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Home , Between the Two of Them, Classified (rapper), Coleman Hell, Dear Rouge, Future Nostalgia, Inner Ninja

May 26, 2016 BACKGROUNDER

2016 Coca-Cola Stage lineup

Christian Hudson Appearing Thursday, July 7, 7 p.m. Website: http://www.christianhudsonmusic.com/ : https://www.facebook.com/ChristianHudsonMusic : www.twitter.com/CHsongs

While most may know Christian Hudson by his unique and memorable performances at numerous venues across Western Canada, others seem to know him by his philanthropy. This talented young man won the prestigious Stampede Talent Show last summer but what was surprising to many was he took his prize money of $10,000 and donated it all to the local drop-in centre. He was touched by the stories he was told by a few people experiencing homelessness he had met one night prior to the contest’s finale. His infectious originals have caught the ears of many in the industry that are now assisting his career. He was honoured to receive 'The Spirit of Calgary' Award at the inaugural Vigor Awards for his generosity. Hudson will soon be touring Canada upon the release of his first single on national radio.

JJ Shiplett Appearing Thursday, July 7, 8 p.m. Website: http://www.jjshiplettmusic.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jjshiplettmusic/ Twitter: www.twitter.com/jjshiplettmusic

Rugged, raspy and reserved, JJ Shiplett is a true artist in every sense of the word. Unapologetically himself, the Alberta born singer- and performer is both bold in range and musical creativity and has a passion and reverence for the art of and performance that has captured the attention of music fans across the country. He spent the major part of early 2016 as one of the opening acts on the tour and is also signed to Johnny Reid’s company. Shiplett is currently putting the finishing touches on his self-penned and produced debut , which will be arriving later in 2016.

The Dudes Appearing Thursday, July 7, 9:15 p.m. Website: http://www.wearethedudes.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wearethedudes Twitter: https://twitter.com/weareTheDudes Video: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjRAeVqlRQNhTWuV_mQW85Q

The Dudes are a Canadian indie rock band, formed in 1996 in Calgary, comprised of singer Dan Vacon, guitarist Bob Quaschnick, bassist Brock Geiger and newest member Matt Doherty. Their song "Dropkick Queen of the Weekend" was heard across Canada in 2006, having been featured in a Rogers Wireless advertising campaign. In June 2009 their album Blood Guts Bruises Cuts was released in Canada. "The Girl Police," released in 2009, was featured in Season 1 of . 2012 saw the release of a third album Barbers, Thieves, and Bartenders. They recently played at the JUNO Fan Fest this past April.

Walk Off The Earth Appearing Friday, July 8, 9 p.m. Website: http://www.walkofftheearth.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/walkofftheearth Twitter: https://twitter.com/walkofftheearth Video: https://www.youtube.com/user/WalkOffTheEarthVEVO

2016 has been a big year for Walk Off The Earth. The band picked up their first , winning Group of the Year honours. Based in Burlington, , their brilliant five-people-playing-one-guitar interpretation of ’s “Somebody That I Used To Know” exploded on YouTube, garnering more than 35 million views in under two weeks. The massive fan response quickly drew attention to their collection of innovative songs and videos spanning their last eight years and generated an unprecedented flood of media interest. The band has released seven including their latest, Sing It All Away, a 2016 JUNO nominee for Album of the Year.

Coleman Hell Appearing Saturday, July 9, 9 p.m. Website: http://www.colemanhell.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/colemanhell Twitter: https://twitter.com/colemanhell Video: https://www.youtube.com/user/colemanhellVEVO

Coleman Hell has crafted a genre-defying monster of a hit with his affecting single “2 Heads.” The mesmerizing track passed the 13 million global streams milestone on and topped music aggregators Hype Machine and Indie Shuffle soon after its release. Hell comes from the artist collective sideways, a venturesome song writing, production, video and design that features himself and long-time friends/collaborators. The tight-knit creative consortium has paid their dues the past few years, offering genre-busting songs and videos that always seem to break new ground. Hell will be releasing his debut album this summer, which will include his latest single, “Fireproof.”

