The potential for music to unite people across divides—geographical, temporal, cultural, or philosophical—is a constant inspiration for Ruben “Beny” Esguerra. Through his myriad projects, the Toronto songwriter, producer, educator, community activist, and multi-instrumentalist is building bridges: between North and South, between ancient flutes and modern turntables, between Indigenous peoples and settlers, between cumbia and hip-hop—andContinue reading “Beny Esguerra Unifies the Equation”
Genre Archives
Witch Prophet. DNA Activation.
Witch Prophet is a fitting name for Ayo Leilani, whose enchanting, bold, and malleable vocals, hypnotic rhythms, and profound lyrical wisdom conjure powerful stories. Her latest release, DNA Activation, both lives up to and expands on the achievement of her stunning 2018 solo debut, The Golden Octave. Here the Ethiopian-Eritrean-Canadian singer-songwriter sings in English, Amharic,Continue reading “Witch Prophet. DNA Activation.”
Backxwash—The Healing Music of Productive Rage
If you want to win over rapper and producer Backxwash (Ashanti Mutinta), start a conversation with her by talking about the outlier sounds of American rapper–producers Missy Elliot and Timbaland. I’m speaking with her a couple of days after she fired up audiences at her first-ever Toronto show—the February edition of the eighth annual LongContinue reading “Backxwash—The Healing Music of Productive Rage”
Aquakultre. Legacy. Black Buffalo Records.
The dazzling debut album from Halifax hip-hop–neo-soul outfit Aquakultre is both the product of personal redemption and a promise to build a better world. In 2013, at age nineteen, Lance Sampson was convicted of drug trafficking. While serving a five-year sentence at Springhill Institution, he taught himself guitar and wrote the song “Sure.” Released forContinue reading “Aquakultre. Legacy. Black Buffalo Records.”
Pursuit Grooves. Bess.
For some, the name Bessie Coleman will not ring a bell. She was the first African American–Indigenous female to receive an international pilots’ licence in 1921. Famous in her time, Coleman died at age thirty-four, nearly 100 years ago. Although her life is rarely discussed today, time has not diminished her importance and relevancy. OnContinue reading “Pursuit Grooves. Bess.”
Muxubo Mohamed Dares to Represent
Compromise? What is compromising? Compromising for what? Compromising for what reason? . . . What is compromise? —Eartha Kitt That emphatic excerpt from a 1982 documentary is sampled at the start of “He(r)story,” the opening track on Obuxum’s beat-laden EP H.E.R. While Kitt is alluding to compromising with a man, Obuxum is zooming out further, asking whyContinue reading “Muxubo Mohamed Dares to Represent”
Vanese “VJ” Smith is Right on Time
Vanese (pronounced va-NIECE) “VJ” Smith and I are on the Spadina streetcar, chatting like old friends. Just minutes earlier we met for the first time. I arrived from up North (aka Thornhill) in a state of winter-blues petulance, but when I saw her bright smile and waving arm from across the street, I was gratefulContinue reading “Vanese “VJ” Smith is Right on Time”
Gong Punks and Culture Bombs
Gentle and intense, soothing and exhilarating, traditional Filipino kulintang music provides the kind of richly immersive experience that makes an hour go by in what seems like a minute. The intertwining, hypnotic rhythms of its gongs and drums rise and fall as the players change tempos and improvise together over repeating patterns to create aContinue reading “Gong Punks and Culture Bombs”
Ayo Leilani Interrogates the Beats
“Eh Yo! Eh Yo, Leilani!,” she heard as she walked down a bustling New York City street. Turning around to see a friend calling out to greet her in the way that only the hip-hop generation can, Leilani (Hawaiian for “gift from the heavens”) realized she’d just found a captivating addition to her current name:Continue reading “Ayo Leilani Interrogates the Beats”