Backyard Music Co. Reviews 

The festival itself in principle is great, the entertainment was wonderful. There seemed to be lack of parking at venues which added to having to pay for parking. As well, as Copperlight in Stratford is beautiful, there is no signage on the church to say it is Copperlight. As well there was no signage to say outside to indicate it was part of Nashville Take Over and no signage where to enter. If you parked behind and walked up between the buildings, there was a sign saying to enter off of Waterloo St, but the caterers were BBQ ing at that entrance and people had to circle back to find an enterance. Friday evening at Grayson Mills, again wonderful venue with limited paid parking, too crowded in top floor and ceiling fans there but not turned on. As well, couldn't even purchase a cup or bottle of water, the bar staff said they didn't have any. Not everyone is there to drink, diabetics, nursing mom's, minor's and people who just don't drink should always have an option.
There was also a lady walking around with a cut on her nose , apparently a sign fell and hit her in the nose and no first aid was offered, volunteers were directed to take her to the caterers in hopes they would have a bandaid.
I think that even a well planned event needs professional organization, designated people for specific aspects of the event.
And limit ticket sales to be realistic about what each venue can hold.

Staff and artists were absolutely amazing! Shoutout to Brittany, Scotty, and their team for making the experience so fun and special! Brittany really made sure we had a VIP experience!
Such a great opportunity to meet and hear new artists and meet the ones we already know and love!

Would’ve been 5 stars if the venues that hosted were bigger, served alcohol for full event, and had staffed better so that staff didn’t have such an unfair and hard time keeping up!
Also would’ve been great to be able to purchase Nashville takeover gear to wear!

Overall great job! Would definately attend again!

Amazing experience in Stratford as always there is room for improving, however was amazing to feel the Nashville vibes in Stratford!

We had a great time, the artists were amazing. I received emails throughout the weekend keeping the events front and centre. We had no problem getting into any of the venues, the crowds were well behaved and just having a good time. People were dancing out front of Chucks. I really hope Stratford is lucky enough to get chosen next year.

Went to Stratford Nashville take over. This was BY FAR the worst experience I have had. Coming from someone who frequents Nashville 1-2 x a year and has attended songwriter bars as well as Bluebird I was disgusted with how the songwriters were treated here. The crowd was so loud you couldn't enjoy the music. The writers themselves had asked for the crowd to stop talking. Unless you were close you couldn't enjoy the point of the event. On top of that, any time you left to go to another venue good luck getting in. All were at full capacity. It was clear that tickets were over sold. This was more about money than experience. When I spoke to the staff at the event one was clearly intoxicated. On top of that she had a drink in her hand as well. She didn't care about what I had to say. Rolled her eyes at me. Smirked as though I was being unrealistic. Tried to argue with me saying everyone is having fun. It was disgusting. My husband and I left after 30 minutes. My girlfriend and her husband went earlier and left as well. We all spent money on the Saturday shows as well as the after party. $216 later. We were driving longer than we were physically there.

I had an amazing time attending the Collingwood festival is October 2025. The VIP pass was amazing and you got a private bus to a secret location for a private show. Will be getting 2026 tickets

Incredible talent! Great venues! Brand new music vibes-truly a unique experience. Loved every minute of it.

What Backyard Music Company is doing for the artist, for the hosting venues, for each community they visit with their events, is phenomenal.
Such a refreshing weekend event, to hear incredibly talented musicians, who share personal stories of the songwriting process, and give their heart and soul to their craft, and we get to be part of this intimate setting.
Can not give a high enough score so will have to settle with a 5 Star review. Could I leave a 10 out of 5?
So, if you haven't yet, make sure you follow them on their socials so you don't continue to miss out.

This is a super unique event. The artists that are chosen are truly all very talented. Each show is very intimate and I have never been to anything like it before. The venue was completely packed and everyone seemed to be having a blast !