Classified Appearing Sunday, July 10, 9 p.m. Website: http://www.classifiedofficial.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/classifiedmusic Twitter: https://twitter.com/classified Video: https://www.youtube.com/user/classifiedmusic

Over the course of his career, Classified has released 16 albums, dating back to his first full length LP in 1995, Times Up, Kid. At the 2009 MuchMusic Video Awards, Classified won the MuchVibe "Best Hip-Hop Video of the Year" award for "Anybody Listening." In early 2010, Classified received three JUNO Award nominations for Rap Recording of the Year, Single of the Year and Video of the Year. In early 2011, "Oh...Canada" received a JUNO nomination for "Single of the Year." The album Classified debuted on the Canadian charts at No. 1 and the first single off the album, "" reached No. 5 on the , earning Classified his first top ten hit and highest charting song. In April 2013, Classified won "Rap Recording of the Year" for his song "Inner Ninja," at the JUNOs. His latest album, released in January of this year, is Greatful which had the hit “No Pressure” featuring .

X Ambassadors Appearing Monday, July 11, 9 p.m. Website: https://www.xambassadors.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/XAmbassadors Twitter: https://twitter.com/xambassadors Video: https://www.youtube.com/user/XAmbassadorsvevo

And after years of hustling and overcoming personal challenges, rock stardom felt imminent for X Ambassadors. But something was missing. 2015 was the turning point. X Ambassadors’ stomping, syncopated full-length debut, VHS, is all about that exploration. The album features the top five Alternative radio hit “Renegades” — a bouncing folk-rock ode to the misfits and adventurers, a staple on radio and television commercials. X Ambassadors consists of four band members: brothers Sam Harris (lead vocals, guitar, saxophone) and Casey Harris (keyboard), Noah Feldshuh (guitar), and Adam Levin (drums). The brothers have been friends with Feldshuh since kindergarten in Ithaca. Sam met Levin while attending in City in 2010.

The Sheepdogs Appearing Tuesday, July 12, 9 p.m. Website: http://www.thesheepdogs.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thesheepdogs Twitter: https://twitter.com/thesheepdogs Video: https://www.youtube.com/user/sheepdogsvideo

Future Nostalgia, the latest album from The Sheepdogs, is the middle ground between the JUNO-winning, platinum-certified Learn & Burn, which spawned the rock radio staple “I Don’t Know,” and its equally successful follow-up, 2012’s The Sheepdogs, featuring the instantly-recognizable, Gold-certified singles “Feeling Good” and “The Way It Is.” Future Nostalgia builds upon The Sheepdogs’ foundation of feel-good vocal harmonizing and nasty guitar jamming. That’s made immediately clear from the opening riff of “Downtown,” an undeniable straight-up rocker that sparkles with the warmth of summer. Down at the other end of the street is “Bad Lieutenant,” which walks a dark and sexy strut courtesy of bassist Ryan Gullen and drummer Sam Corbett, who also tear up the furious “I Really Wanna Be Your Man.”

Jocelyn Alice Appearing Wednesday, July 13, 8:30 p.m. Website: http://jocelynalice.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/iamjocelynalice/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/iamjocelynalice Video: https://www.youtube.com/user/JocelynAliceVideo

Jocelyn Alice is a Calgarian singer and songwriter with a fiercely powerful voice, heartfelt lyrics and magnetic style. Her debut single as a solo artist, ‘Jackpot,’ was certified Gold and reached the top 15 on Canadian commercial radio charts. Jackpot also reached No. 12 on the Shazam Canada Top 100 and No. 13 on the iTunes Canada Top 200 Pop Songs. She also received Canadian Indie Awards nominations in 2016 for Pop Artist of the Year and Single of the Year. Alice has co-written music featured in the hit TV shows One Tree Hill and Pretty Little Liars, the movie Dear Santa, and a television commercial in Canada for Shaw TV. She is currently recording new material and will be releasing her debut EP in 2016.

Shawn Hook Appearing Wednesday, July 13, 9 p.m. Website: http://www.shawnhook.com/ca/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shawnhookmusic Twitter: https://twitter.com/ShawnHook Video: https://www.youtube.com/user/shawnhookVEVO

Shawn Hook is an incredibly talented artist who played piano, bass, guitar and jazz trombone before expanding with studies in vocals and audio engineering. After his schooling, Hook expanded his songwriting career as a signed composer for ABC studios. His original songs were featured on shows such as “Eli Stone,” “Kyle XY” and “Greek.” In 2012, Hook released his official debut album, Cosmonaut and the Girl which featured the songs, “So Close” and “Every Red Light.” His sophomore album, Analog Love, was released in June 2015 via Universal Music Canada. On the heels of the release, Hook celebrated “” a standout track on the record, being certified Platinum in Canada. The track has now accumulated more than 17 million streams on Spotify worldwide and has peaked at Canadian radio Top 10 CHR, Top 10 Hot AC, Top 15 AC, and hit Top 10 on the iTunes Canada overall chart. His latest big song is “Relapse” which has been shooting up Canadian charts since its debut.

