Arts & Culture

North by Northeast (NXNE) music festival today announced a return to Yonge and Dundas as well as its first 100-plus confirmed acts for the annual event, which runs June 11 through 15 and celebrates three decades of presenting emerging talent this year.

NXNE returns to Sankofa Square (formerly Yonge-Dundas Square) for NXNE’s 30th Birthday Party musical celebration on The Billboard Live Stage Thurs., June 12 from 5 pm to 9 pm ET, featuring a major headliner as well as a packed lineup of emerging talent

“We were honoured to present the first ever concert in the Square when Gord Downie played NXNE in 2003, and we had the biggest crowd ever for Iggy and the Stooges in 2010. With Flaming Lips, St. Vincent, Raekwon and so many great shows, we have a great history at Yonge and Dundas, and we are thrilled to return on our 30th anniversary to the freshly named Sankofa Square to again bring incredible, free live music to the city and the world,” says NXNE president and CEO Michael Hollett.

“For 30 years, NXNE has been a defining force in Canada’s music landscape, championing talent and shaping the future of live performance. As Billboard Canada and ArtsHouse Media Group continue to support music’s evolution, we’re proud to celebrate NXNE’s 30th anniversary with the Billboard Live Stage at Sankofa Square, further extending its legacy by giving artists a platform to reach new audiences and make a global impact,” says Amanda Dorenberg, CEO of ArtsHouse Media Group and Billboard Canada.

The festival also remains committed to showcasing the best emerging talent from around the world in its 22 venues. The first wave of confirmed showcasing acts for the 2025 festival features talent from Canada, the U.S.A., the U.K., Australia, Aruba, Spain, Ireland and Germany. Notable highlights include Vancouver-based comedian and trained opera singer Toddy, Montreal-based singer-songwriter Avery Jane, Welland, Ont. rock’n’roller Andy Colonico, Newfoundland experimental hardcore band The Order of the Precious Blood and award-winning producer and soul-hop artist B1GJuice.

This year, the festival is expanding its footprint in the city by adding nine new participating venues to its roster for a total of 23, including NXNE’s official headquarters for 2025, The Theatre Centre (1115 Queen St. W.). Lee’s Dance Cave, Lee’s Palace, Death & Taxes, Duffy’s Tavern, Infinity Room, Rivoli, The Pilot and the Redwood Theatre will also be joining the 14 established locations from previous years. This growth broadens the festival’s reach, offering attendees diverse spaces to discover new music and turning the event into a true citywide celebration.

For the 2025 festival season, NXNE offers three ticket options to make great music accessible and inclusive. Priced the same as the festival’s debut in 1995, the NXNE Festival Pass ($29) grants access to all Clubland shows and Artist Development Day panels. The NXNE VIP Pass ($149) includes additional events like VIP access to the 30th birthday party, exclusive networking opportunities, swag bags and front-of-the-line access to Clubland shows. For the ultimate experience, the NXNE Executive Pass ($499) offers everything in the VIP pass plus access to the VIP Lounge, exclusive receptions, dinners and more, along with front-of-the-line access to Clubland shows.

More band announcements including the Sankofa headliner and detailed club scheduling coming soon.

The first wave of confirmed NXNE 2025 acts are:

