New York-born, Canadian-raised singer-songwriter Justin Nozuka is young enough, at 21, to be fresh, but mature enough to call himself an old soul and get away with it. He crafts songs that make his listeners feel like they were up all night together and shared sleep-deprived confessions, and then he practices them with his band until they feel like they flow collectively. In the UK, where Justin has a strong following, the BBC has praised his "thoughtful acoustic soul, [filled] with understated melodies, minimal production, and an understated, sometimes dark take on songcraft." This is deep, liberating music that doesn't sound like anything else out there.

Cuban-Canadian Alex Cuba (born Alexis Puentes), an eclectic songwriter with a gift for sweet pop-soul melodies and a creative disregard for cultural boundaries, opens the program.