Starting in 2007 with a scrappy group of musicians at a single charity show at the Hard Rock Cafe, and growing to 2025 with over 100 musicians over 8 nights and 6 venues. The GovFest battle of the Bands is the premiere event for current and former federal, provincial, and municipal civil servants in Ontario to let their hair down, make amazing music, have a great time, and raise money for charity. This is our 20th big year and we’re looking forward to it!
Our Battle of the Bands lineup is now live!
And of course, tickets are available online.
All the latest Updates
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Call for Bands for Govfest 2026!
Hello bands! Are you ready? We’re ready to have a good time and fundraise for our great causes: United Way and Ryan’s Well! So far we have the following dates confirmed: This year, we’re doing an online signup rather than the filled-out form as in past years. The band signup sheet is live at this…
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Battle of the Bands Winners
Thank you to all of our bands, volunteers, audiences, sponsors, and special guests for making this year’s event such a success! The Battle of the Bands Winners are: The Battle of the Bands Winners are: Transit Bound Audience Choice AND People’s Choice RTO (Rhythm to Overjoy) Judge’s Choice Congratulations to them, and all of our…
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GOVFEST NEEDS YOU
Govfest is fully volunteer run, powered by people who care deeply about community, creativity — and honestly, who just love being part of something this fun and meaningful every year. To keep Govfest sustainable for years to come, we need more help. Many of our key leaders and long-time volunteers are moving into their retirement…
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GovFest Kingston
The Kingston music community is always enthusiastic to support Govfest and the local United Way. Resuming in 2023 after brief hiatus, Govfest Kingston has transitioned from a battle of the bands layout to a showcase of talent that has been incredibly successful. The 2023 and 2024 events were held at The Buckle, a Nashville-themed bar…
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Call for Bands!
Join us for our 19th year of Battle of the Bands! Click below to find out more! […]Read More… from Call for Bands!
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Congratulations to our winning bands at the Govfest Grand Finale of the 2024 Battle of the Bands!
New Original Cyn, The Regimentals, and The Invisible Hands were our winners in 2024! […]Read More… from Congratulations to our winning bands at the Govfest Grand Finale of the 2024 Battle of the Bands!
