Celebration Square Unveils Canada Day Celebration Lineup

Although Celebration Square is known for hosting fairly spectacular Canada Day celebrations, the pressure is on to make this upcoming holiday a little more memorable.

Why?

Canada will only ever celebrate one 150th birthday.

Event organizers recently announced that the Square’s annual Canada Day festivities will kick off at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, July 1 and boast a live concert across two stages that will feature a headline performance from the JUNO award-winning hip-hop artist K’Naan.

As for what else will set this year’s celebration apart, organizers said the 100,000+ person party will be “inspired by new beginnings” and that the Canada 150-themed event will “tell the story of our city, celebrating what connects us.”

While K’Naan (the artist behind the popular Waving Flag anthem) is certainly a highlight, the day will feature performances by east coast electro pop band Neon Dreams, JUNO and Aboriginal People’s Choice Music Award winner DJ Shub, Latin Grammy-winning artist (and Mississauga native) Fito Blanko, YouTube sensation and fusion tabla drummer Shobhit Banwait, a Metis Fiddler Quartet (presented in collaboration with the Peel Aboriginal Network), The Heavyweights Brass Band, a Brilliance Together live pop art performance by JessGO and the Glowing Heart Drumline house band.

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There will also, of course, be fireworks (presented by Tim Hortons and weather permitting),

The day’s festivities will be hosted by Global News’ Alan Carter, Farah Nasser and Jeff McArthur. The city also announced that its house DJ, Bambii, will be spinning all day long.

The Official Ceremony will feature a special Canada 150 Parade of Nations, presented by Carassauga at 4:20 p.m. Attendees are also invited to participate in the Canadian Citizenship reaffirmation oath.

If you’re bringing little ones, there are a ton of family-friendly activities on tap.

Kids can check out Camp Canuck (2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.) and visit the SESQUI Pavilion and uncover an invisible public art piece.

As for the invisible public art piece, kids can unveil Rain Works (inspired by Mississauga Poet Laureate Wali Shah) by splashing around in the fountain.

As for the SESQUI Pavilion, Mississauga is one of the stops on the Canada-wide SESQUI Virtual Reality Exhibition Tour. The VR experience features five-minute stories about Canadians who are shaping their world through creativity. Visitors can also make their own Sesquatch.

Families can also take in live performances on the True North Busker Stage and catch an encore performance by The Heavyweights Brass Band and extreme yo-yo performer YO-K.

There will also be a 360 degree photo booth, Canada’s Biggest Birthday Card, roaming stilt walkers, face-painters, crafts and more.

In terms of food, food trucks will be on scene the some tasty vendors include:

• Arepa Republic
• Beavertails
• Caribbean Authentic Food Truck
• Choco Churros
• Dimkin Crepes
• El Trompo Movil
• Evia Management
• Fidel Gastros
• Gourmet Guyz Food Truck Co
• Delicious Empanadas
• Jerk Brothers
• Me.N.U. Food Truck
• CORNehCOPIA
• Olympic Softee
• Original Chimney’s
• Per Se Mobile
• Polar Real Tropical Fruit
• Chavo Food Truck
• Pita Holic
• The Food Dudes
• The Wheeling Gourmet
• Twistee Dairy
• Urban Smoke
• Wafel Bar
• Vita Link Ice Cream
• Pizza Pizza
• Pizza Nova
• Booster Juice
• Maple Lodge Farms

While the events themselves will no doubt be fun, there will be some road closures in effect to take into consideration (also, plan ahead–parking may be quite scarce).

Road Closures:

Closed: July 1st from 10 am to 11:30 pm

-Duke of York Boulevard from Burnhamthorpe Road W. to Prince of Wales Drive
-City Centre Drive from Living Arts Drive to Mercer Street
-Princess Royal Drive from Living Arts Drive to Duke of York Boulevard
-Closed: July 1st from 7 pm to 11:30 pm

-Living Arts Drive from Burnhamthorpe Road W. to Prince of Wales Drive
-Burnhamthorpe Road W. from Confederation Parkway to Hurontario Street
-Kariya Gate from Burnhamthorpe Road W. to City Centre Drive (north-bound lanes only)

Visit for Miway.ca/holidayservice for Canada Day service schedule

Interested in volunteering? Email [email protected] for information.