TORONTO (CelebrityAccess) — With the inaugural Departure Festival + Conference —the reimagined Canadian Music Week—set to take place in May, organizers have announced that JUNO-winning singer-songwriter Jessie Reyez will be the 2025 recipient of the Allan Slaight Humanitarian Award, presented by Slaight Music.
Reyez will receive the honor during the Departure Honours event on May 7, alongside other honorees, including celebrity chef and actor Matty Matheson, who has been named the recipient of the 2025 Cultural Innovator Award.
Additionally, Departure organizers have unveiled the full schedule for the conference, with newly announced speakers such as singer-songwriter and actor Grace VanderWaal; award-winning artist and songwriter Lindsay Ell in conversation with Universal Music Canada President & CEO Julie Adam; Live Nation Concerts’ President of Touring, Omar Al-Joulani; an ArtHaus panel on the renaissance of South Asian music; and fashion and design trailblazers Spencer Badu, Steff Eleoff, and Dorion Who in a special conversation with Donna Bishop, presented by CAFA—and much more.
The conference takes place from May 6–11 in Toronto, providing a forum for the music and creative industries.
Information about registration for the event can be found here: https://www.departureto.com/en/passes-departure
