A Week of Music, Memories + the Magic of Toronto

Life just feels so much better when your favorite bands are in town. The city gets a little louder, the sidewalks seem more alive and the rhythm of the street syncs with your heartbeat. That’s exactly how it feels today because tomorrow we're seeing the Dave Matthews Band at Budweiser Stage and I can’t help but feel wrapped up in the emotion of it all.

Toronto isn’t just another city for me. If you've been here awhile then you know it’s the backdrop of my story, the foundation of who I am, the pull of where I want to be and my forever home in spirit - but if you're new here, now you know.

Concerts here, feel like home.

Raised in the Heart of the City

I grew up travelling between Hamilton and Toronto - Union Station in the early 2000's era was nothing like it is now (under huge construction with a completely different layout than I'm used to). Front Street is still as beautiful as I recall every year - but that's the beauty of this city, you are always on an adventure. I would travel the bus from Hamilton to Union, transfer to the subway, walk through College station to catch a streetcar and then off to Bleecker and Carlton, right across the street from The Phoenix Concert Theatre. One thing about the TTC is you're never waiting too long for a commute. If you know, you know.

However, The Phoenix is one of those legendary Toronto venues where you feel every note in your chest and even if you’re not inside, you can hear the music pouring out onto the street. As a teenager with my grandpa living right across the street, I used to sit right outside on the curb (sometimes you could hear it from the balcony), soaking in every show because it's a 19+ venue and I wasn't the type of kid looking for a fake I.D. He would call me silly but sit there with me so he knew I would be safe (before smart phones even existed btw). It wasn’t about seeing the lights, gaining access to the party, or broadcasting our every move - it was about being fully present and feeling that energy.

Old Cabbagetown Toronto, where Victorian homes and gritty charm mix effortlessly, was where I spent countless nights and summer seasons falling in love with this place.

A City Full of Personal Soundtracks

My second home before I even knew what that meant. Weekend after weekend, I walked the streets of Toronto hand-in-hand with my grandpa and my sister. We’d stroll down Parliament, grab snacks in little shops, travel to the malls, explore alleyways that seemed like secret worlds, hit the CN Tower, the zoo, the festivals, rolled down the hills at Riverdale Park and watched the city grow up with us. This is where my love for spontaneity and adventure was rooted. Now passing it onto my own - generational. We weren’t rich, but we were rich in tradition.

Time spent together meant more than anything money could buy - even though we did a lot of shopping within Dundas Square. It was those everyday moments that made this city magic. Moments we still laugh about to this very day (even though he's passed - RIP gramps). He was like the father we needed when ours was absent, and he really came through giving us the gift of experience for so many years - where he grew to be not only our grandpa/fatherly support, but my day one and my best friend.

So now, when I walk in those streets - as an adult, I carry memories in my heart and venue tickets in my bag. Any chance to experience a tiny sliver of home, I'll be right there.

Concerts Are More Than Shows — They’re Chapters

OKAY! Enough of the backstory because I could go on forever about my time in T-dot but summer is here and concert season is back! Nothing compares to LIVE energies, especially in a city that raised you. When I see Dave Matthews tomorrow, it won’t just be about the setlist (even though I hope to hear Crash Into Me*).

It’ll be the flashbacks of nights outside The Phoenix, the sound of my Grandpa’s voice singing along with his thick Scottish accent, the smell of street food, the thrill of a packed subway train after/before a show - the calm before the storm, and with Coldplay (my fav album) also in town, the whole city will feel even more electric. That shared joy, thousands and thousands of fans coming together. It reminds me that even in a busy, chaotic city - music will always connect us.

The universal language.

Toronto, My Forever Stage

Toronto will always be home for many reasons - but memory is one of the biggest. These past few years have established so much more of our connection. New forever memories, this time with a ton of concert footage - mixed with the nostalgia of the old. From the corners of Cabbagetown to massive stadiums and tiny venues - from my first real career-boosting networking event to the vision of my dream job, this city has given me a front-row seat to growing up, falling in love with all aspects of music and the thrill of writing my own story.

So if you see me tomorrow, singing my heart out at Dave Matthews, just know - it’s not just a concert. It’s a love letter to a city that has consistently given me everything - and I know there's so much more to this story we'll add.

Toronto, I love you and I'll see you tomorrow.

#thisbudsforyou