George Jessel

April 01, 2018 in male, graphic designer, london, los angeles, uk, 2

George Jessel is a multi-platform designer who teeters between web design and interior design seamlessly. After working in marketing and branding, George studied interior architecture at Inchbald School of Design. Since graduating, he has worked on a variety of projects, from working on the fit out for Bloomberg’s London headquarters to larger scale residential refurbishment as well as commercial and hospitality design.

Kay Kash

March 26, 2018 in 2, toronto, dj, male

Kay Kash is a DJ from Brampton and based in Toronto. Between gigs he works as a supervisor/manager and is one half of the youtube duo TKlove, where he films challenges, tags and vlogs with his fiancé.

Andrew Coimbra

March 26, 2018 in male, fashion, 2, toronto, designer

Andrew Coimbra is a George Brown grad who has catapulted his career as designer and creative director of his progressive namesake brand. After interning for Proenza Schouler, Andrew Coimbra began designing luxury outerwear and streetwear seen on Refinery29, Elle Canada and the Junos red carpet. His forward-thinking brand pushes industry boundaries with genderless pieces that he defines as having a “cool and refined ease.”

With a combined Instagram reach of 10k, each post on his brand’s account gets an average of 760 video views and 160 post likes.

Monique Hinds

March 26, 2018 in 2, dj, female, music, toronto

Monique Hinds is a master dot-connector. During the day, she coordinates membership and DJ Programming for Soho House’s Toronto chapter. Once she clocks out of her day job, Monique continues to hustle as a freelance DJ consultant, Event Producer and Project Manager.

Talia Wray

March 19, 2018 in female, model, new york, tv, film, actor, 2

According to Talia Wray’s Instagram bio, she is an “actor, queen of comedy, parts model, and food blogger.” As an actress, Talia’s credits include films like Everything’s Gonna Be Pink, Odd Mom Out and The Heist, as well as commercials for Marshalls and Adore Me. The Brooklyn-native also starred in Kendrick Lamar’s first music video, ADHD, directed by Vashtie.

Tanya

March 19, 2018 in female, toronto, 2

You can follow Tanya here.

Where are you from?

St. Catherine’s, Jamaica. I live in Toronto now

What do you do?

I work for the Peel District School Board as a CYW. Dancing is what I do for fulfillment :)

What is your dream creative project?

Creating an amazing Start Up (funding, housing, education) program / package for homeless and at risk youth in the city from ALL walks of life.

Where are your go-to tunes for…

Rising? - 90s and early 2000s R&B

Exercising? - Trap Trap Trap... Nothing like some Migos while crushing the treadmill!

Partying? - Anything by Di teacha, Vybz Kartel

Where are your favorite places to…

Eat? - SIDCAR on College! Thank me later!

Dance? - Probably any dancehall party happening in the city..

Drink? - Jack Astor’s!

Is there something you really want to do in your city that you haven't yet?

At some point get over my fear of heights and ride the elevator up the CN Tower..

List three people that inspire you…

Although he’s a part of this my fiancé Khory, he inspires and motivates me so much!
My best friend Shanique
Sasha

Lola Plaku

March 13, 2018 in female, new york, music, influencer, toronto, 2

Lola Plaku, aka ILuvLola, is an industry insider who catapulted her career from fast food cashier to hip-hop journalist to artist development expert, supporting the careers of artists like Dej Loaf, Kehlani and Drake. After applying her OG industry wisdom to her role as manager for French Montana, Lola now takes care of marketing and brand development for Belly and Safe.

As Lola’s following soars past 70k, each post received over 2k likes, with an overall engagement rate of 3.3%.

Matthew Progress

March 13, 2018 in music, toronto, CLASH, 2, RHUM CORNER

Matthew Progress masterfully blends house and hip-hop to craft a unique sound that goes beyond Toronto’s signature moody vibe. As his haunting deep voice flows over bass-heavy beats, he gets personal on most tracks, giving listeners a glimpse into his insightful thoughts. His years of experience in the music industry could easily classify him as an OG but his constant reinvention makes him just as fresh and exciting as a newcomer.

Jimmy Prime

March 13, 2018 in music, toronto, CLASH, 2

Jimmy Prime is an emerging rapper who has already made a huge impact. Drake has credited him for originally christening Toronto as The Six and his own music career has been gaining steady traction since his music leaked to an OVO blog over 4 years ago. Since then, Jimmy and the Prime Boyz have gradually been carving out own signature gritty sound in Toronto’s competitive hip-hop scene.

