Manitoba Live Music Event

About

JP HOE "Western Canadian Music Award nominated artist JP Hoe is the ultimate singer-songwriter. The Winnipeg native is earnest, wry, ironic, funny and insightful. His material has a genuine homespun feel, filled with catchy hooks and melodies – genuine, uncontrived and confessional." 
Ottawa Life Magazine 

JP Hoe’s sophomore album, 2012’s Mannequin, may be named for a plastic ideal — but it beats with a human pulse. The acclaimed Winnipeg-based singer/songwriter has crafted the kind of album that, to borrow a Wilco lyric, tries to break your heart. A soaring collection of cinematic epics that still burn with an intimate intensity. The six time Western Canadian Music Award nominated artist has a tremendous gift for writing songs would sound as good stripped down around a campfire as they would in a soft-seat theatre with a full orchestra. 

Hoe’s big, bold, blue-sky voice — the product of hundreds of days on the road — has a lot to do with that. He’s a dyed-in-the-wool troubadour type who knows he’s only as good as his last show. He’s played gigs all over the world, connecting with audiences via his soul-on-sleeve lyrics, but also his down-to-earth unpretentious charm. There’s a reason his annual hometown concert, The JP Hoe Hoe Hoe Holiday Show, is a perennially sold out December tradition; the guy knows a thing or two about showmanship. 

He also knows his way around a love song. It’s a deft songwriting touch that has evolved over two albums, including 2006’s Live Beta Project and 2008’s ambitious 17-song opus The Dear John Letters. Unlike that sprawling studio debut, Mannequin sees Hoe at his tightest and most focused; the writing is sharper. More world-weary, perhaps, but better for it. Mannequin is melancholy, but it never wallows. It’s an intimate album about getting a little older and a little wiser. 

Opening by KENZIE JANE. Mixing sounds of RnB, Jazz, Folk, and mouth-trumpet, Kenzie Jane has developed a unique style and original sound. She has performed and recorded with Grammy nominated Fresh IE, playing Winnipeg Folk Fest, touring western Canada, and coming 24 (or less) spots shy of winning CBC’s Searchlight contest in 2016. Kenzie is currently working on the release her new EP "Love Me From Scratch.”