Photos by Andrew MacLean ; Written by Andrew MacLean
I arrived at one of my favourite venues tonight to watch a loaded line up for the show at The Opera House theatre in Toronto. Taking the stage is Ryan Oakes, Guccihighwaters, and Jake Hill (IAmJakeHill). Doors opened just slightly before 6:30, and everyone waiting in line made their way inside the venue awaiting to witness a memorable night.
The first to take stage was Ryan Oakes. A DJ sporting a tall Mohawk warmed up the crowd with a mini set before introducing Ryan to the stage. Right out of the gate Ryan showed high energy and had great interactions with the crowd. After his first round of songs Ryan gathered the crowd in for a vibe check, getting them to repeat the names of tonight’s performers back to him. Speaking with the crowd, Ryan spoke on how those attending may not know who he is, but he mentioned how he has self-released over 300 songs over the last 12 years, and that tonight in Toronto was his first international show outside of the United States. Ryan debut a new song tonight to test it out to see how the crowd would enjoy it. He also performed songs such as “Nothing Left to Lose”, and “Spaceship”. Before leaving the stage, Ryan took out his phone to record the crowd, jokingly saying “I’m going to take a video and send it to my mom. She thinks I work at Claires”.
The tide came in, which meant it was time for Guccihighwaters to take the stage next. With more chill and music to vibe to, Gucci stepped right into his set getting the patrons of the venue swaying and singing along. Before performing his track “Hate Me Too”, he got the crowd in unison to chant it back to him to prepare them for the song’s chorus. Midway through the set Gucci let everyone know that he is currently working a self-produced and self-written album, and proceeded to perform three tracks from the upcoming release. Going though these songs, the one track opened up so powerful, that the bass was vibrating the floor I was standing on. Finishing with “Rock Bottom”, and “I’m So Sick of This”, Gucci thanked the crowd, and told Toronto that he appreciated everyone rocking with him.
The main event has here, Jake Hill. Opening his set with more of his laid-back tracks, Jake played a run of “Stay”, “By Your Side”, and “Nerve”. Speaking with the crowd before finishing up the first part of his set, Jake talked about writing based on experiences going into the next track saying, “Here is a song where I bitch about my ex,” and went into performing “Running To You”. A low rumble of atmospheric sounds and a quick pause was all that was needed to switch up the tones of the set. Jake moved into a sequence of his rap-based songs telling the crowd, “I choose violence”. Going into his songs “Last Laugh”, and “Satin Black”, Jake stopped to talk with the crowd, “I never thought I’d be able to live my dream,” he then proceeded to ask the everyone how many people had seen him live before. Half the crowd screamed, Jake smiled and continued with his set.
Later into the night Jake played Simon Says with everyone, getting them in a roar of laughter. Finishing it off, Jake noticed someone in the crowd wearing a shirt that said, “zero”, and told everyone, “Simon Says, see that guy with the zero shirt. Beat the shit out of him.” The crowd laughed, as Jake is known for his dry, funny, and sarcastic sense of humor. After performing a handful more of his tracks, Jake mentioned to the crowd he wanted to cover a song by a good friend of his, and even showed that he was wearing his friend’s merch. He wore a t-shirt that said “Dixon Dallas” across the front with a small cowboy hat on the side. The crowd was excited to hear him perform “Good Lookin’”, a track from his alter ego, Dixon Dallas.
Between great high energy songs, and being interactive with the crowd, Jake easily became everyone’s friend that night. Towards the end of his set Jake spoke about mental health, and his struggles with it. He reminded everyone that, “you have to keep kicking and change some things. You need to figure out what your body needs to heal to be able to continue. Your mental health will never go away, but it won’t get easier if you don’t change things. Get out, see some friends, see family, go play pickle ball, just do something. We’re all going to die anyways, so don’t waste your days lying in bed, chase your dreams, run and try to get it. So do what you gotta do, I love you guys, thank you for still being alive.” Finishing up with a mashup of songs from former creative partners Jake performed snippets of tracks such as “Worst Mistakes” and “Suicidal Thoughts”. Thanking the crowd, Jake left the stage briefly before returning to close with, “By the Sword”, and “Die a King”.
Jake easily became one of my top 10 favourite artists that night. When he spoke about mental health topics, there was a lot there I could relate to, and honestly, I was trying to hold back tears. If Jake and I had attended the same high school, I’d hope we would have been friends, as by the end of the show I felt like I had gained a new one. With his great sense of humor, fun ways around the stage, and being a huge advocate for mental health, Jake Hill is an artist we truly need in today’s society.
