Eva Dunford is the co-founder of Republic Live and owner of Burl’s Creek in Ontario, Canada’s largest privately owned event venue. That’s been the home of influential country festival Boots and Hearts, where many of Canada’s most promising young country stars cut their teeth, and over the years it has also been home to All Your Friends Fest, WayHome and more. Increasingly, it’s growing beyond its home grounds. This year, Boots and Hearts West in Edmonton will be the festival's first expansion outside Ontario, while Republic Live’s footprint has also expanded beyond festivals through RLive, the company’s management division representing artists including Zach McPhee, Tyler Joe Miller and Sarah Vanderzon. Dunford prides herself on supporting the next generation of both music leaders and artists, and this has helped evolve Republic Live into an entertainment and artist development ecosystem.