New Renfrew music festival targets younger audience

The Renfrew Roots Music Festival took place for the first time this weekend in Renfrew.

The two-day country music show was held at the Ma-te-Way Centre grounds Friday and Saturday.

"We really wanted to bring something different to Renfrew," events and marketing coordinator Jenna McEwan said.

"We've done music festivals in the past. This one is really centred on supporting local and bringing in some big names that we haven't had in Renfrew before."

The Renfrew Roots Music Festival has replaced the annual Bluegrass Music Festival that was traditionally held in Renfrew each year.

"I think we wanted to engage a more diverse population and not just be focused on one type of music,"  Renfrew Mayor Tom Sidney said.

"It'll bring more of the younger crowd in," 19-year-old festival-goer Morgen Weeks said. "I mean, I'm here."

"I think it's great," said Renfrew resident Sherry Green. "I do like bluegrass but I'm more of a country fan. So I love this."

The Bluegrass Festival typically drew a couple thousand people over the course of its multiple days of shows and also featured on site camping for out of towners.

The town estimates roughly 600 tickets were sold for Friday night, with more expected to sell for Saturday.

Camping for this year's event was not an option, but organizers are not ruling it out for future events.

"For our first year I think that's a good turnout," Sidney said.

The Roots Festival line-up was composed of nearly all Ottawa Valley-based artists, including headliners Jason Blaine and the River Town Saints, The Abrams, Lemon Cash, and others.

Pembroke-based band Sawmill Road says changing the festival format to bring in a younger demographic will help local artists.

"It's important to bring them out because everyone's getting in their vehicles and driving down to the city to see the bigger bands," said lead singer Josh Coleman.

"While we might not have those bigger names in this area, we still have the energy, we still have the fun, and we still have the talent."

The Doughtery Sisters were one of the acts to open Saturday's festivities.

Sisters Caitlin and Sarah Doughtery were born and raised in Renfrew. They believe having well-known artists play big shows in the valley will help grow their career.

"To be sharing a stage with those names, in the future we can reference it," said Caitlin.

"It's great for us to watch the shows like Elise Saunders, artists of that caliber that we can learn something from."