The Manifesto festival of music, arts and culture delivers a historic week-long lineup of events August 7th-13th that celebrates the 50th Anniversary of Hip Hop, anchored by a blockbuster live concert experience powered by The Block on Friday August 11th at RBC Echo Beach in Toronto. With a full lineup of performers across two stages, headliners for Manifesto Presents: The Block Party are Los Angeles- based rap star Aminé and Canadian rap icon Saukrates.
Aminé, a Los Angeles-based musician of Ethiopian and Eritrean descent, is known for his blockbuster multi-platinum hit single “Caroline”, noteworthy collaborations with Offset (Migos), Kehlani, and Young Thug, all the way to his recent critically-acclaimed May 2023 collaborative album Kaytraminé with Grammy-winner Kaytranada that features a who’s of multi-generational urban music legends including Pharrell Williams, Big Sean, Snoop Dogg, and Freddie Gibbs.
Toronto-based triple threat (rapper / producer / singer) performer Saukrates has a deep catalogue of timeless singles dating back to the mid-90s, and his influence spreads to many Canadian music megastars of yesterday and today, including Drake – who he’s worked with – and rappers like Nas who he has produced for.
Hosted by The Relentless Diaries podcast crew (Zoie, Tresor, Chris), the Manifesto concert stage will also feature a potent blend of live performances from notable Toronto music talents of today including Kuruza, Eben, No Tourists, SadBoi, Liza, JellyTooFly, Friyie, and Eleanor. CBC Music’s Angeline Tetteh-Wayoe will host the Block Stage, showcasing some of Canada’s brightest rappers including Keysha Freshh, Phoenix Pagliacci, Temia, Vince the Messenger and Clairmont the Second.
August 7th (Day One)
In partnership with CIMA and Music Ontario, the summit kicks offon the Aurora Borealis boat. Running from 12-5pm, guests will get the opportunity to hear from industry leaders within the music and entertainment industry through in-conversation segments as well as enjoy the opportunity to mingle and network with artists and industry professionals. The dress code is “all-white” and food and drink tickets will be provided. The event will be DJ’d by DJ Tay Jean, one of Asterisks Radio’s resident DJs, and the guest speakers include: Kwame Boison (Believe), Samantha “Sammo” O’Connor (Talent Buyer / Ink Entertainment, Head at Rap Season) and Dijah SB (indie rapper). They will be exploring the importance of artists staying independent in today’s music climate and sharing ideas on how to seek out resources. The second panel moderated by Alicia “Ace” West featuring guest speakers Master T, DJ Mel Boogie and YouTube Black A&R Rachel “Rachie” Jackson from Atlanta, will do a deep dive into how Hip Hop has evolved over the past 50 years, and help project and predict what the future holds for the most influential music form of today.
August 8th (Day Two)
In collaboration with SOCAN and CIMA at It’s OK (468 Queen Street West) Cookin’ Beats features iconic multi-platinum producer OG Parker who has produced for mega-selling artists such as Migos, Chris Brown, PartyNextDoor, Meghan Thee Stallion and many more. Running from 6-10pm, this is an invite only workshop for community youth organizations (The Remix Project, Honey Jam, Stolen from Africa, Rise) and is not open to the public.
UK-bred, Toronto-based jewelers Get Capped will lead a hands-on workshop that discusses the role that grills, caps and gold teeth have played in Hip Hop culture. Attendees will create their own silver caps to take home. Free admission workshop open to the public.
The mission of Manifesto has always been to provide accessible high-quality arts programming and a platform for emerging artists to showcase their skills, and this year is no different. On Wednesday August 9th, 7-11pm at the Drake Underground(1150 Queen Street West) Manifesto hosts a free admission Summer Prelude Concert. The Summer Prelude Concert is a curated showcase highlighting emerging artists in the Toronto music scene. The concert is headlined by JUNO Award nominee Emanuel and will feature performances by Manifesto’s Discovery artists; Hundo, Lyhz, Tay Jireh and Doressa. This concert is a 19+ event.
