​There is nothing worse as a fan of a recording artist, in any genre, to receive news that the show you bought tickets for has been cancelled. But in Canada, hip-hop fans have become all too familiar with the disappointment of tour dates being cancelled because their favourite American recording artist was denied entry into the country. Issues crossing the Canadian border have basically spanned the length of the live hip-hop show industry in Canada.

​Francis Nyugen- Tran, who also goes by FrancisGotHeat, is a multi-platinum music producer from Toronto. At just 22 years old, he has  produced for popular big artists such as Drake, Big Sean, Eminem and local talents such as Roy Woods and Anders. However, Francis remains humble and unfazed by of his success, and who views himself just like everyone else.

When Suzanne Kanso walked into her first bachata class two years ago, she didn’t know what to expect.  She thought she might learn a few steps of this popular Latin partner dance, improve her mental health, or find a fun form of exercise.

By Shafniya Kanagaratnam

​Toronto is home to the third largest music market in North America with hip hop and R&B being the fastest growing genres here in the city. Toronto is known for its diversity and is quite evidently rising globally in the hip-hop scene. New local artists are blowing up through Soundcloud, cosigns, or even just years of developing local, steady fan bases. Below are three rising artists that represent Toronto in terms of diversity and culture with their individual sounds in hip-hop.

The music scene in Toronto is always buzzing, and there are many live performances to check out almost all the time. Here are some of the best venues for live music to check out in Toronto, if you haven’t already. 

When thinking of the origins of Rock n’ Roll music, many people would quickly associate it with artists such as Elvis Presley and Aerosmith. However, the beginning of rock music as we know it today, can be traced all the way back to the blues and the strong influence of Black culture and musical traditions.