Samo's 2012 Toronto Hip-Hop Yearbook



Album: The Closers - Rich Kidd & Son Real

Mixtape: Cakey Pocket$ - Raz Fresco, hosted by DJ Holiday

Single: Syke - Rich Kidd

Anthem: Money Made Me Do It - A-Game x Luu Breeze

Video: Angels - P.Reign

Feature: Mr. Parker - Kardinal Offishall feat. Shi Wisdom

Performer: JellyTooFly

Producer: T-Minus

DJ: Lissa Monet

Host: Trixx

Manager: Addy Papa

Concert: Juicy J @ Opera House

Radio Show: Royalty Radio

Venue: Opera House

Breakout Emcee: C-Flowz

Breakout Producer: Wondagurl

 

Top 10 Memorable Moments in Toronto Hip-Hop This Year (Good, Bad & Ugly)

10. Reema Major signs to Brick Squad Monopoly

9. Lauryn Hill performs intimate concert for OnexOne charity

8. Back to back shootings at Young Jeezy concerts in Toronto/London leave many injured
7. Blake Carrington wears daughter Story around his neck during City on my Back Stylus Cypher
6. Lamar Taylor & Hyghly Alleyne win MMVA’s best hip-hop video for “The Motto”
5. Drake graduates high school and attends Jarvis Collegiate Institute graduation
4. DJ Lissa Monet becomes first female to win Stylus’ Toronto DJ of the Year

3. Raekwon and Ghostface close off NXNE by performing at Dundas Square in front of 25,000 people

2. P Reign releases “Angels” single/video in memory of Shyann Charles & Joshua Yasay killed in the Danzig shooting

1. 15 year old Wondagurl wins Battle of the Beatmakers

Year after year we hear it: "It's MY year!" Get familiar with some of the artists that really put on in 2012.

 Rich Kidd - The OG

Rich Kidd is a staple in the Toronto hip-hop community, a face recognizable to everyone in the city’s music scene, but this year, Rich has definitely outdone himself. Not only has he performed at the majority of Toronto’s 2012 hip-hop shows, festivals and events, but he dropped a mixtape, a beat tape and a collaborative album with Son Real. Don’t let his comedic personality fool you, he is a force that owns the Toronto market right now and is not showing any signs of letting up any time soon.

                                                                       JellyTooFly - The King

This year Toronto emcee JellyTooFly made them respect the female shit after dropping her well-received King mixtape. Jelly is in her own category and cannot be compared to any artist that has ever done it - 100% original and 100% entertaining. She most definitely holds the crown as King of performing in this city as stage after stage, she captivates her audience with an electrifying energy and a demand for the spotlight. She is an undeniable talent that Toronto is blessed to have.
                                                                      Bakers Club - The Crew

 7 artists and 22 projects deep, The Bakers Club have proved that they are impossible to ignore and that the young artists won`t stop until they`re paid their dues. Four of the members, Raz Fresco, The 6^th Letter, BriskInTheHouse and Brandon Chey all hail from the GTA and are putting on big for the city. Right now, there is no young crew that can touch the Club in terms of flow, style and originality and they are consistent with their quality and quantity, bringing the old school vibe to the new school era. Each member brings something unique and special to the mix and no matter what you`re into, they have something for everyone.
                                                                  JD Era - The Golden Child

JD Era, the Prince of Raekwon’s label IceH2O proved he deserved that spot when he released his banging mixtape “No Handouts” earlier this year. The Sauga spitter travelled and performed all over North America with the Wu Tang legend this year but was shown love every time he returned to the T.dot stage when peforming at events such as NXNE and 106 & York. It is undeniable that this was a great year for the young emcee but also obvious that there is more great things to come from him.

