After three straight years of bringing one of Toronto’s dopest annual Hip-Hop events to The Bentway, the 2026 edition of the Bastid’s BBQ music festival relocated to the newly renovated Harbourfront Centre. Over its decade-plus of existence, the festival has been held at many different venues over the years, but the vibes have remained the same, being summed up with the slogan: Good Music, Good Food, Good People. Each year Skratch Bastid curates a lineup of world-class DJs to showcase the diverse range of techniques and skillsets within the art form, putting the emphasis on one of Hip-Hop’s often overlooked elements while still providing a platform for emcees and breakdancers to shine. You can expect the Hip-Hop elements to come together at any Bastid’s BBQ event, and the 2026 edition in Toronto would be no different.

Joining Skratch Bastid on this year’s lineup would be Jurassic 5’s DJ Nu-Mark from Los Angeles, and Philadelphia’s own iconic DJ Jazzy Jeff would be the headlining DJ. In terms of emcees, Brooklyn, New York’s own Talib Kweli would be headlining, and he’d be joined by his Javotti Media signee Niko Is, who’d be making his Canadian debut, along with Toronto legend Michie Mee making a special appearance. Rounding out the lineup would be local Toronto-based artists who won their way onto the lineup in a new Who’s Got Next competition, including Insyt, Thelonious, and Reazhun, and there would be a breakdance competition hosted by Mav-One taking place throughout the day.

The new-look Harbourfront Centre was effective in bringing that Bastid’s BBQ summertime festival vibe, with views of both the CN Tower and Lake Ontario from the outdoor festival grounds, food trucks spread out along the perimeter with designated picnic benches, and an open area in front of the stage with plenty of space for dancing. Familiar food vendors like Burger Drops and Crumbs Jamaican patties were serving up delicious bites, and with Toronto’s Caribana Festival just around the corner, it was a welcome addition having Red Stripe as this year’s beer sponsor. We got to the venue mid-day, just as Skratch Bastid was spinning his first of two DJ sets, and he’d bring out some special guests who showcase first-hand how Caribbean culture is embedded within Canadian Hip-Hop.

The first emcee to rock the mic would be Scarborough’s own Choclair, who’d come out to his 2002 hit “Light It Up,” setting off the vibes right away. He’d quickly be joined by two thirds of the Vancouver-based group, Rascalz, with DJ Kemo backing him on turntables, and emcee Red1 getting on the mic to perform their own ’02 hit, “Crazy World.” With two entities of Canadian Hip-Hop royalty now sharing the stage, they’d go back and forth taking turns to rock their hits, with Choclair performing “Rubbin'” and Red1 rocking “Movie Star” for the ladies. Skratch Bastid would stay on stage to support too, giving props to DJ Kemo’s production on those Rascalz joints.

The Juno award-winning legends would next take it back to their prime years, with Red1 backing Choclair as he did his famous routine, getting the crowd to wave their arms like a steering wheel before getting into the 1999 classic “Let’s Ride.” Red1 would follow with Rascalz’ own ’99 hit “Top of the World,” even doing a cover of k-os’ verse on the song, with Choc as his hypeman. The two emcees would then close out their set by performing their verses from the classic anthem “Northern Touch,” cranking the energy up for the festival early on.

After that surprise appearance by all-time Canadian icons, the next segment of the festival would be for the up-and-comers. Skratch Bastid and Loop Sessions Toronto had collaborated on social media for their Who Got Next campaign to gather submissions from upcoming Toronto-based artists, and they selected three winners to get a chance to perform at the festival. First up would be an emcee named Thelonious, joined by Kai Banks as his hypeman. While the breath control and delivery was about 90% on point, you could tell Thelonious was barring out, getting the crowd to join in on the hook for his song “TrenchBaby,” and dropping freestyles over Jadakiss & Styles P’s “We Gonna Make It” and Jay-Z & Kanye West’s “Otis.”

Following Thelonious would be a DJ set by producer Reazhun, who’d remix records by Westside Gunn, Kool G Rap and Mobb Deep over alternative beats. One highlight was seeing him put “Nas Is Like” over a gospel sounding production. He’d be followed by another emcee named Insyt, who we last saw open for Freddie Gibbs & The Alchemist last October. I wrote in that review that his flow reminded me of Earl Sweatshirt, as he simply barred out over some minimalist production. We took this moment to go get a meal as Insyt’s set wrapped up and the final round of the breakdance competition went on in the background.

When we got back to the stage area, Skratch Bastid was rocking the turntables again, chopping up some Public Enemy records. This was clearly done with intention, as the next artist to grace the stage would be Michie Mee, and she’d have her own Chuck D narrated introduction played through the speakers before she came out. Highlighting her impact as a pioneer of Canadian Hip-Hop, being the first Canadian emcee signed to a U.S. record label in 1988, it’s only right that she got the royal treatment when she came out. Chuck D once said “most of my heroes don’t appear on no stamp,” but in 2026 we’re celebrating Canada getting it right, as Michie Mee, along with Maestro Fresh Wes and Muzion, became the first Hip-Hop artists to appear on Canada Post stamps.

