Author: Kevin Bourne

Five months after Manyok Akol, also known as rapper “FTG Metro”, was killed in downtown Ottawa, Ottawa police have made an arrest. Five months after 18 year-old Manyok Akol, also known as rapper “FTG Metro”, was killed at a Gilmour Street Airbnb in downtown Ottawa, Ottawa police have made an arrest. A 15-year old was charged with first-degree murder and three counts of attempted murder. The youth, who allegedly helped plan and carry out a quadruple homicide, appeared in court Friday morning. This isn’t the accused’s first brush with the law. According to the Ottawa Citizen, he was also charged…

Over the past six weeks life as we knew it all over the world has changed. The word “unprecedented” has become commonplace on various news and media platforms as we grapple to fully describe the extent of unparalleled upheaval the COVID-19 pandemic has caused the world over. Most facets of our lives have been drastically impacted in an attempt to “flatten the curve” and adhere to recommendations around social distancing. We are compelled to protect the most vulnerable among us, namely those with pre-existing  respiratory illnesses, the immunosuppressed, seniors, as well as racialized people and those in poverty. Most of…

Toronto artist VibeByMelo, who SHIFTER once crowned one of the best live performer we had ever seen, is back with a new album The Caves Have Wifi (T.C.H.W.). The seven song collaboration with Ottawa-based producer Travis Thickle is also one of the most cohesive and quality projects to come out of Canada this year. With all the anxiety surrounding Covid-19, the pair notes the album is their way of “breathing life and colour back into the world during this lackadaisical quarantine”. A long time in the making, work on the project began in 2018. The lead single “Busy” was their way…

The NHL season is still on hold due to COVID-19, but Ottawa Senators DJ, DJ Prosper, is keeping busy dropping his latest single “Mental Motivation”. Produced by Quest and featuring his go-to vocalist Doressa, the Summer anthem brings the sound of Haiti, DJ Prosper’s ancestral homeland, to the mainstream with a sample from the Creole hit “Zouk La Sé Sèl Médikaman Nou Ni”. When asked about how the song came together, the former rapper and Ashanti hypeman noted, “‘Mental Motivation’ came together after sending an idea to Quest to produce a flip of the Kassav song. He sent me the…

Today, there’s a lot of tension between the younger generation and the “old heads” who grew up in hip-hop in the 80’s and 90’s. The younger generation are into “vibes” while we were into lyricism. As a result, a lot of older people in hip-hop blame the younger generation for ruining hip-hop. Meanwhile, the younger generation have had enough of our criticism and complaining. Up until a few years ago, I was one of those OG’s lamenting the state of hip-hop. I used terms like “mumble rap” and scoffed at the lack of depth and substance in hip-hop today. But…

Ottawa hip-hop artist Nathan Miles has been busy teasing a brand new single for the Summer called “Crash”, a collaboration with Dreamland artist Hevve and frequent collaborator, and ffa head, Kyazze. The Treuanto designed artwork has a dark, grimey, Hollywood movie poster aesthetic. Miles says of the direction for the cover art, “For this artwork, I hit up my go-to graphic designer Treuanto from Carolina who I’ve been working with since my first single “Hunnit.” I simply told him I needed a dark, grimey, trap-style cover for this new record ‘Crash’ and to somehow incorporate a scrapyard. He came up with…

SHIFTER’s Artist of the Month for May is Cole James, an emerging west coast artist based out of Vancouver, British Columbia with melodic and spacey vocals. He is influenced by R&B, hip-hop and dancehall music, creating a energetic but easy listening vibe. Cole has accumulated 500,000 plus streams across all platforms and has performed at various venues and nightclubs in Vancouver. Before doing music, Cole James was a child actor seen in many TV shows and movies, including “Diary of a Whimpy Kid”. He also appears in vlogs from YouTuber FaZe Mito. Artist Name: Cole James City/Country: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Social…

To close out April, Ottawa hip-hop artist SVDVM and frequent collaborator Jahriia released the visuals for “Pop Dat”, the latest single off their collaborative project Up In Smoke which was released this past March. The 6ixbuzz premiere was actually a re-release. The video originally premiered in 2019, but there’s nothing like a lockdown to bring a video to a new audience. Shot by SubRosa and directed by Samuel x Jayd, the video features the duo in front a wall and projector with some Bonnie and Clyde vibes. We also see some money and smoke, as well as members of RBLx who also make…

Last night, 40, Oli and a other members of OVO posted the cover art for a new project letting us know the 6 God was about to drop something. Drake later confirmed the project was on its way. What we got at midnight was a new mixtape called Dark Lane Demo Tapes. This project is a breath of fresh air after the 25-song Scorpion that was chalked full of commercial hits, from “God’s Plan” to “In My Feelings” and “Nice For What”, as well as a lot of filler that should have been left on the cutting room floor. Although it…

Burlington, Ontario raised and Mississauga-based hip-hop artist, producer and guitarist, Will Ryte, is back with a new album Nothing In Common. Ryte said of how the project came together, “This project started in December of 2019 when I realized I wanted to get a few artists together and have them featured on my album. Shout out to Tianda, K-cuzz, Gads6y, and 595Century.  Everyone that I’ve worked with on this album is extremely talented and I’m beyond grateful for their contribution. This album was executive produced by myself and Gads6y.” The multi-talented artist’s talents are on full display on this album. He…

Lost in all the COVID-19 noise was Scared 2 Love, the debut studio EP from Canadian hip-hop duo Yungcudii & Oeg. Released on March 29th through Baileysmgmt and distributed by United Masters, the EP features five songs— “Fuck a Love Song”, “Die for You”, “Anymore”, “Treesha”, and “Tonight”. Produced by Karim Nasir, aka Kaywaybeats, work on the project began in Summer 2019 after the release of their debut album Purge Season. In comparing the two projects, Yungcudii & Oeg noted, “Scared 2 Love has a different style and tempo and is more concise and more clear compared to Purge Season. The theme revolves around the heartbreak…

There might be something in the water in Durham Region. In case you haven’t noticed, Durham, the municipality just east of Toronto, has been punching well above its weight in recent years, producing their share of hip-hop producers and NBA basketball players. With everything from Whitby to Oakville and north to York Region often referred to as “Toronto”, especially to outsiders, and the rise of Drake, The Weeknd and Tory Lanez, the moves being made in specific parts of the GTA sometimes go unnoticed. But today it’s getting a lot harder to overlook the run that Durham Region is on.…