C - Flowz - The Grinder

C-Flowz wasn’t boosting when he named his latest mixtape, `Found My Lane`. The young emcee has done just that this past year as he opened up for artists such as Juicy J, Styles P, Jadakiss, Machine Gun Kelly and Smokers Club Tour. C-Flowz isn’t afraid to put in the promotional work himself as he and his Highway Gang make sure they are out at events personally handing out flyers and selling tickets to his shows. And the young emcee is quite the entertainer, who has his signature bounce and smirk while he performs, obviously happy to be in the moment. Him and his team know what they are doing and are making all the right moves.

                                                            Blake Carrington - The Personality

This was a great year for Blake Carrington and he hasn’t even released his Failure album yet. Carrington garnered attention from his `Colour Her 2` video and tour with Sneaker Pimps this year but it is the little details that make him forever relevant. In this year`s City on my Back Stylus Award cypher, he wore his young daughter Story to his chest while spitting his verse and received positive feedback for the bold move. When asked about it though, Carrington humbly stated that he did it for no other reason than the fact that he had his daughter that day. Also this summer, Rich Kidd`s NXNE was cancelled by the Toronto Police and Blake invited Rich to join him at this showcase. It is moves like this that make Carrington such a respected artist in the city.

Smash Brovaz

It was another live year for Toronto's most esteemed hip-hop duo as the Smash Brovaz released their digital debut album, Think It's A Game? with singles such as "The Kitchen" and "Paper Planes". Junia-T and Crooklin are staples in the Toronto hip-hop community, bringing us refreshing smooth and lyrical hits. They didn't stop all year, with constant traveling, collaborating and video shoots, but always made time to come out and support their local peers, proving that they truly are the brothers of our hip-hop community.

Click Photo For Highlights

Thank you to everyone interested in pushing our culture forward. It was a proper 2012 and I'm anticipating what is to come for the Toronto hip-hop community.

106 & York 2012

There was no greater way to spend the kick off to Labor Day weekend than to take in great music, art, and dance with some of Toronto’s most talented artists at the 5th annual 106 & York Festival presented by UrbanArts, Highclass, N.I.S.E and Manifesto.
Talented artists of many different genres and art forms such as rap, R&B, spoken word, beat boxing, dance and theatre all showcased their craft to a great turnout of people at the York Woods Theatre.

Comedian Femi Lawson, who entertained the crowd with his hilarious antics and skits throughout the night, hosted this year’s event. “One thing that differentiates 106 from other events in the summer is that it is a youth-led event. It unites different talent from different parts of the city – from the east to the west, from the north to the south. 106 started as a festival that would celebrate diversity and it continues to do that,” he said.


Incredible beat boxer Faz opened up the show and introduced the crowd to, what he calls, his “many personalities” through his music, surprising the audience by beat boxing into a harmonica. Talented singer Obidiah followed, speaking to the crowd with his powerful track “Immigrant Song”.
Supreme Swiss, Freeway Freddy and Jaek Delarge amped up the audience with their tracks and spoken word artist Yusra Khogali impacted the audience with her piece on video vixens. Amazing dance crews The League and Sweetie Pies stole the show with their charismatic choreography before emcee C-Flowz spit his tracks for the crowd, while Nomanzland presented a moving skit on gun violence.

Jelly Too Fly, who also performed last year, said it was her pleasure to come back and rip the stage again. Performing tracks off her latest project, King, Jelly entered from the back of the theatre and had the crowd on its feet. “[The energy is] very supportive. It’s all love… You feel the acceptance that you feel is more so like a family,” she said, following her hype set.

Headlining artists Shi Wisdom, JD Era and Rich Kidd all performed amazing sets. Shi even invited JD Era onstage to perform their hit “Mount Olympus” before an intense Hot 16s cypher, which included emcees Kemikal, Lola Bunz, Church Chizzle, and Gramz G, ended off the show.
Every single artist brought something unique and entertaining to the night with his or her crafts.
Singer Thea Monroe who performed a cover of Beyonce’s “I Miss You” says she was humbled to perform alongside some of Toronto’s most talented.
“It’s great… because with all the violence that has happened, it’s just great to have the youth come together,” she said. “It shows that regardless of what end of the city you’re from, we are all united.”

