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Country

Koe Wetzel, Turnpike Troubadours, Cameron Whitcomb & More Added to LASSO Montreal’s 2026 Lineup

The fifth edition of the country music festival will be headlined by Thomas Rhett and Mumford & Sons at Parc Jean-Drapeau from Aug. 15 to 16.

Cameron Whitcomb

Cameron Whitcomb

Shervin Lainez

The lineup for LASSO’s 2026 edition is coming into shape.

Today (Feb. 17), the Evenko and Live Nation co-produced music festival has announced its full lineup, filled with country and roots artists who will perform at Montreal’s Parc Jean-Drapeau from Aug. 15 to 16.


Over the two days, singer-songwriter Koe Wetzel, Americana collective Turnpike Troubadours, Nashville singer Max McNown and Canadian artist Cameron Whitcomb — returning for the second year in a row — are some of the bigger names on the lineup billing.

Today’s announcement follows the country music festival’s headliner reveal — singer Thomas Rhett and U.K. folk-rock group Mumford & Sons — back in December. Singer-songwriter Jon Pardi and Nashville band Old Dominion were announced then, too.

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Today, a slew of new artists were announced.

Indie folk singer Chance Pena, Tennessee duo The Band Perry, TikTok viral singer Waylon Wyatt and rising artists Laci Kaye Booth and Elizabeth Nichols will hit the stage on Saturday. Ontario quartet James Barker Band will also play that day.

On Sunday, Kentucky native Carly Pearce, singer and multi-instrumentalist Jonah Kagen, Southern rocker Blake Whiten and country pop trio Just Jayne play. Winnipeg’s Zach Chico, Quebec music collective Classe Moyenne and Saskatchewan singer Kalsey Kulyk are the Canadian additions.

Many of the artists on the lineup have hit the Billboard Canada Airplay charts. “Rocky Mountain Low,” Wetzel’s collaboration with Corey Kent, reached a new peak at No. 36 on last week’s Canada Country chart, while Max McNown’s “Better Me For You (Brown Eyes)” comfortably sits at No. 4. Whitcomb has secured multiple entries across the Airplay charts, with “Options” peaking at No. 8 on All-Format and No. 13 on Hot AC and “Quitter” securing a peak at No. 8 on AC.

James Barker Band’s “Somebody I Know” has scored placements on Country and All-Format, previously peaking at No. 2 on the former chart. Kulyk, a known Billboard Canada Airplay chart hitmaker, recently debuted on All-Format with “Till I Get To Heaven.”

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Last year, Rhett joined country juggernauts Morgan Wallen and Luke Combs on their respective tours, and even headlined his own run with multiple sold-out dates. Though Mumford & Sons boasts an anthemic folk-pop sound, the band has a devoted fanbase in Montreal and sold out the Bell Centre back in October. Not to mention multiple acclaimed albums, with their latest release, Rushmere, peaking at No. 25 on the Billboard Canadian Albums chart.

Both Pardi and Old Dominion have amassed hits on the Country Airplay chart, with “Boots Off" and “Making Good Time," respectively.

As the Montreal country festival embarks on its fifth year, it’s shifting from a three-day format to a two-day format. A

ccording to organizers, 2025 was a record year for the event, as they reported 51,500 fans hit the festival grounds to see headliners Bailey Zimmerman and Jelly Roll and Canadian stars including The Dead South and Whitcomb perform.

This year, the Canadian country music festival scene is expanding. Ontario festival Boots ad Hearts returns with headliners Jonas Brothers, The Chicks and Rascal Flatts, and festival organizers have announced an expansion out west in Edmonton, featuring Shaboozey and Russell Dickerson as headlining acts.

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Tickets for LASSO Montreal are available here.

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Influence Media Wins Bid to Acquire Anthem Entertainment’s Music Assets
Business News

Influence Media Wins Bid to Acquire Anthem Entertainment’s Music Assets

Sources say the BlackRock-backed company bid slightly above $650 million for the assets, though the deal has yet to close.

Apparently, the third time really can be the charm, as sources say Influence Media Partners has emerged as the winner in the auction for the music assets of Anthem Entertainment, the Canadian music firm that houses music publishing assets and recorded masters royalties from the likes of Rush and Timbaland.

While two earlier efforts to sell the firm in 2017 and 2022 came up short, sources suggest that in the third go-round, the successful Goldman Sachs-shopped deal saw at least two bids come in above the $600 million mark, even though most other bidders were said to be in the $500 million to $600 million range before dropping out. In all, sources suggested that about a dozen suitors kicked the tires on Anthem.

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