Mother Mother Appearing Thursday, July 14, 9 p.m. Website: http://www.mothermothersite.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MotherMotherBook Twitter: https://twitter.com/mothermother Video: https://www.youtube.com/user/mothermothermusic

The band, originally formed in 2005 as Mother, added an extra “Mother” onto their name in 2007 and re- released its debut album under the new name of Mother Mother, re-naming the album Touch Up. Their first brush with mainstream radio success was that of the single “Body Of Years” which came in the top 10 at Canadian and Modern Rock radio, and also landed them two 2009 Casby Award Nominations and a 2010 Canadian Radio Music Award Nomination. In 2014 the band signed with Universal Music Canada to produce their fifth album, Very Good Bad Thing, which was released in November of 2014. This will be Mother Mother’s third appearance at the Coca-Cola Stage.

Dear Rouge Appearing Friday, July 15, 8 p.m. Website: http://www.dearrouge.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DearRouge Twitter: https://twitter.com/dearrouge Video: https://www.youtube.com/user/DearRougeMusic

Dear Rouge is led by husband and wife duo Drew and Danielle McTaggart – between the two of them, they carry years of touring and recording with multiple bands and different musical ventures. It was these days of young exploration that led them to meeting. Their second EP, Kids Wanna Know, helped hone their alternative dance-rock sound and also led to the duo winning the Peak Performance Project in 2012, the largest artist development project in Canada. Their first record’s , “I Heard I Had,” shocked the entire Canadian music industry by steadily climbing the alternative and rock charts to the top five – with no label or album backing it – a rare feat especially for a band that had no previous charting history. Dear Rouge’s debut album BLACK TO GOLD is the culmination of these achievements.

The Glorious Sons Appearing Friday, July 15, 9:30 p.m. Website: http://www.theglorioussons.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theglorioussons Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheGloriousSons Video: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcJdUDTAw98KINOPC8CGw_Q

Having burst onto the scene in 2013 by winning the HTZ-FM Rocksearch, this band’s ascent in the world of Canadian music has been quick and well-deserved. They are the next generation of great Canadian rock to emerge from the Limestone City. They hit their stride with their new album, The Union, a collection of honest and heartfelt songs touching on themes of life, love, passion, loss and redemption. Vocalist/lyricist Brett Emmons is one of the strongest new voices in Canadian rock, backed by a lush, and powerful soundtrack supplied by guitarists Jay Emmons & Andrew Young, and the rhythm section comprised of Adam Paquette (Drums) & Chris Huot (Bass). The Glorious Sons are quickly becoming known for their energetic and unrelenting live shows – small club or festival headline – this band engages their fans in a way few acts can.

Gord Bamford Appearing Saturday, July 16, 9 p.m. Website: http://www.gordbamford.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GordBamford1 Twitter: https://twitter.com/gordbamford Video: https://www.youtube.com/user/GordBamfordVEVO

He’s been called Canada’s answer to George Strait. But a distinctive sound and songwriting ability is what defines Gord Bamford as one of ’s best artists. Bamford has spent the better part of the last 20 years honing his craft, working to get where he is today: a 15-time Canadian Country Music Association (CCMA) award winning artist. Add a couple of Canadian Juno nominations to the list and you begin to understand the caliber of Gord Bamford the artist. Bamford was born in Victoria, Australia. When Bamford was five years old, he moved with his mother from Australia to Lacombe, Alta. A singer who toured with an Australian country band, Bamford's mother encouraged him to pursue a career in music. His career has been meteoric ever since and in April 2016, Gord released his seventh album, Tin Cup.

Simple Plan Appearing Sunday, July 17, 9 p.m. Website: http://www.simpleplan.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/simpleplan Twitter: https://twitter.com/simpleplan Video: https://www.youtube.com/user/SimplePlan

Simple Plan, the multi-platinum, -based band boasts worldwide sales topping 10 million and their release, Get Your Heart On! has reached Platinum status in Canada and spawned international hits with “Jetlag” and “”. A testament to their outstanding popularity, the band has been voted Favourite Canadian Band an unprecedented five times by viewers of the MuchMusic Video Awards. Most recently, the band has teamed up with producer Howard Benson (My Chemical Romance, All-American Rejects) on their latest album, , released in February of this year. The band has released singles such as “Boom” and “Opinion Overload” with their most current release, “I Don’t Wanna Go To Bed” on rotation on most pop radio formats.