Stats: 28.8k on Instagram, 20.5k on Soundcloud

Sean Leon

March 10, 2018 in male, music, toronto, CLASH, 2, OAK ISLAND, ffso

In a post-Drake Toronto, Sean Leon goes beyond the city’s signature moody sound. His diverse sound teeters between grungy and bubbly and his persona is authentic and irreverent. Sean’s projects include CCWMTT and I Think You’ve Gone Mad, a song ‘Matthew in the Middle’ with vocals from his dear friend and collaborator Daniel Caesar, was featured on the soundtrack for HBO’s Insecure. Beyond his own music, Sean is the founder of the IXXI collective, which is responsible for launching and developing Daniel Caesar’s meteoric career and fostering other Toronto talent.

Jay Strut

March 10, 2018 in toronto, fashion, influencer, female, 2

Jay Strut is a blogger, content-creator and front-row staple at fashion weeks around the world. After years of well-curated and envy-inducing snaps of her lifestyle, she has amassed an impressive following and has secured her place as one of Toronto’s foremost fashion bloggers and influencers, with collaborations with HP, Google, Chanel and Versace under her belt.

Every photo from her international escapades gets an average of 1.1k likes from nearly 61k followers.

Sydney Beaumont

March 09, 2018 in toronto, writer, model, female, 2, OAK ISLAND, 416, APT200

When she isn’t mixing drinks at Oak Island, Sydney Beaumont is a go-to model for emerging Toronto designers. She is a fresh face in the fashion scene but a staple in Toronto’s social sphere, with a bold look and effortless style that can easily be considered synonymous with ‘cool’.

Jahmal Padmore

March 09, 2018 in dj, male, toronto, music, 2, 416, RHUM CORNER, BOND

Jahmal Padmore is a creative multi-hyphenate living and working in Toronto. In true millennial fashion, Jahmal’s day-to-day is filled with multiple projects for multiple clients, all while balancing his own creative career. With lululemon, Jahmal works as the community lead and with Tokyo Smoke, he produces podcasts. Meanwhile, his band miracles creates music music that merges R&B with synthy pop so that you can catch a futuristic vibe.

Jayemkayem

March 07, 2018 in dj, female, events, music, toronto, intersessions, 2

Jayemkayem is a DJ, writer, and marketing consultant committed to amplifying good music and underrepresented voices. After thriving through Toronto’s DJ scene she created her own community radio project Istolethesoul, which hosts pop-up broadcasts around Toronto. Between pop-ups she still spins her own well-rounded mixes around the city, where she plays everything from rap, trap and grime to drill, garage and bass.

Stats: 8691 Instagram followers.

Stacey Sexton

March 07, 2018 in female, dj, music, intersessions, 2

Stacey Sexton is definitely one of the coolest people to come out of CBS, Newfoundland. Once she’s done ‘slinging juices’ at a vegan restaurant and studying at school, she creates bold graphics and upbeat mixes. She is also part of the DJ collective Something Special alongside Karim Olen Ash.

Dre Ngozi

March 07, 2018 in dj, female, music, toronto, intersessions, 2

Whether or not you have heard of Dre Ngozi, you have probably seen her behind the decks at Toronto’s best parties or dancing with Miguel and Travis Scott in a music video. Her own mixes incorporate her eclectic, diverse music style and make it impossible to stay still. With collaborations with Absolut and Covergirl under her belt, she is quickly rising to the top of Toronto’s DJ scene and breaking the boys club that has reigned for far too long.

Vaughan

March 07, 2018 in dj, female, music, toronto, intersessions, 2

Vaughan is a Toronto-based DJ dedicated to creating space and visibility for women of colour. Through her work with Chippy Nonstop’s Intersessions, Karim Olen Ash’s Something Special, Vaughan is gradually working to disrupt the dominant male presence in music.

Katie Lavoie

March 07, 2018 in toronto, dj, music, female, intersessions, 2

Katie Lavoie is a Calgary-export currently based in Toronto. Since her big move, the self-proclaimed prairie girl has become a fixture in Toronto’s DJ scene. Her sets incorporate a wide array of genres and styles, from punk to jazz to disco to club, and though they’re unpredictable, they are always thoughtfully and masterfully mixed.

Brittany Chanel

March 06, 2018 in new york, film, tv, writer, female, 2

Brittany Chanel, aka @millennialpamgrier, is a digital and linear content strategist, writer and master marketer. Her TV work has extended from daily live shows to award shows and talk shows and her digital expertise extends online, where she shares fun snaps of her life in NYC on her Instagram.

Sy Blake

March 05, 2018 in toronto, male, graphic designer, london, england, 2

Sy Blake is an imaginative artist who prioritizes diverse representation by presenting Black life through a fantastical lens in his graphic design and 3D animation. Since mastering a variety of character styles, the UK-export has continued to craft some characters so intricate that they look cartoon ready and others so unique that look like they are “straight from the space continuum”, as his Twitter bio suggests.