When you think of big Canadian music hubs, the first places that probably come to mind are Toronto or Montreal. While these two cities are well known for the culture they have nurtured over the years, why isn’t Vancouver in the conversation? The talent the city has seen show that they should be apart of the big three. Yet, it’s becoming more common for up-and-coming artists to relocate to the eastern part of the nation to get noticed. Do It For The Culture, a music festival & conference is trying to change that for the better. For three-days, the festival & conference held panels, one-on-ones, networking opportunities, and of course, showcase performances to end each day. Their 2026 edition wrapped up on August 29th, 2026, and we got a chance to stop by Fortune Sound Club for the final day of performances. The artists of tomorrow showed out and we’re excited to share what we saw.
Starting the night off was Tommyphyll. Originally from Nigeria & currently based out of Winnipeg, he is the Western Canadian Music Award’s Afrobeat Artist of the Year for 2025. He’s out here winning awards for his craft, so coming into this performance, we knew we were in for a treat. Now if you want to talk about someone who has stage presence, then we need to talk about Tommy. His ability to command the crowd seemed effortless and his music got the crowd moving immediately. His deep voice mixed with a bass heavy sound blended very well. Afrobeat music in Canada has been on the rise for awhile now and Tommyphyll is a name to keep an eye on.
Next up, we got our R&B fix with Cameron James. With 40K on the beat, James put on a show. To give you an idea, think Justin Bieber but add in a rap flow from time to time. The production from 40K should be celebrated as well, as the beats fit James’ like a glove. At one point during their set, they invited Teon Gibbs to the stage to perform a joint track. Very promising sounds coming from R&B scene; you won’t regret checking out Cameron James & 40K.
The first time we experienced Dacey and her band was on the Main Stage of Phillips Backyard Music Festival this past July. During that performance, which was also the very first set of the entire festival, it was easy to see that we were witnessing the early stages of a star. Fast-forward to one month later at Do It For The Culture and that star-status is continuing to grow. When speaking with a delegate at the festival, they mentioned how out of the whole weekend, they were looking forward to seeing Dacey the most. With a full band behind her, she brought a groove to the room. A great voice mixed with some moments on the guitar; she really showed why so many were looking forward to her set. We’re calling it now; you need to see Dacey before she takes it to the next level.
Before the headlining act, we got a DJ set from Hush Music Party. There was quite the blend with this set. From Luther Vandross’ Never Too Much to Kaytranada’s remix of Janet Jackson’s If, this DJ set was truly for the culture. I did find the set to be shorter than what I would normally expect, but I could only imagine what songs they would bring forward if they had a longer set. This felt like the perfect way to move into the final performance of the night.
The final set of Do It For The Culture 2026 was Toronto’s SadBoi. This has been strong summer for the artist, from performing at Rolling Stones Canada’s Future of Music showcase during North by Northeast, to the release of her highly anticipated album, God Forbid I Have Fun. This Vancouver headlining performance was long awaited, but the wait was well worth it. When she graced the stage, the room roared with excitement. A personal favourite highlight from her set was the single from her latest album, All My Girls. This song is an absolute heater already and in a live setting, it feels like the intensity increased to levels unheard-of. Her set also featured songs from previous albums, like Baddies from her 2024 full length release, DRY CRY. The set closed with Gameboi, another single off Sadboi’s latest album, which felt like the perfect way to walk off from a 10/10 set. Not going to lie, Vancouver was pretty lucky to get a set from her as she’s already touring internationally and opening for top artists like Slayyyter. If you get a chance to catch a Sadboi performance, take that opportunity.
It was great to see Vancouver show out for an event like this. Do It For The Culture feels like a dream come true for the future of music in Western Canada. Our hope is to see the festival & conference return next year, because if there’s programs like this, then Vancouver will have no problem establishing itself as a place to grow musically so that artists will no longer have to leave to get notice. Our fingers are crossed and we’re sure yours are too.