Photos by: Martika Gregory

Smoker's Club: One Hazy Summer Tour

It really was one hazy Sunday night as hundreds of marijuana and music enthusiasts hit up the Phoenix Concert Theatre for the Toronto stop of the Smokers Club: One Hazy Summer tour. Stoners, hippies and hip-hop heads alike, crowded the venue to take in some of hip-hop’s most notorious weed connoisseurs.
The vibe was chill and the beats were banging from 9:30 p.m. sharp, until early on Monday morning as the thick smoke billowed in the venue. Security allowed the audience, as the intentions of the night were obvious, to get trippy.
Toronto artist C-Flowz, the only local artist on the bill, opened the show. He spit tracks from his latest mixtape, Found My Lane, including his track “Going In”, which features Juicy J, headliner of the night’s event. C-Flowz is a charismatic performer, who proves that he loves what he does every show by spitting his flow with a constant smile, while his DJ, Ms. DJ Ohso spins the set. The Smokers Club tour was no exception and it was obvious the young Toronto emcee was in his element.
Brooklyn’s 17-year-old emcee, Joey Bada$$ who is making waves in hip-hop with his latest mixtape 1999, hit the stage with his Pro Era crew, who tore it up with a youthful energy and intelligent rhymes. The crowd was feeling every bit of Joey’s set, spitting along with his tracks, as the young artist showed love back by reaching into the audience to shake his fans’ hands. Joey and the Pro Era crew ended their hype set with a freestyle, which the crowd soaked up.

The Kush God, Smoke DZA took to the stage in head to toe camo, with his booming voice and performed banger after banger such as, “Burn It Down” and “Christmas In The Trap”. The crowd was surprisingly chill for such a high-energy set, but it was obvious that was due to the lack of oxygen in the air. DZA ended his set with an a capella version of “The World”, as he asked for every light in the building to be turned off. Hundreds of lighters were held up, and only the flames illuminated him as he spit; smoke whirled through the air.
The audience, who expected either Chip Tha Ripper or Fat Trel to hit the stage next was surprised when Juicy J appeared, performing his hit “A Zip and A Double Cup” as fans rushed to the front to vibe with the king of trippy. Juicy J, who already performed in Toronto earlier this year, came out with insane energy and a giant bottle of Bombay, pouring gin into the audience members’ cups. The same crowd, who stood there in a weed coma previously, jumped, danced and screamed as Uncle Juice showed them how to get trippy.

While performing his verse from Mac Miller’s, “Lucky Ass Bitch”, Juicy J brought female audience members onstage to dance with him, and they were anything but shy, twerking for the crowd, who cheered on in amusement. After performing his bangers such as “Who Da Neighbours” and “Countin’ Faces”, as well as Three 6 Mafia hits such as “Stay Fly” and “Poppin My Collar”, he took requests from the audience and ended the eventful night with “Riley”.

Photos by: Carlo Cruz

C-Flowz Mixtape Review

Artist: C-Flowz | Mixtape: Hollywood High
On Repeat: Cold World, Ever Had, Gettin’ More
Download: http://indy.livemixtapes.com/mixtapes/13856/c_flowz_hollywood_high.html

Hollywood High is the fourth mixtape from 21-year-old Toronto rapper C-Flowz, and it is brimming with energy. Hosted by Toronto’s DJ Gutta and Pittsburgh’s DJ BChenk, the nine-track mixtape is a balance of bangers and trill, but every song has a beat to bob your head to. Sampling styles from bigwigs, such as Janelle Monáe, Kanye West, Yung Chris and Lupe Fiasco, C holds his own with a confident flow. On “Ever Had”, the young emcee spits about his daily grind and vision over a technical beat by Taylor Gang’s in-house producer, Sledgren, and on the anthem “Gettin’ More” his focus is on the benefits he has reaped from the grind he has put in. His grind definitely paid off with the creation of a fresh mixtape that any hip-hop listener can appreciate.