Update in response to BYM's response to our original review below:
NO refunds were offered after multiple requests from us. Negative reviews would NOT have been posted by us if even a partial refund was given to ticket purchasers. BYM was very aware of this. We understand travel issues and small business challenges, but the ticket purchasers were not given the experience they were promised, which was 2-3 up and coming artists, not one very late to the party musician from Chicago. An offer of a future "free" concert was given by BYM, but there is no way we would take the chance to host another event.

RUN! We were event hosts. Not ONE thing that was promised was delivered. One artist (the one with the sound equipment) had airline travel issues and did not make it. The 2nd artist arrived AFTER guests were already on site and was not prepared to lead a concert. Most people left during intermission. There was no on-site manager and no ticket taker. There were clerical issues with the ticket sales. And the worst part was Back Yard Music's refusal to refund even part of the ticket price to the ticket purchasers, who were promised two Nashville music artists. It was embarrassing to say the least, and damaged our reputation in the community. Worst event we have had in over 9 years of business. We do not recommend this company.

My low rating has nothing to do with Backyard Music Co., or the performers at the venue.
The sound was terrible. A big part of this is due to this not being the right venue for music. Steel walls, concrete floor makes for a muddled mess when it comes to live music.
This event was also advertised as an Intimate Writers Round. The musicians did their best with the tools they were given, but this was the farthest thing from an intimate night of music. 60% of the crowd treated this event like it was a Social Hall party, and even after repeated requests by the Venue owner aswell as the performers to please keep the chatter to a minimum so everyone could enjoy the show, it would last all of 5 minutes, and they were back to loud and disrespectful. I would have loved have been able to see these 2 musicians in a proper setting so as to be able to truly take in the experience of a story telling writers round.
This was nothing short of a joke.
Better planning in a proper space which enhances the music instead of destroys it, and a respectful audience there for the right reasons, and this would have been an amazing show.
It unfortunately fell far short from this...

We booked them at our brewery. They kept changing the terms and then canceled the show. They sent out an email to all of our customers saying the would be refunded in 15 days. Our customers have not received there refunds and they are not returning emails or calls.

What a fantastic 3 day event this was. Yes, there were some glitches, but isnt that always the case when launching something new? The talent of each artist was out of this world. It was a wonderful collection of styles, which were super exciting when they joined in on each others songs, or particularly at the after party jam sessions. My only request for next year would be perhaps a wee jam session with whichever artists are still around at the end of the Sunday evening circle round. Well done Scotty and team. I sure hope to see y'all next year

Amazing event! Well organized! Excellent performers! Relaxed atmosphere in small local venues. Hoping they will be back again next year for round 2!!

The opportunity to hear from song writers is amazing. I love the platform and the Listening Room in Nashville is my go to venue. Unfortunately we couldn’t track who we were listening to, failed electrical and too small venues meant we did not see many artists. A schedule of artists in advance allows a better planned experience for everyone.

Had such a great time at the Collingwood event! Great music, great artists and great vibes all weekend long!

The bar hop on Saturday was super fun and had a such a great Nashville feel to it - I wish it had been longer so we could have enjoyed more of it! We couldn’t get into Black Bellows which was really disappointing and one of the other venues was so small I was practically on stage with the singers. Would have felt less rushed if there’d been another hour to it.

The events at Side Launch and Kaytoo were great! Some tech issues here and there which are bound to happen - but maybe could have been worked out prior to the event.

There were times that the wristbands weren’t checked or didn’t seem to matter so I wondered why we paid for them. Regardless - I thought we got great value for the money.

Really hope this event becomes annual, continues to grow and that more local spots participate. It’s unique and great for the town!

Collingwood Nashville Festival Venues were too small and didn't have enough seating to enjoy the artists. Wait staff at one venue would not serve people with wristbands. Had to wait in a long line at the bar. Also non wristband customers could also come in the restaurant so not sure why we had to pay $60. Seems like we could have gone in had better service and still hear the same artists from a far.
Would hope for better space dedicated to paying festival participants if looking at it again.

