Some of the luminous headliners we have programmed include The Velvet Underground co-founder John Cale who will also take part in the POP Symposium, avant garde punk visionaries Psychic TV, the ready-for-primetime Angel Olsen, and oddball pop provocateur Babyfather. And now we're happy to announce rare shows. On Thursday night as part of Montreal label Secret City's 10th anniversary, Sirius XM will present the lovable troubadour Leif Vollebekk playing the first ever show on the Rialto Rooftop! Leif will be performing in that intimate space for 3 nights straight, a great spot to check out Montreal sunsets. In other rooftop related news, just down the street Kandle will be playing the Ubisoft Rooftop with her band The Krooks. We're also adding shows by Quebec City singer-songwriter Keith Kouna at the esteemed Ukrainian Federation and local songstress Rosie Valland at the Rialto Hall, presented by Sirius XM.

For the highly anticipated basketball match, Win Butler's POP vs Jock IV, we are happy to add Chris Thomson from Vampire Weekend, Nikolai Fraiture from the Strokes, former NBA greats Matt Bonner, Luke Bonner **and **Brian Scalabrine, plus a surprise half time show with a special SPACE JAM theme.

In the not to be missed category, we have a realer-than-real Hi Fi Jamaican sound system featuring the legendary Shinehead and Brigadier Jerry. Finally, be sure to check out the exclusive sequel to the Feral Island project, the result of a collaboration between Wake Island and Feral Love, curated by POP Montreal and Liverpool Sound City.

There are also another 400 + bands that we love and who are awesome; new discoveries like Best Fern and The Submissives, daily afternoon musical MailChimp BBQs at POP Quarters, different chefs to check out every night at Le Clubhouse POP, and of course all the awesome events put on by the segments.

On September 21st, Fashion POP will be celebrating its 10th Anniversary and publish its first zine featuring the competition winner! 6 local designers will hit the runway at Théâtre Rialto - Salle St-Ambroise, where a jury of 9 industry movers will select the most impressive collection which will earn itself a live photoshoot at the after party. Moreover the Puces POP Fair will return with 115 awesome vendors (including 40 newcomers!) and host an opening party featuring a healthy juice bar and DJ on September 23rd. #FluoTaVie because we are a beautiful, vibrant and colourful community!

Like every year, the POP Symposium will bring together prominent musicians, thinkers and behind-the-scenes mavens from the past and present to talk about creativity and business. Events on this year’s menu include artist talks, live podcast recordings and industry discussions with speakers such as synthesizer specialist Wally Badarou, Ximeno Records co-owner and producer Danny Holloway, avant-garde English singer songwriter, musician and performance artist Genesis Breyer P-Orridge, legendary Welsh musician, composer and producer John Cale and Rough Trade Records co-founder, Geoff Travis.

Art POP will feature some of the most exciting artists working today, including a performance and talk with multimedia artist Kalup Linzy’s, the first ever Montreal edition of Feelings Film Festival, curated by Chloe Wise and Adam Levett, as well as Figuratively Full, a group photo exhibition curated by Maya Fuhr. Moreover, FREE daily tours will be given at 5:30pm at POP Quarters, so that all festival goers can plunge into the exhibitions, installations and performances.

From the suburbs of Baltimore to the basketball courts of deep cartoon space; from one coast of Africa to the other; and to the Ballroom scene of New York City; Film POP is back this year with a renewed focus on diversity and tolerance, along with a showcase of fun, unexpected retro titles to rediscover! This year’s edition is proud to celebrate the work of iconoclasts such as David Byrne and John Waters, while offering a selection of local premieres from renowned fests.

Last but not least, Kids POP is putting on two days of pure fun on September 24th & the 25th, featuring a silkscreen workshop, a live band karaoke party, and an epic neighborhood Kids POP Crawl, presented by Sun Life Financial. For vinyl lovers, The Record Fair will likewise open its doors over the weekend to boast local and international vendors, including its fave labels, record shops and private collectors, with DJ sets and sweet treats!

This is a #AWORKINPROGRESS (french version #OEUVREENCHANTIER). Thanks for playing, thanks for paying attention. Snap a funny photo of yourself through the photobooth on the POP app and see you in the pit. xoxoxo

#POPMTL #AWORKINPROGRESS #WEGOTTHIS #ITSGONNABEMAGIC