Bluesfest Struggles With Low Loonie

The weak Canadian dollar is proving to be a struggle for Bluesfest organizers trying to attract American talent. Roughly 70% of this year's music is from the U.S. while the rest is homegrown. Bluesfest president Rob Petroni tells BlackburnNews.com it's a "huge strain" on the budget when searching for talent in the U.S. this year. "We need more sponsors this year. We don't receive any funding," says Petroni. "Between sponsors and ticket sales, that's really the biggest pressure now and I think by upping the talent pool a little bit and giving the crowd what they want and what they've been asking for the last couple of years -- this is the year we're really looking at delivering." Each year a team of people is tasked with scoping out talent in both countries. This year the festival reached out to Blues Societies in the province and Michigan to get a wish list. Petroni says it was never an option to exclude musical acts because of a fluctuating currency. "We're trying to pick the best talent at the price point and whether it's U.S. or Canadian, that's what we're doing," he says. "Obviously if we have equal talent for equal dollars we're going the Canadian way, but we're certainly not shunning anybody." On the flip side he hopes the low loonie will bring more Americans to this year's Bluesfest. Last year visitors came from Michigan, Ohio and even New York. "This year we're targeting that audience a little bit harder, a little bit stronger with our marketing," he says. The lineup will be released in a few week and he says blues fan won't be disappointed. "Their Friday and Saturday nights are going to be exactly what they've been asking for [in] the last ten years." This will also be the first year Thursday is being included in the weekend festival. Bluesfest runs July 14-17 at Festival Plaza at Windsor's riverfront.