This would end up being the longest setlist I’ve personally seen Michie Mee perform, as my last time seeing her was at Drake’s All Canadian NorthStars show in 2022, where she only got time on stage to do one song. This time she’d have a solid half hour on stage to take us through her historic career, as she spit some raps over Jay-Z’s “Song Cry,” and got the crowd bouncing to songs like “Don’t Wanna Be Your Slave” and “Bahdgyal Bubble.” She’d of course take it back to the ’80s towards the end of her set, performing a medley of throwbacks including “Elements of Style,” her debut single from 1986, and of course arguably her most iconic record, “Jamaican Funk-Canadian Style.” It was definitely a dope moment seeing Michie Mee get her flowers and appreciation on stage.

Following Michie Mee’s performance would be a couple DJ sets by DJ Nu-Mark and Skratch Bastid. Nu-Mark would rock for a solid hour, keeping the crowd moving with a variety of turntable tricks, just as we saw him do when he headlined the 2023 edition of Bastid’s BBQ. He had a dope way of isolating sounds in a beat and building up the full production around it, doing this with Jay-Z’s “La La La (Excuse Me Again),” and later on flipping the guitars from Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama” into Bob Marley’s “Could You Be Loved.” Other highlights from his set include getting the crowd to chant “Nuuuu-Mark!” over the beat from Nas’ “Made You Look,” and transitioning the lyric “got chicks in the living room gettin’ it on / and they ain’t leavin’ ’til 6 in the mornin'” from Nas’ verse on “Oochie Wally” to Snoop Dogg’s “Gin and Juice.”

Skratch Bastid would also get his own hour on stage, and he’d set it off with a surprise announcement. While the last few years of Bastid’s BBQs were weekend-long festivals at The Bentway, this year had to be different with FIFA World Cup taking over the space for its FIFA Fan Fest. Bastid would announce that they’d still be returning to the beloved venue in 2026, just on a different weekend, with a second Bastid’s BBQ set to take place on September 12th. Fans in attendance got a special QR code to get first access to tickets.

Skratch Bastid would go in with some incredible scratching segments during his DJ set. He’d do his “Get Down” segment, flipping the phrase used in various songs, including the Clipse’s “When The Last Time” and the James Brown sample used in Nas’ “Get Down.” Other highlights included a Reggae segment, where he had the artists plug his name into the lyrics, and a segment where he took the sample from Busta Rhymes’ “Touch It” and put it over different kinds of alternative Hip-Hop beats. The most mind-blowing part of Bastid’s set came towards the end, as he took Rihanna’s “Rude Boy,” isolated her “whatchu want, want” lyric, and put it over the guitar riff from Rage Against The Machine’s “Bulls On Parade,” turning the Dancehall chune into a full Rock performance. The crew setting up gear on the second set of turntables for the next DJ could be seen shaking their heads.

Skratch Bastid would stay on and support the next artists to hit the stage, with Brazilian-American artist Niko Is coming out next for his first ever performance in Canada. Niko Is signed to Talib Kweli’s indie label, Javotti Media in the early 2010s, and has put out a few mixtapes and albums over the years. Unfortunately the sound levels were off and you could barely hear his raps as he spit some freestyles, mentioning things in the moment like the Bastid’s BBQ apron he was wearing, and the mic itself being off as he rapped. After a few joints, he’d bring out Talib Kweli himself, and the two would perform a song together before Kweli quickly addressed the sound engineer to fix the microphone levels. Kweli would then go in with his own solo set, with Niko Is and Skratch Bastid backing him.

Talib Kweli is of course most known for his run in the late ’90s and early 2000s, both as a solo artist and part of the duos Black Star with Yasiin Bey (f/k/a Mos Def) and Reflection Eternal with DJ Hi-Tek. He’s released several indie projects in recent years, and has also continued to tour in support of those projects, including a show at Toronto’s Horseshoe Tavern just last year. Personally, I’ve recently seen him do a one-night-only performance with J. Rawls and The Liquid Crystal Project in Mississauga in 2025, and kicked off my 2026 with another solo Kweli show in Hamilton this past January. If this was your first time seeing Talib Kweli perform live, it was definitely a dope moment to witness, but for those who may have caught him at these recent shows, much of the setlist he performed at Bastid’s BBQ was familiar.

Talib Kweli would set off his solo set with the Reflection Eternal classic “Move Somethin’,” with the beat flipping to Black Rob’s “Woah” on the second verse to give him some added energy. He’d then do a favourite of mine off of that Reflection Eternal Train of Thought album, “Down For The Count,” before pulling out a relatively new joint with 2022’s “Nat Turner” off of his Liberation 2 album with Madlib, getting the crowd to pump their fists for freedom. Kweli would then take it back to 2004 with some of his more commercially successful joints, including his Mary J. Blige collab “I Try,” followed by a song he said Toronto had a big part in blowing up, the Just Blaze-produced “Never Been In Love,” rocking all three verses and getting the crowd to clap along to the beat. R&B star Glenn Lewis could be seen casually enjoying the show at the back of the stage, and one had to wonder how dope it would have been if he were to pick up the mic and cover that hook for Kweli.

