Or so we thought… It began so promising. With a record amount of videos reaching the airwaves, huge support from local radio, blogs and websites at a level we had never seen before. There was no where to go but up.
You know, I talk a lot about the Montreal music industry’s stars, the artists but let’s please shed the spotlight for a minute on the behind the scenes aspect. I wish I could name names but I will make this a totally anonymous wake up call for certain beings. Dear you, yes I am talking about you…
The United States of America seems like the Holy Grail to many artists because of its size and because it's the "Land of Opportunity". How about you take advantage of the opportunities presented to you here?
I caught up with a seemingly exhausted Katalyst on the eve of the release of her debut ep Souliloquies. The 7 (3 acapellas) song set is a fusion of hip hop, spoken word, jazz and soul.A day later I had the pleasure of watching it all come together, live at her debut album release party at La Sala Rossa in downtown Montreal.
I connect a lot with Montrealers, Torontonians and Americans. It seems Montreal stands alone on one side of the playing field whereas Toronto and the United States have united determined to let music be heard and artists be respected. What’s going on with Montreal?
Dear Montreal rappers, Let’s talk for a second. The Canadian urban scene debuted in the 1980s and we have yet to have one really successful act to come out of Montreal. We spend all of our time talking about how we’re Real City but has anything real ever come out of the city? Hate on Kardi and Drake all you want but they did what they had to do, escaped their boroughs and made a splash on the international scene...
You can almost predict the fate of a record label just by breaking down its name.
Rocafella, Cash Money, Murder Inc, Death row, No Limit. If you know the history of these labels (or the wikipedia page) you’ll notice that their karma never strayed far from what their moniker implied. So what can you expect from a Montreal based independent label that calls itself MindPeaceLove
I found myself in a state of bewilderment, when asked the question, what is the significance of my culture? It was only then that I realized my culture ceased to exist because; it was stolen from my ancestors four hundred years ago by slave owners, who polluted our mind with symbols, false heroes, rituals, and values.
Let me start off by saying Kobe Bryant is one of, if not the best player in his generation. He’s got, playoff appearances, an MVP and All Star awards, championships and a multitude of individual awards and records. When it’s all said and done he might even be top 5 ever! I don't hate Kobe for petty reasons, he’s obviously supremely talented. But for some reason I just can’t root for the guy.
When I arrived home Thursday night after practice, I knew I wasn't going to sleep much. It had been three days since my return from France - already pretty tired from a scary first semester in a M.A. program - where Meryem and I went to rep Nomadic Massive as back-vocalists for The Narcycist at Les Transmusicales de Rennes (check out the concert on any of his sites) and I hadn't fully recuperated.
After nearly 7 years in the Montreal nightlife scene with over 350 parties under my belt, I’ve nearly seen it all: the bold and the beautiful, and sleazy to the cheesy. To survive in this environment you’d better be highly energetic, ambitious, persistent, possess an unworldly tolerance for alcohol and above all, thick skinned. Let me be frank: this is a business about sex, alcohol and image.
