Manifesto is no longer that free event downtown where local talent and Kardinal Offishall occupy Dundas Square to entertain indie hip hop fans, tourists and shoppers leaving H&M. No shade to Kardi, but today’s iteration is a far cry from the Toronto festival’s humble beginnings. While I do miss the days of celebrating Toronto’s homegrown talent with no admission, I can’t help but take pride in Manifesto’s tremendous growth. For their 10th anniversary, they’ve extended the celebration of urban arts and culture to 9 days, moved to TD Echo Beach, and invited a slew of both international and local artists. I was lucky enough to attend the Anderson .Paak and Kaytranada show (with opening act, Toronto’s own Daniel Ceasar, who sounded dope from the bar- sorry I was running late and sober).
It was great to see him representing MTL by hyping up the crowd with his endearing French Canadian accent and charming pleads to the audience to actually dance.
To justify my lateness a bit, I was originally scheduled to be shooting and spectating from the photo pit but unfortunately some miscommunication resulted in me wandering around the venue for some time and then eventually finessing (asking) my way into VIP. The vibe there was poppin’. People of all backgrounds collectively lost their shit as Kaytranada began his set. It was great to see him representing MTL by hyping up the crowd with his endearing French Canadian accent and charming pleads to the audience to actually dance. If his eclectic mix of hip hop, r’n’b and electronic music didn’t keep you entranced in the groove, then his giant backdrop of 90’s TLC and Janet Jackson clips surely did. We even got an exclusive in the form of an unreleased Alicia Keys’ track produced by Kaytra himself. Shit banged.
He’s James Brown and Kendrick Lamar. He’s George Clinton and John Mayer. He’s Andre 3000 and Ray Charles. He’s both an homage and an innovator.
After Kaytranada’s performance, we had an intermission curated by Toronto/Guelph DJ, Elaquent, where we were treated to array of turn up tracks. One of these tracks was “I Know There’s Gonna Be (Good Times)” by Jamie XX, Young Thug and Popcaan- one of my favourite songs of summer 2015. It was during “…(Good Times)” that an older lady approached me to ask what the name of the song was. She wrote down the song title into her phone’s notepad and then followed up by asking me what the artist’s name was. I had never envisioned myself witnessing an elderly white lady carefully type “Young Thug” into her iPhone but I’ll be damned if it will be the last. This was a beautiful moment. I patronizingly asked her if she was here to see Anderson .Paak. She responded by detailing her first encounter with the rapper/singer/drummer’s music. She had heard his song “Come Down” while shopping in a Montreal Boutique. She asked a retail worker who the artist was and fast-forward a few months; she was dancing with her walker in the VIP section, as Anderson serenaded her. She emanated pure joy as Paak powered through his soulful Malibu hits and pop-centric Venice standouts. She, as a self-proclaimed hippie from the 60’s, and I, as a millennial Kanye-apologist, shared a rare and unique cross-generational moment. I recount this anecdote to illustrate just the type of transcendent artist Anderson .Paak really is. That awesome old lady described him as “enigmatic”. I think the enigma lies in his ability to blend genres so seamlessly that you feel like he’s either from the future or the past. He’s James Brown and Kendrick Lamar. He’s George Clinton and John Mayer. He’s Andre 3000 and Ray Charles. He’s both an homage and an innovator. That’s not to say he’s doing what’s never been done before, it’s to say he’s doing it for everyone. Anderson .Paak is for the people. I urge you to see him live.
Overall, I endorse Manifesto’s transition into an actual major festival. I don’t feel like its evolution takes away from its grassroots core. I left the show with a feeling of unity. A feeling that encompasses the festival’s tagline of “uniting, inspiring and empowering young people through arts & culture.” My only advice is that they tweak their mantra to be more inclusive to grannies that bump Young Thug.
Words and Views by Ryan Konarsky – follow him here.
