‘More than a festival’: 2023 TD Sunfest to be ‘sunnier’ than ever in London, Ont. – London | 24CA News

Canada

Published 26.05.2023

‘More than a festival’: 2023 TD Sunfest to be ‘sunnier’ than ever in London, Ont. – London | 24CA News

From worldwide performers to musicians from throughout Canada, TD’s Sunfest in London, Ont., can be one of many largest this summer season.

In making a grand return for 2023, the annual four-day free competition will take over Victoria Park this July and can characteristic greater than 40 musical acts from across the globe.

According to Alfredo Caxaj, Sunfest government and co-artistic director, as much as 95 per cent of the acts are fully new to the competition.

“In many instances for some of the international groups, their first step will be here in London because they’re headlining many festivals across Canada as well,” he stated. “We have groups coming from Armenia, Nigeria, Estonia, South Korea and everywhere in between.”

The twenty ninth Sunfest can even see an array of Canadian artists coming from Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia and Manitoba.

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TD Sunfest returned to stay performances final 12 months following a two-year hiatus because of the COVID-29 pandemic. While final 12 months’s occasion nonetheless broke data and drew in round 100,000 distinctive guests to the Forest City, Caxaj instructed Global News that this 12 months can be “bigger, better and sunnier than ever.”

“Last year was just a warmup for 2023,” he stated. “The music is always nicely complemented by an incredible selection of food, craft (beer) and visual artists that really make the festival a unique attraction.

“There will be five stages, over 200 food and craft exhibitors, two resting areas, and, the most important thing, a beautiful and friendly environment.”

Caxaj harassed that “one of the fundamental principles of the festival, from the very beginning, is to make it accessible to everyone.”

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“Unlike many festivals, ours is free…. We truly believe that the festival is for everyone of all ages,” he stated, highlighting the variety of new and acquainted households that come out to Victoria Park yearly.

“One of the most beautiful things at the festival is to see all these families from different cultural backgrounds coming to celebrate together over cultural differences… It’s a place where we celebrate life, we celebrate diversity, we celebrate inclusiveness and accessibility,” Caxaj stated.

Sunfest co-artistic director Alfredo Caxaj.

Andrew Graham / Global News

Aside from Sunfest festivities, on June 17, Caxaj can be inducted into the London Music Hall of Fame with a Lifetime Achievement Award.

“I will take this as a beautiful acknowledgement of the work that we’ve been doing for more than 25 years in this community,” he stated. “When we began Sunfest, we didn’t see it as a competition. More than a competition, it’s a social undertaking.

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“As an organization that has been building race relations, we call Sunfest a global village as it’s perhaps the only weekend in London where will see thousands of people from different cultural backgrounds, races, countries, doesn’t matter. They come to Sunfest to enjoy and celebrate.

“There is nothing more beautiful than seeing that social impact created through the power of music.”

Sunfest is about to take over Victoria Park from July 6 to 9.

Below is an entire record of the TD Sunfest 2023 lineup: