Squamish Constellation Festival 2019: Day 2

Day 2 at Squamish Constellation Festival and everyone is looking and feeling good! The sun was shining and the mountains were clear, and everyone was feeling the energy of this gorgeous Saturday. Day 2 continued with no shortage of entertainment, artists, and excitement. Circus performers were parading the grounds, entertaining kids and parents with juggling, stilts, even teaching kids the basics! Picture a bunch of tiny humans attempting to walk on stilts. It was pretty adorable.

The kid-fuelled entertainment started off with the infamous Fred Penner, which was truly a blast from the past, if you’re a 90’s kid and up. While the kids were dancing and having a great time, nothing compared to the ecstatic cheering and screaming from all the adults! It was the true fans that were singing the loudest, I even saw a few tears in the audience (okay… myself included.). For many of us, Fred Penner was a huge part of our childhood, with his hit songs like “Sandwiches” and “The Cat Came Back” being a staple in the house. Although the kids didn’t quite get it, you could tell how moved the adults were; no one could stop smiling and singing!

Art d’Ecco even said on stage, “My sister used to babysit me when I was 6, and would play his songs so I would shut the %$@# up. Now I’m playing the same stage as him! Kids, take note; maybe one day you’ll be playing the same stage as me, when I’m old and grey and have an awesome beard.” Fred Penner does have an awesome beard.

(PS: Victoria, Art d’Ecco hits the Phillips Stage at 4pm today! Don’t miss them!)

Jocelyn Alice hit the Constellation Stage next, wooing us with her gorgeous vocals, starting off strong with an insane little acappella improv tune. Her bubbly energy on stage made her so much fun to watch, as she also liked to make funny faces at her audience. At one point while holding the mic stand she says, “I don’t need this, I’m just holding it because I’m nervous!” And put it to the side, making every photographer in the pit breathe a sigh of relief. Trust us, I could go on and on about his mic stands are the bane of our existence.

If you’ve never listened to Jocelyn Alice before, you need to stop reading this and go straight to YouTube or Spotify and look her up. A Canadian singer and songwriter, Jocelyn’s voice is a force to be reckoned with, hitting Platinum with her single “Jackpot” (which she played for her 3rd song, THANK YOU from your photogs!). In 2016 she won a pop/rock music award from SOCAN for ‘Jackpot’, and co-wrote Mother Mother’s hit song ‘The Drugs”. Her chemistry with friend and bass player Lisa Jacobs was absolutely dreamy, with the tightest harmonies I have heard in a while. Did I mention I am a huge Jocelyn Alice fan?

Next up we had Vancouver’s own Peach Pit on stage, rocking out in a flurry of hair flipping and jumping on speakers. They also made a comment about playing the same stage as Fred Penner. Neil even told the audience a hilarious and mortifying story, “I saw Fred Penner 22 years ago, and I was picking my nose in the audience, and Fred Penner was singing a song about picking your nose. He said, ‘Do YOU pick your nose?” And I thought he was talking right to me! I was mortified.” We all got a great kick out of that. The Vancouver Indie boys put on an awesome show, and Christopher’s moustache looked as majestic as ever.

A Tribe Called Red brought a different energy, however. Right when they came on stage they dropped the bomb of, “How many of you know what the RCMP do?” Going to say that “The RCMP is only around to control Native people”, and that one of the members of their group was “asked to leave because of profiling”. This got the audience reacting and booing, setting a bit of an uncomfortable tone. Although I can’t speak to what actually happened with their member, it seemed to really set them off and upset them. Although there are police at the festival each day, I have yet to see anything that would warrant a police escort out of the festival.

Once that was out of the way, A Tribe Called Red continued their set, and the crowd danced away. A Tribe Called Red is no stranger to Victoria, often playing at the Phillips Backyard, and Rifflandia. Part of the Halluci Nation, they believe in social justice, and helping indigenous people define their identity through their unique hip hop and electronic sound. Always featuring indigenous dancers in their sets, they are not a set to miss.

Once the kids were put to bed, and trust me, by 9pm those kiddos were dropping like flies, it was time for the queen Jessie Reyez to perform. Jessie performed at Rifflandia back in 2018, and Victoria loved every second of her. She may be small, but damn that girl can move! She is known to roll around on the floor, jump off walls, and even throwing herself into the audience to crowd surf (remember, Victoria? She yelled at us to catch her, and catch her we did!)

This time, however, her plans for crowd surfing had to come to a halt. Six weeks ago while she was at a show, Jessie unfortunately hurt her back, and has been out of commission ever since. Constellation Festival was her first show back, after weeks of physio and rest gearing her up for this fest. She said she wouldn’t cancel for the world! Friends, if you remember from last year, our dear Jessie likes to start her set off wearing her hoodie and a baseball hat, with low, dark lighting and smoke. Amazing for the audience, terrible for us down in the pit. By song three she ripped the hood and hat off, revealing that messy curly hair and huge smile we all love. Her set was going great, until about halfway through, when she had to lay down on the floor. After her song on the floor, she then got up, and exclaimed, “You guys my back is killing me. I don’t want to stop the show, but I’ve got to sit down”. A stage hand then brought her out a white couch, which she laid down on and continued singing. She then got tearful, saying how she didn’t want to let her fans down, she didn’t want to stop the show, and that she was going to keep pushing through. The crowd cheered and raised their hands in love and support, which prompted Jessie to say “you energy is keeping me going, I can feel the energy here!” Not going to lie, even I got a little teary. Throughout her whole set, she was telling us stories of how she got started, busking her butt off, trying to get discovered, writing songs for other artists, even going as far to tell us a sleazy producer story. Her drive and passion is what makes her a truly unreal artist, and her fans will be there for her every step of the way.

Jessie, constellation Fest is sending you positive and healing vibes! We love you!