We came as a group of 16 for the Collingwood Nashville Takeover and had such a great time together. The weather was absolutely perfect, which made the whole weekend even better.

We did run into some hiccups with the wristbands - Saturday’s bands had run out, so we were given Sunday’s colours instead. We didn’t mind at all, but a few venues did question us about it when we arrived. Once we explained the situation, everything was fine, but it did feel a bit unorganized overall - at some places our wristbands were accepted without issue, and at others they seemed to be a problem. It might be helpful in the future if all participating venues are updated when substitutions like that happen.

Our first stop was Bent Taco, and honestly, what a great vibe! The venue was spacious, and had plenty of room for our large group to walk around comfortably. Everyone agreed it was one of the best stops of the day.

Next, we headed to Low Down, where we didn’t realize there was only one server on shift. The event was busy - so our group grabbed some tables in the sun, ordered our drinks inside, and just enjoyed the live music. With it being such a large, ticketed event, I do feel it should’ve been expected that there would be larger groups or just more tables in general. Our group was very laid back and happy to enjoy the sunshine, the music, and each other’s company. We didn’t want anyone to feel overwhelmed, we were perfectly content ordering our own drinks and food and letting the server focus on the smaller groups.

Some of our group went over to Black Bellows, but only four people from our party were able to get in. A couple of our friends, who were just a group of two, were turned away - which was confusing since it’s all part of the same event. Everyone was a little unsure how access was being managed. I think this ties into the bigger picture that some of the chosen venues may not have been the best fit for the size of the crowd and the number of tickets sold for the weekend.

The VIP event at Duntroon was beautiful - such a stunning location with an incredible view. That said, it did feel a little too far away from everything else. Transportation out of the area was tough, especially with limited cell service, which made it difficult to coordinate rides. Although the setting was gorgeous, a golf course closer to town might be better suited next time. Cranberry Golf Course, for example, is super close to downtown as well as Sidelaunch, and would’ve made for an easier trip overall.

The highlight of the entire event, though, was Sidelaunch - what an incredible night! The space, energy, and overall experience were just unmatched. Definitely our top pick.

If there’s any feedback for next year, it would be to prioritize venues that can handle bigger crowds - places like Bent Taco, Cranberry Golf Course (Station on the green), Sidelaunch, Thornbury Cider, and Tesoro seem like great fits for the size and energy of the festival.

Overall, we had an amazing time - great weather, great music, and great company.

We enjoyed listening to the songwriters but the Collingwood Songwriters Festival was poorly organized. We received so many emails leading up to the event about small details that didn't concern us and gave the impression that the organizers were largely winging it. When we arrived at the first showcase to get our wristbands they said they didn't have any more, which makes no sense as they knew how many tickets were sold. There was no table service at Black Bellows and Side Launch. During the final showcase, interruptions kept being made for announcements for VIP tacos and things. We were hoping for a true Nashville experience like the Listening Room or the Bluebird Cafe, where you can just relax and enjoy amazing music, but that wasn't what we got. Also, all the performers on the last day were men and several of them were local (we thought from the advertising that all the performers were being brought from Nashville).

Collingwood Songwriters Festival. Great potential! Needs some tweaking!
Loved the concept and definitely should happen again.
Tweaking would primarily be that the shows should be staggered throughout the day to give guests the ability to actually hop from venue to venue - we managed to squeeze in 4 spots but it’s hard to leave half way through an artists set - especially if you’re enjoying it - but also don’t want to miss out on others. We found the time gap in between sets this weekend was too far between.
The wrist bands seemed like a waste as there weren’t checks on entering and we noted many people without them. (Those that went to “eat and drink” an hour before the set and then stayed through) Staffing was a definite issue, not sure if that was venues lack of preparation.
Luckily we had fantastic weather but what happens when we don’t? Not enough room to cram everyone inside.
Those that spent extra on VIP - was it worth the extra $$? Those I chatted with said no.
All in all, the music and vibe of it all was fantastic but the planning and execution needs serious work.
Please come back and try again, would love to see this an annual event.