One unique part of Talib Kweli’s set would come next, as he’d perform his J Dilla collab “Raw Shit,” but would be joined by Niko Is to spit a freestyle over the beat and also raise a glass in a toast to Toronto. The energy would get cranked as he got into a familiar yet classic segment of his setlist next, getting Skratch Bastid to spin a few Reggae records before diving into his own Reggae-influenced Black Star single, “Definition,” followed by a raw, acapella performance of “Re: Definition,” the tracks flowing just as they do on the Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star album. As we’ve seen at his recent concerts, Talib Kweli would alter the lyrics in his “Re: Definition” verse to shoutout A Tribe Called Quest at the end, and the beat from their classic “Check The Rhime” would drop, which he’d use to perform the Black Star song “K.O.S. (Determination)” over.

Kweli would continue with the classics, getting the crowd to light up their cell phones and lighters as he performed “The Blast,” and had everyone singing along to the hook. Another unique moment came next, as Skratch Bastid dropped the beat to Kanye West’s “Get Em High” and Talib would perform his guest verse on the song, something I hadn’t seen him do in several years, and he got the crowd waving their arms on the hook. He’d then close out with the 2002 classic “Get By,” also produced by Kanye, getting the crowd clapping along to the beat and singing the hook with him by the end of the song. Compared to recent times we’ve seen Kweli perform live, this felt like a shortened setlist, but understandably so as there were so many artists that needed to share the stage.

Closing out the festival would be Philly’s own, The Magnificent DJ Jazzy Jeff, who had the crowd in the palm of his hand as he surgically selected samples and records to chop up on the turntables. The crowd vibed with him as he played classics by Missy Elliott, obscure Jay-Z verses, and of course gave a nod to his time as a duo with The Fresh Prince, playing “Summertime.” He also had a dope way of speaking with his hands and never actually used his microphone, although he did have a hypeman with him to talk through the different segments. One dope moment was when he chopped up Lil’ Kim vocals to set up a Brooklyn segment, with her bar “BIG comes first” leading into The Notorious B.I.G.’s “One More Chance,” followed by Jay-Z’s “A Million And One Questions.” Other highlights from his set include him chopping up the samples in Royce Da 5’9’s “Boom,” Busta Rhymes’ “Pass The Courvoisier,” and Beanie Sigel & Freeway’s “Roc The Mic,” each song getting certain sounds from the beat isolated and chopped up to tease the record before it dropped, and getting a burst of energy out of the crowd when the full beat did drop.

Even though most of the crowd was standing, Jazzy Jeff had us “at the edge of our seats” anticipating the next song he’d drop, as he’d pull us in by dragging out the samples to tease the track, giving the sharp listeners a chance to catch on before dropping the full production. Jazzy Jeff had us dancing the night away and made for an epic closer to the festival.

Overall, the 2026 edition of Bastid’s BBQ was another epic, fulsome Hip-Hop experience unlike any other music festival Toronto has to offer. It’s always an incredible time seeing all the different DJs Skratch Bastid brings to the city, and there are always quality emcees rocking the mic, whether they’re OGs with classic records or up-and-coming artists still making a name for themselves. This particular lineup really put the spotlight on Canada’s past and present, with legends like Michie Mee, Choclair and Red1 blessing the stage along with the Who’s Got Next winners, and the international acts like DJ Jazzy Jeff, Talib Kweli and DJ Nu-Mark all brought that heat to be worthy of the BBQ. While the festival will always cater towards putting the DJs in the spotlight, as it should, I especially enjoyed seeing more emcees in the lineup compared to past years, including the surprise special guests.

The Harbourfront Centre was definitely a good choice of venue to host the festival, as it had you right in the heart of downtown, on the lakefront, which especially made seeing all the Toronto artists on stage that much more epic. The one thing that may make a return to The Bentway more desired is the variety of textures it has compared to Harbourfront, as some fans may miss the option of being able to choose between chilling on picnic tables, a grassy hill, wooden bleachers, concrete steps or a gravel dance floor, all while still being able to see the stage, whereas the Harbourfront only has concrete spaces with limited seating available. We can’t wait to see what the lineup will look like for Bastid’s BBQ round 2 in September!

Bastid’s BBQ‘s return to the Bentway has yet to be officially posted online, but keep an eye out for when tickets go on sale here! New York City is also getting its own version of Bastid’s BBQ August 8th!

Check out this playlist of concert videos from all the Bastid’s BBQ festivals I’ve attended over the years!

Check out this playlist of concert videos from all the times I’ve seen Talib Kweli perform live over the years!

Check out the SYpherSights Youtube channel for more concert videos.

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