538st (Vancouver, BC, Canada)
A Cure for Love (Columbus, OH, USA)
A Short Walk To Pluto (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Absolight (Trois-Rivières, QC, Canada)
A Weekend at Ramona’s (Toronto, ON, Canada)
activemirror (Oranjestad, Aruba, CARB)
Adam Ambrose (Vancouver, BC, Canada)
Alena Ciera (Washington D.C, USA)
Alex Dolphin (London, ON, Canada)
Andy Colonico (Welland, ON, Canada)
Attack the Sound (Chicago, IL, USA)
Ash Molloy (Torbay, NL, Canada)
Avery Jane (Montreal, QC, Canada)
B1GJuice (Part of the BitterJuice Collective) (Toronto, ON, Canada)
av club (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Basset (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Beach Season (Calgary, AB, Canada)
Bebe and Oona (Toronto, ON, Canada)
BIG MILK (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Bitch Stick (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Bitter&Broke (Scarborough, ON, Canada)
BlackBudget (Toronto, ON, Canada)
BongoBandana (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Boniface (Winnipeg, MB, Canada)
Bradley Hale (Heidelberg, ON, Canada)
BREE TAYLOR (Mississauga, ON, Canada)
Casual Cries for HELP (Halifax, NS, Canada)
CEC (Winnipeg, MB, Canada)
Certified Bad Guyz (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Chara Kai-Le (Toronto, ON, Canada)
City Circuits (Toronto, ON, Canada)
CMAGIC5 (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Cruel Hope (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Cure-Pipe (Saguenay, Québec, Canada)
Dandelion Highway (Toronto, ON, Canada)
DAPHNE (Vaughan, ON, Canada)
David San Clair (Drogheda, Louth, IRL)
Dead Roots (Waterloo, ON, Canada)
DEREV (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Diamond Weapon (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Discontinuity (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Dynesti (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Dov Beck-Levine (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Evan Denley (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Falls for the Elderly (London, ON, Canada)
Feura (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Fleeting Colours (Montreal, QC, Canada)
FRANKIE FLOWERS (Waterloo, ON, Canada)
Full Throttle (London, ON, Canada)
Garrett Neiles (Toronto, ON, Canada)
gee. (Mississauga, ON, Canada)
GODDESS (Hamilton/Toronto, ON, Canada)
Hendrika (Whitehorse, YT, Canada)
Honey Moon (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Hormoans (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Hotfix (Hamilton, ON, Canada)
Jade Hilton (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Jasmine Kiara (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Julie Title (Toronto, ON, Canada)
June Hawthorn (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Junko Daydream (London, ON, Canada)
Karen Lee Andrews (Sydney, NSW, AUS)
KING FALCON (New York, NY, USA)
Laraw (Montreal, QC, Canada)
LeeL (Hillsdale, NJ, USA)
Lennie Rayen (North Bay, ON, Canada)
LESS KILLJOY (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Lightkeeper (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Live Animals (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Living Dead Girl (Peterborough, ON, Canada)
Living Room for Small (Waterloo, ON, Canada)
Lost Faculty (Hamilton, ON, Canada)
Lostvoy (Toronto, ON, Canada)
LTtheMonk (Hamilton, ON, Canada)
LUELLA (Kingston, ON, Canada)
Lunchmeat (Toronto, ON, Canada)
magenta (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Matt Kristan and Elfrida (Hamilton, ON, Canada)
Mawzy (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Max Parker (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Melo Griffith (Ajax, ON, Canada)
Merv xx Gotti (Regina, SK, Canada)
Miss Mae (Brantford, ON, Canada)
Monstrosa (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Museums (Montréal, QC, Canada)
Noise Hotel (Ottawa, ON, Canada)
Orlas (New York, NY, USA)
oui merci (L’Assomption, QC, Canada)
papaya noon (Cardiff, WAL, UK)
Permilla (Niagara Falls, ON, Canada)
Problem Patterns (Belfast, NIR, UK)
Raveen (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Rebecca Sichon (Vancouver, BC, Canada)
RedFox (Montréal, QC, Canada)
Reno K.O.Q (Queens, NY, USA / Kingston Jamaica)
Sam Louis (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Sea of Lettuce (Calgary, AB, Canada)
Seago (Brampton, ON, Canada)
Shébani (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Spring Colours (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Sudden Waves (Montreal, QC, Canada)
Summer School (Seattle, WA, USA)
SWiiMS (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Tatum Quinn (Montréal, QC, Canada)
The Blue (Calgary, AB, Canada)
The Codas (Kingston, ON, Canada)
The Holy Gamblers (Toronto, ON, Canada)
The Jailbirds (Mississauga, ON, Canada)
The New Hires (Ottawa, ON, Canada)
The Order of the Precious Blood (St John’s, NL, Canada)
The Satisfactory (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Toddy (Vancouver, BC, Canada)
Tre. Charles (Durham, NC, USA)
TRUSS (Cleveland, OH, USA)
TWIST IT (Philadelphia, PA, USA)
VOYAGR (Buffalo, NY, USA)
Waahli (Montréal, QC, Canada)
Wedding (Toronto, ON, Canada)
Willem James Cowan (London, ON, Canada)
ZOCHI (Regina, SK, Canada)