Music PEI Week 2026

In 2001, the Harbourfront Theatre in Summerside hosted the very first Prince Edward Island Music Awards. Gracing the stage that inaugural night were PEI musical mainstays like Janet McGarry, Gordon Belsher, Kerri Wynne MacLeod, Roy MacCaull, and Fiddlers’ Sons, alongside newer bands of the time such as Flush, Port Citizen, and Ninth Hour.

Thanks to the foresight of the founding Board of Directors of the PEI Music Awards Association Inc., this event marked the beginning of what would eventually become Music PEI, the province’s official music industry association. That initial Board included Blaine Corkum, Brian Dawson, Nick Gamble, Charlie Hansen, Janet McGarry, Chris Roumbanis, Bob Stright, Mike Surette, and Wayne Walsh.

In 2002, the Awards Gala moved to Confederation Centre of the Arts in Charlottetown, alternating between Charlottetown and Summerside for the next three years. By 2008, Music PEI had established a full-time office, building on the foundation laid by the Awards Association. 

Since 2001, PEI’s music community has grown tremendously, with Island artists touring the world, landing film and television placements, and contributing to a richly diverse music scene.

Music PEI Week 2026 reflects that evolution, featuring everything from punk and R&B to blues, country, folk, rock, and global sounds. New events like the Battle of the Bands and a curated double-feature screening celebrating Music Video of the Year nominees sit alongside the live concerts audiences have come to expect, with a few twists—including the PEI Symphony Orchestra joining the Songwriter of the Year Concert—reinforcing Music PEI Week as the biggest celebration of PEI’s music industry.

The event was last held in Summerside in 2005, and it returns on March 7, 2026, when the Music PEI Awards Gala heads back to the Harbourfront Theatre for its 25th anniversary. More than an awards show, the Gala is a homecoming—a full-circle moment that honours the artists, industry builders, and community members who have shaped PEI’s music story over the past quarter-century, while looking confidently toward what comes next.

Music PEI Week 2026 runs from February 28–March 7, with events across the Island. Stay tuned for the full schedule of events. For the list of 2026 Music PEI Award nominees, festival passes, and more details, visit musicpei.com.