So being a fan of hip-hop it’s always nice to hear some old school stuff and pay homage to how it started with Classified.
That is exactly what Classified and this tour was for a lot of people. The Canadian Classics Tour brought together some of the pioneers of Canadian Hip-hop as we know it today and it was just amazing to see and take it all in as a true fan.
Nova Scotia native, and proud Canadian, Classified got Choclair and Maestro Fresh Wes together to kick off The Canadian Classics tour in Oct for 27 shows across Canada.
Choclair
Choclair, a Toronto native, helped develop the Canadian hip-hop scene of the 90s. He released 11 records by 1998 working with the likes of Saukrates, Kardinal Offishall, Jully Black and Solitair to name a few. In 1999 he released his debut album with Priority Records titled “Ice Cold” which hit gold in Canada and gave us the hit single “Let’s Ride” produced by Kardinal Offishall.
Maestro Fresh Wes
Also a Toronto native, Maestro Fresh Wes, is credited as the Godfather of Canadian Hip-hop. Maestro was the first Canadian rapper to have a Top 40 hit in 1990 with “Let Your Backbone Slide”. The US wasn’t quite ready for Maestro however he returned to Canadian charts in 1998 with “Stick to Your Vision” and “416/905” Also an accomplished actor he can be seen on the show Mr. D.
The Canadian Classics Tour was to celebrate the release of the album “Tomorrow Could Be the Day Things Change” which was officially released on Oct 12th with the first single “Cold Love ft. Tory Lanez” also dropping.
Classified & Local artists
Classified wanted to do something for every city on the tour. He gave a local artist the chance to submit a track using a beat provided by the man himself. The city would vote on it, the winner getting an opening spot. This is huge for a local artist as you not only get the change to flex for some of the Canadian greats but you also get your whole city to hear you! Local artist J-David from Sudden Movement won the slot and we deserved from a hardworking young up and coming artist.
Once the opening acts warmed up the stage the packed house was treated to some amazing music. Maestro Fresh Wes kicked it off and had the whole crowd singing along from the get go. He made sure to grace us all with “Let Your Back Bone Slide” which was amazing.
Choclair hit the stage right after and for most people this seeing these 2 was major nostalgia. He rocked out with tracks like “Lets Ride” and “Made” (My personal fav). The fans absolutely loved it!
Classified
Classified hit the stage with a stage kit paying respect to his home town. He finished out the show with some of his greatest hits starting out with “Oh…Canada” and rolling into tracks like “3 Foot tall” and “Higher”
The guys had a meet and greet at the end of the show taking time to talk to fans take pictures.
If you missed this show then you missed out on a once of a life time kind of hip-hop event. Take a look at some of the shots we took.
