Hey there, everybody, how is it going?
This is going to be a chill blog since I will be sharing some of my latest personal favorites as well as some upcoming events in Toronto I’m excited about. Though we are now supposed to be covered in snow, there hasn’t really been a lot of action in the GTA recently, weather-wise, and luckily it’s not forbidding me from going wherever the hell I want.
But between going from an event to the next, I also had the time to listen to some amazing music lately, starting with Cami.
Music Rant
Cami is a Chilean singer-songwriter who released her latest album ANASTASIA last year. Though only 26, the artist already has three albums behind her back and an extremely powerful vocal technique: the first five songs off the album, the title track, “MÍA,” “VENGANZA,” “LUNA” and “POCA FE,” literally blew me away thanks to the vocals that enhance and give meaning to the lyrics.
The rest of the album oscillates between highs and lows. While “REY” is a bit too messy for my liking, “NIÑOS DORADOS,” “CARNE Y ORO” and “PERREO PA LAS NENAS” are very enjoyable though not as the above-mentioned tracks. The rest of the tracks are okay but nothing special.
All in all, I’m definitely going to check out Cami’s past works and I’ll be looking forward to what she does next.
Next up, I’m currently going through Doja Cat‘s entire discography since I’ve just realized how interesting of an artist she really is. As of now, I’ve only listened to her 2018 debut Amala, which features one of the greatest opening songs of all time, “Go To Town.” (I will make a video on what a good opening song consists of later on.)
Although the album definitely features some gems like “Fancy,” “”Wine Pon You” featuring Konshens, “Candy,” “Casual” and “Body Language,” it does show that Doja was just getting started. It still remains one of the most promising debuts by an up-and-coming artist (at the time). I will be listening to her second album Hot Pink soon.
What albums are you listening to these days? Do you have any recommendations for me? Let me know in the comments below!
What’s Poppin’ In T.O.
Moving on to some fun events happening in T.O. during the rest of the month, I will be volunteering at two of them: DesignTO (Jan. 20-29) and The 33rd Annual International Conference and Festival of Blacks in Dance (Jan. 25-29).
They’ll be celebrating the Lunar New Year at Chinatown on Saturday the 21st and Sunday the 22nd. For this occasion, the Tastes of South East Asia food festival is taking place at the International Centre (I have no idea where it is located). On that same weekend, Nando’s PERi PERi Canada is giving away a free 1/4 chicken to everybody who will bring an empty bottle of PERi-PERi sauce to one of their restaurants on Jan. 22.
Still talking about food, the Toronto Tea Festival is going to be hosted on at the Toronto Reference Library (where I’m coincidentally sitting right now!) on Jan. 28-29. The Winterlicious food festival will run from Jan. 27 to Feb. 9: during this period, participating restaurants will offer fix-priced menus. This food festival is organized various times a year going by different names: in August, it was Summerlicious; in November, Asialicious; now, Winterlicious.
Talking about things other than food, a magazine I contribute to, The Luna Collective, will be hosting their very first Publishing Program, a 9-week course where attendants will learn how to create their very own photography or poetry chapbook, hosted by their EIC Sophie Gragg to whom I report every time I’m working on a feature about an artist.
Lastly, for all the Canadian citizens and Permanent Residents out there (a.k.a. not me, yet), the organizers of The Toronto Fringe Festival are hosting a 24-Hour Playwriting Contest that’s actually going to be extended of 8 more hours “to encourage rest and breaks.” The writing period goes from 9 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 28 to 5 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 29 and the winner will receive $1000.
If you live in Toronto, what other cool events are you taking part in? Share them below!
Art Kills 
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