(This story is sponsored by the Vancouver International Jazz Festival)

Music lovers will have over 150 performances to choose from when the Vancouver International Jazz Festival touches down June 21 to 30. This year’s headliners include hip hop heavyweight Killer Mike, jazz guitar great Julian Lage and vocal sensation Veronica Swift. For artists you want to say “I saw them when,” head to Festival’s Free Downtown Jazz and Granville Island stages.

Like country music, blues is having a moment. Hailing from Kingcome Inlet, off the coast of BC, Garret T. Willie knows what makes the blues tick. Schooled in all the right source material, from Howlin’ Wolf, Albert King, and Muddy Waters, to Chuck Berry and Jerry Lee, to the Stones, AC/DC, and George Thorogood, the 23-year old gives rock ’n' roll a formidable 21st-century kick in the ass. Tickets are $10 at the door.

June 21, 8:30pm; Ocean Artworks

Blue Moon Marquee are winners of the 2024 JUNO Award for Blues Album of the Year. The spirits of Delta blues, ragtime, Howlin’ Wolf, and Django Reinhardt flow freely through this raw trio of guitarist/vocalist A.W. Cardinal, one-woman rhythm section Jasmine Colette on vocals, bass and percussion, and Darcy Phillips on organ. This show is part of the Free Downtown Jazz Series.

June 23, 2:15pm; Vancouver Art Gallery & šxwƛ̓ ənəq Xwtl’e7énḵ Square

Scott Smith’s Adventures in Pedal Steel spotlights the instrument in all kinds of genres, from country, soul, indie-folk, and gospel and gained traction through its regular monthly appearance at Vancouver venues like The Painted Ship. Alongside fellow adventurers Paul Pigat on guitar, Jeremy Holmes on bass, and Liam MacDonald on drums, Smith will play classic pedal steel instrumentals, songs featuring the earthy, pure tones of vocalist Marin Patenaude, and selections from Smith’s ambient pedal steel album Lifeboat: Explorations in Pedal Steel. Tickets are $10 at the door.

June 23, 8:30pm; Ocean Artworks

For tickets and show information go to coastaljazz.ca.