The Montreal festival drew over 151,000 fans this year, selling out two of its three nights with a bill led by headliners Twenty One Pilots, Tate McRae and Lorde. This year's edition holds the record for the fastest sellout for an individual date.
The three-day music and arts festival and Montreal just wrapped up its 19th year by logging one of its most successful editions, drawing its second-highest-ever attendance with over 151,000 fans. It's proof that one of the biggest festivals in Canada continues to get even bigger, with two out of three nights fully sold out this year.
Osheaga was Canada down this year, and Tate McRae helped make history. The Tate-headlined Saturday date (Aug. 1) was sold out nearly three weeks in advance, the fastest sellout ever for an individual day. The sales were largely driven by the Canadian hitmaker's headlining slot and its massive hype. Evenko, the promoter behind the festival, already forecasted the sellout in May.
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McRae took the stage for her first-ever festival headline in her home country while simultaneously becoming the first Canadian to headline the festival since Arcade Fire replaced the Foo Fighters in 2022, and The Weeknd headlined in 2017.
The local spirit was remarkably high this year, with about 50% of this year's crowd comprised of Quebec fans, up from about 40% last year. One of the weekend's most anticipated moments came in the form of Quebec heroes Angine de Poitrine, who played a surprise set on Saturday. The band was booked in May, prior to their legendary record-setting set at Montreal Jazz Fest. They were saved as a last-minute surprise because sales were already steady, so they added some last minute buzz. Osheaga initially soft launched their appearance by including their name within the lineup on select merch pieces just one day prior to their performance, and later revealed them the following morning, giving ticketholders a guaranteed opportunity to see the world's most viral band.
The festival has proven its knack for booking bubbling acts right before they spike in popularity, and this year's edition followed suit with that trend. Rising singer-songwriter Stella Lefty, who is currently charting in the top 5 of the Billboard Canadian Hot 100 and Billboard Hot 100, filled up the Mountain stage during her ripe 3 pm set, and Malcolm Todd played the primary main stage after earning millions of new listeners in the past months, since the lineup first dropped.
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As nostalgia continues to blanket 2026, this year's Osheaga was a full circle edition including several throwbacks to its own programming from ten years ago, including Lorde's return as a headliner and other Osheaga alumni making their way back to Parc Jean-Drapeau.
"Zara Larsson played in 2017. She's had a great career, but now all of a sudden she's huge," Osheaga founder Nick Farkas tells Billboard Canada. The Swedish pop star pulled one of the weekend's biggest crowds amid her major chart resurgence. Fans rocking bright colours and flowers filled the audience across both main stages, eager to hear Larsson's hits both old ("Lush Life") and new ("Midnight Sun" and "Stateside"). The Heated Rivalry craze also led Wolf Parade to the festival once more, with Farkas adding that it was "so much fun having Wolf Parade back." The band famously played the inaugural edition of Osheaga and made their second decennial return this year, now having played in 2006, 2016 and 2026, a run that speaks to their own longevity as well as that of the festival.
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While acts like McRae and Larsson brought an influx of younger fans, with the primary demographic of 18-24-year-olds accounting for a slightly bigger makeup this year according to Evenko, Osheaga continues to serve all ages. From Clipse and JID to Geese and Franz Ferdinand, the festival continues to bridge generations of listeners across all genres, while also bringing other styles on board for the first time. This year, Yoasobi broke ground as the first J-pop act to ever play the festival.
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With one of its most successful editions yet in the bag, Osheaga is now gearing up to celebrate a major milestone next year, with its 20th anniversary on the horizon.
Stay tuned for Billboard Canada’s full Osheaga 2026 highlights and follow @billboardca for photos and video from the festival.
