryanmcallister.com
Facebook: Ryan McAllister
Instagram: ryanmcallister_
Valley Music: Valley Music Co.
TESSA
Teresa Trask [Tessa] is a Singer/Songwriter driven by her social conscience,using music to give voice to those who have suffered and who desire peace. Her honest lyrics and rhythmic melodies create an expression of humanity that we can all identify with, as her songs deliver a sense of joy and hope to the everyday struggle we must all embrace.
For over 20 years Tessa has been a singer/songwriter and has worked with many artists throughout those years including well known worship artists David Ruis & Brian Doerksen. She regularly tours as part of The SHIYR Poets band, and released her first solo album One Kiss in 2018, which received a GMA Album of the Year Nomination! After the release of the One Kiss album she was asked to give a feature interview for Raspberry Magazine’s fall issue, and her first single from that album Love Came has received regular play on several radio stations across Canada.
While touring with Brian Doerksen and The SHIYR Poets, she has had the opportunity to facilitate many workshops and classes in the areas of Justice and the Arts, Songwriting, and Vocal Techniques. By sharing her passion and experience in these areas, she has inspired and mentored many young singer/songwriters along the way. Tessa is committed to giving back to the community by using the power of music to create positive, lasting change. Her music has been a source of comfort and support to women in addiction treatment programs, mental health facilities, and correctional Institutions throughout Canada, as she provides a cathartic musical outlet for those who have been marginalized and struggle to find their place in society. She is also the Founder and Executive Director of Lifehaven Women’s Support Society, a charity dedicated to providing critical supports to women who have completed an addiction treatment program and are needing assistance transitioning back into the community. She is passionate about empowering women who have suffered trauma or abuse, who have been homeless and forced into a life of prostitution, or who wrestle with ongoing mental health issues, to find a healthy, fulfilling path back into the community.
Website: www.tessaband.com
Facebook: TESSA BAND
Twitter: TESSA
The Crescent Sky
The Crescent Sky is a four person indie-folk band from BC that creates music with rich soaring vocal harmonies and dynamic instrumentation. Band members Anna Luth (vocals, percussion, guitar), Regan Luth (vocals, violin), Anna Ratzlaff (vocals, cello, piano) and Jason Ratzlaff (vocals, guitar) are individually strong songwriters and together they write vocally-driven music that combines both violin and cello melodies, whimsical synths and rhythmic guitar lines.
Since forming in 2018, The Crescent Sky has played CBC Nooners Concert Series, was the 2018 recipient of the Abbotsford Arts Council Emerging Artist Award, received nominations for multiple Fraser Valley Music Awards, and placed in the top 100 of CBC's 2019 Searchlight contest. In 2021, The Crescent Sky performed at the Harrison Festival of the Arts (BC) and Pigeon Lake Music Festival (AB), BreakoutWest’s Spotlight Showcase for the 2021 Folk Alliance International Folk Unlocked and the 2021 Folk Music Ontario Conference.
Website: www.thecrescentsky.com/
Facebook: The Crescent Sky
Instagram: thecrescentsky
Twitter: The Crescent Sky
Zaac Pick
Learning to embrace the uncertainty inherent in seasons of transition was the theme Zaac Pick had in mind when titling his sophomore album 'Passages' in early 2020. Usually thought of in terms of geography or phases, passages are often ambiguous and disorienting spaces, inhabited briefly while in transit to elsewhere — but it is these liminal moments that Pick so thoughtfully explores on each of the album's 8 tracks. Whether it's through a reflection on male vulnerability ('Strong Enough'), a cathartic portrait of a struggle with anxiety and depression ('Lighter Side Of Blue'), or the confusion of a 30-something life crisis ('Play Pause Rewind' — co-written with Jason Collett), 'Passages' reveals Pick as a songwriter who creates moving impressions of complex feelings we recognize, but often cannot express as clearly.
Pick has been steadily refining his brand of confessional folk-pop songs since 2010, with a string of releases that have earned him numerous features on TV dramas, and opening slots for the likes of The Civil Wars, and Bahamas. This June, Pick released a deluxe edition of 'Passages', that adds 4 re-imagined tracks. The newly exposed lyrics take on new meaning now that the world has shifted under our collective feet — as he sings "the only god I've seen, moves so quickly in between details and dreams" on a stark piano interpretation of 'Small Wonders' — one can't help but think of the everyday things previously taken for granted, now held a little closer.
Website: www.zaacpick.com
YouTube: Zaac Pick
Facebook: Zack Pick
Instagram: zaacpick
Twitter: Zack Pick