Author: Kevin Bourne

Kevin Bourne is the co-founder and editor of SHIFTER magazine. Born and raised in Toronto, Kevin currently resides in Ottawa with his wife Koliah and their three children. He's a big fan of hip-hop, pop culture, and urbanism and spends most of his time keeping up with the Kardashians.

I woke up the morning that 4:44 was released to find my timelines flooded. Everything, and I mean everything, was 4:44. That is the kind of clout that Jay-Z, aka Shawn Carter, possesses. Now, we’re not talking about the Lil Uzis and Lil Yachtys of the world. When Mr. Carter speaks, the world listens. My friend was messaging me frantically all morning asking if I had heard the album. He knew I was a fan of true lyricists and Jay-Z certainly was one of them. I told him I was trying to sign up for Tidal as we spoke. Success. I made the…

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Facebook never ceases to generate buzz and every once in a while its founder, Mark Zuckerberg, generates buzz of his own. This week the business media was buzzing as Facebook closed last week at an at time high of $159.97 per share. This meant a big jump in net worth for the Facebook founder. John Bonazzo of observer.com reported on this story: Facebook’s stock has risen nearly 40 percent since the start of 2017—it closed at a record high of $159.97 on Friday. The social network is also expected to announce strong second-quarter earnings at the end of July. All of this…

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So the 2017 edition of RBC Bluesfest is in the books and it was a great show. The mix of artists was on point- 50 Cent, Toby Keith, Anderson. Paak, Muse, Migos- and as usual, there was something for everyone. As we said in our preview, the local talent at this year’s festival was deep and showed how far Ottawa’s music scene has come along. One thing was clear after attending multiple shows over the 10-day festival- not all performers are created equal. The top performers were Toby Keith, Anderson. Paak, Muse, P!nk and Tegan and Sara, and The Souljazz Orchestra.…

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Full disclaimer. I am a huge fan of Jazz, Reggae, Soul and Afro Beats. So in a way, the following review might be somewhat biased. Now, if there’s a show I am glad I attended, it’s definitely this one. The Souljazz Orchestra was by far my favorite performance of the entire festival. If only for their styles and the message they choose to share, I would even say that the Souljazz Orchestra is my favorite Ottawa music group period. Music as a whole is a universal art. There are so many genres and sub-genres out there that it makes it…

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Last night, watching Muse gave me a little bit of a taste of what it must have been like to see Queen when Freddie Mercury was alive. Some might say that’s too bold of a comparison but I think Muse has a lot of similarities. Queen combined musical theatre performance and songwriting with modern rock. Muse combined classical music with rock and blues. Both are famous for their stage performances and production, if not most important though, both fronted by incredible vocalists. Matthew Bellamy has the best live singing voice I may have ever heard. The band’s total execution in…

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To say Anderson. Paak & The Free Nationals was the best performance at Bluesfest without seeing all the acts sounds presumptuous but within one minute of the set I was pretty sure it had to be. Anderson and the band instantly blew everyone I had seen out of the water. It didn’t even seem like they were in the same league. It was like the whole week was opening bands and they were the headliner. I came into the show with fairly high expectations. I’ve been a big Anderson .Paak fan since the release of his sophomore album Malibu. He’s…

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Maurice Moore is one of the hottest acts coming out of Canada’s capital today. After joining R&B singer Kehlani’s Tsunami Mob last year, and releasing tracks ranging from 11,000 to one million plays on Soundcloud, his hard work is paying off. Moore started off with the upbeat tracks Awesome and Just 2, one of my favourite songs of the night. It’s a groovy and fun song that features Moore’s rap skills. Artists like Drake are blurring the lines between R&B and hip-hop and Maurice Moore continues that trend and does it well. Rapping on a fun R&B song is good…

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Aside from 50 Cent, the other show I was looking forward to the most at Bluesfest was Migos. I’m an old school hip-hop fan, a purist, so it took me a while to come around, but I’ve actually become a fan. They’ve originated a style of their own and the dynamic between Quavo, Offset and Takeoff is interesting to watch, whether they’re being interviewed or freestyling. And really, they’re just cool. I’ve heard people say that this new crop of rappers from the south aren’t really rappers; they’re rock stars. Migos fit that description. Their following and unique sense of…

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Admittedly, I’m not in Fetty Wap’s general demographic. This became evident when I reached the show and was surrounded by a sea of high school aged or younger kids. That being said, it was a fun show. I went in without having an expectation for the performance and was pleasantly surprised by a few things. Fetty Wap is an extremely charismatic stage presence. It didn’t hurt that he had a whole crew with him on stage that helped bring up the energy of the performance. Even when the crowd’s energy went down a bit, all he had to do was…

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Cleo Ellis began her career working for the government, bringing in a great income, but soon realized it wasn’t fulfilling. Remembering a conversation she had with her father about pursuing marketing, she decided to take that step to pursue what she knew deep down she was meant to do. Cleo went for what she wanted and now runs Cleo Ellis Communications, a successful communications consulting agency that specializes in strategic brand partnerships. Cleo is also co-founder of LuxelifeSound with DJ Lissa Monet. Ep. 13 – Cleo Ellis of Cleo Ellis Communications Photos by Jodianne Beckford For more photos of Cleo Ellis visit…

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In all honesty, I went into the P!nk concert with very low expectations. I didn’t really know if I was going to enjoy this one at all given the fact that it’s not really my favourite type of music. Nevertheless, I left my expectations at the door and, as any critic or reporter should do, I decided to go in with an open mind. And boy was it worth it. The first thing that hit me was the fact that P!nk is an amazing performer. Flawless even. The energy that she brought to the stage was so transferable. Halfway through…

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