United Way and Tweed & Company present United by Music, a celebration of North Hastings and community
BANCROFT – The United Way of Hastings & Prince Edward and Tweed & Company are pleased to present United by Music. This first-time show will bring some of North Hastings most renowned musicians ever together to raise funds for the United Way’s 2023-24 campaign and raise awareness of United Way-funded agencies in North Hastings.
When: Friday, Jan. 19, 2024. Doors Open at 6 p.m.
Where: The Village Playhouse, Bancroft
Cost: $25. Tickets available at www.villageplayouse.ca
Headlining the show will be award-winning folk artist Abe Drennan, a powerful musician with Bancroft roots, who’s returning to his former town for this special, one-time performance.
Now living in a small town above the Arctic Circle, Drennan is a storyteller and connector. He won the Fan’s Choice award at the NWT Music Awards and was a top 10 finalist in “Becoming 2022” performing at the El Mocambo in Toronto.
Influenced by James Taylor and Bob Dylan, his songs are a reminder of the common ground we all walk.
The show will also feature North Hasting’s own Janet Whiteway, a talented artist also known for her role in Coe Hill Girls, with Aimee O’Connor. Janet is not the kind of artist you can sum up in one word. Superlative. Sublime. Eclectic. Electric. Entertaining.
Janet’s songs have always resonated with people, for one simple reason. They’re pure. They inspire. They lift.
Also on the bill is Appalachian Celtic, a band that’s a staple of the North Hastings music scene and features the legendary John Foreman, a member of the Land o’ Lakes Traditional Music Hall of Fame.
The show will also feature the Shawashkong Ikwe Singers. No music event in Bancroft would be complete without this group, which performs Indigenous music and celebrates North Hastings’s strong Algonquin community.
Throughout the evening, guests will have opportunities to learn about how United Way funding helps North Hastings and hear directly from representatives of local funded agencies. The United Way of Hastings & Prince Edward supports several North Hastings groups, including North Hastings Children’s Services, North Hastings Community Cupboard and a Youth Diversion program based out of North Hastings High School, just to name a few.
The show will arrive on one of the final days of the United Way’s campaign to raise $2.2 million by the end of January. And while the United Way is confident the community can come through and achieve that goal, it won’t be easy. United by Music provides an opportunity for North Hastings residents to help in the final push for fundraising dollars and hear and support great local artists.
More on the artists
Abe Drennan
From a small town above the Arctic Circle, award-winning folk artist Abe Drennan is a storyteller, connector and powerful performer. He won the Fan’s Choice award at the NWT Music Awards and was a top 10 finalist in “Becoming 2022” performing at the El Mocambo in Toronto. Influenced by James Taylor and Bob Dylan, his songs are a reminder of the common ground we all walk. He writes songs that deliver lively reflections on his life that often acknowledge present and current issues, capturing complex moments and making them powerfully relatable. He creates a sacred blend of simple truth that generate hope in the harsh realities of the present. Through his smooth vocals, raw acoustic performance and harmonica playing, he creates an unforgettable connection with his audiences.
Abe has mentored under Lorraine Lawson of Lawson Vocal Studios and continues to tap into the various programs. He has opened for Rose Cousins, Jim Byrnes, Alex Cuba, and Leela Gilday. His debut album, “We All Have a Dream” (2015) was an independent release with his former band, ONE. He recorded his second album, "The Igloo Sessions"(2019) in the iconic Igloo Church in Inuvik, Northwest Territories. He has performed at the Great Northern Arts Festival (Summer 2015/2021), Folk on the Rocks (Summer 2021) and showcased at the NWT Music Awards (Fall 2022).
He is currently recording with Bell Rock in Northwest Territories. Watch for his new EP, Natural Tendencies, being released in Winter 2024.
Janet Whiteway
Janet Whiteway is not the kind of artist you can sum up in one word. Superlative. Sublime. Sultry. Eclectic. Electric. Entertaining. There are many words that apply, every one of them equally appropriate.
A lifetime of music and instruments, stretching back to her early childhood, have given Janet the rock-solid foundation for her sound and has allowed her to grow her style into something that no other artist can reproduce.
Songs have always resonated with people, for one simple reason. They’re pure. They inspire. They lift. She’s taken years of learning, of practicing and performing and distilled it all down to an unmistakable and utterly distinctive sound. Janet is telling the stories that people have always wanted to hear.
In 2017, Janet released her album, Love Is Hope, featuring 10 tracks exploring love and hope from every angle. Lost love, new love, love of nature, even late-for-a-date fun!
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