We got a surprise last minute call to come down to Manifesto 2011 and catch an amazing night of hip hop solid gold. The night was warm and fine, and so was the generous crowd that gathered to watch musical giants compete in the Molson Amphitheater which felt more like a big nightclub on this night.We were stoked to see Afrika Bambaataa and the Zulu Nation vs Lucky Me (Hudson Mohawke, Lunice, Rustie & Just Blaze) vs Mad Decent (Dillion Francis, DJ Sega, South Rakkas Crew, Paul Devro) vs Toronto All Stars (Starting From Scratch, Lissa Monet, Lindo P, Mensa).
Pioneers from four styles of sound system culture faced off in the city’s first ever cross-genre culture clash. Four DJ crews hailing from Los Angeles, London, New York and Toronto energetically represented their sound on four different stages and sound systems. Manifesto’s point of origin lies in hip hop culture -" in its spirit of ingenuity, raw creativity, and people power, but strive to stay out of boxes and create a platform with the potential to act as a catalyst for cross-pollination, collaboration, and the growth of new forms in this city of wildly talented people."
I was all about Mad Decent, a very high spirited full show crew, they gave the stage some colour in clash. The crowd had very diverse roots and it showed in the great response to every crew. Toronto All Stars ultimately became the of the Red Bull Music Academy World Tour- Culture Clash Toronto stop, winning the hometown crowd with special guests like k-os kicking things up a notch. We felt that they deserved it and were happy to see Toronto get top spot, but there is no doubt the whole night was a winner!
~Melissa Johnston