This weekend, Mississauga is set to embrace its country roots as the Country Music Association of Ontario’s 2026 CMAOntario Festival and Awards arrives in the city.
The 14th annual festival and awards will be held from Friday to Sunday at various locations throughout Mississauga. The festivities will wrap up with the CMAOntario Awards on Sunday night at Port Credit Memorial Arena, kicking off at 7 p. m.
Mississauga first hosted this exciting weekend event in 2024, with the awards taking place at the Living Arts Centre. Last year, Hamilton played host to the festival and awards show.
Organizers have planned a mix of larger concerts, intimate live music performances, and a range of other fun activities for this year’s festival in Mississauga, all building up to the big award ceremony on Sunday evening along the picturesque Credit River.
The nominees for this year’s awards were recently revealed by the CMAO.
Sully Burrows leads with six nominations, followed closely by Nate Haller with five. Olivia Mae Graham has four nominations while Jessica Sevier, Owen Riegling, Sacha, James Barker Band, and Robyn Ottolini each earned three nods.
The May 31 award show will be hosted by multiple award winner Jason Blaine alongside Sam Mc Daid from Country Nights.
“The CMAOntario Awards celebrate the talent and achievements of Ontario’s country music industry, honouring artists and industry professionals across 17 categories, along with special awards,” organizers stated in an earlier news release.
If you want to learn more about this weekend’s events and festivities, head over to the organizers’ website.
Before hosting the 2024 CMAOntario Festival and Awards, City officials expressed their belief that such a large-scale event would be perfect for Mississauga.
“As Canada’s seventh-largest city and 2023 Music City of the Year, we are home to world-class, diverse musicians and a vibrant live music scene that attracts visitors from across Canada,” officials mentioned in November 2023 when it was announced that Mississauga would host in 2024.
As part of securing this deal, Mississauga officials also agreed to continue hosting duties into 2026 alongside the CMAO.
In recognition of its efforts toward enhancing its music landscape, Mississauga was named Music City of the Year by both Canadian Live Music Association and Canadian Music Week in 2023.
The city received accolades for implementing its Music Strategy aimed at positioning Mississauga “as an incubator for top musical talent and a national destination for live music events and festivals.”
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