We now know what Live Nation's mid-sized music venue has been christened—and it might sound familiar to anyone who's followed the Toronto music scene for the past few years.
History—a collaboration between Live Nation Canada and Canadian artist Drake—opened as a standalone mid-sized venue in The Beaches neighbourhood of Toronto in 2021. On February 19th, Live Nation revealed that Ottawa's venue will share the same branding, dubbed History Ottawa.
The new entertainment space, with a capacity of 2,000 people, is set to open in early 2026, and will occupy the building previously occupied by a Chapters bookstore at Rideau and George Street.
The announcement represents more than just a new place to attend concerts.
Melanie Brulée, executive director for the Ottawa Music Industry Coalition, told the CBC that History Ottawa is "the next step in Ottawa's music ecosystem", stressing that the city is already teeming with talent and starting to build the infrastructure to properly support it.
Erik Hoffman, Live Nation Canada's president, shared a similar sentiment: "This notion that [Ottawa] is some sleepy government city or some town that fun forgot isn’t just annoying to hear, it’s simply untrue."
"Today’s announcement exemplifies exactly where Ottawa sits right now as a true music city with great music fans ready for so much more.”
The fate of the ByWard Market has been a controversial subject in recent years, with decades-old institutions closing their doors and residents and business owners expressing safety concerns.
But now, according to Ottawa mayor Mark Sutcliffe, "The stars are aligning in downtown Ottawa."
"We’re seeing growth and opportunity, we’re seeing more people coming to the ByWard Market, we’re seeing people investing and opening new restaurants.... This is going to be a destination."
Now, it appears Live Nation's bet is that its History brand will indeed become a storied part of the ByWard Market's history.
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