PRESS: TOP 20 CANADIAN DJs YOU NEED TO KNOW
SHIFTER’s “Top 20 Canadian DJs you need to know” list is sponsored by You.i TV, the Ottawa-based company and platform that powers Twitch.
The COVID-19 pandemic has pretty much ground the live entertainment industry, including nightclubs, to a halt affecting not only club owners all over the world, but DJs. But many DJs have taking this time to flex their entrepreneurial muscles, exploring new opportunities, from music production to live streaming on Twitch and Instagram Live with DJs like D-Nice leading the charge.
Here in the north, our country has produced some of the best DJs in the world, from A-Trak and Kaytranada to Toronto Raptors DJ 4Korners. But for every celebrity DJ, there are thousands you don’t hear about. A few months ago, we asked our social media followers to let us know who were the top Canadian DJs that people needed to know about, from British Columbia to the Maritimes and they came through for us.
11. FTP // Toronto
Residency: Official DJ for the Ryerson Rams
How long have you been DJing: 10 years
Favourite DJs: Cale Granton, Lincoln Baio and Charlie B. Also guys like DJ Puffy and all the Soulection DJs. A-Trak, Diplo, Jazzy Jeff and Preemo.
Toronto-based Open format DJ and producer Jaden Burton, aka For The People, has been a staple in the city’s college party scene, playing venues like Grace O’Malleys, Tequila Jacks, Fiction and Orchid. Ten years deep on the scene, FTP was mentored by popular Toronto DJs, Cale Granton (Toronto Maple Leafs), Lincoln Baio (King Of The Dot), Jon Daniels (Lavelle) and Chris Laroque (REBEL), For The People became the youngest member of the Foreign City DJ Collective in 2018 after perfecting his craft in his bedroom for seven years.
In 2018, his time on the college party circuit brought him full circle as he accepted an offer to be the official DJ of the Ryerson Rams. That led to him performing Kawhi Leonard’s first open practice in Toronto at Ryerson University, as well as in being named the official DJ of the 2019 USPORTS Women’s Basketball Championship, televised nationally by Sportsnet. Despite his growing profile in the city of Toronto, perhaps his biggest accomplishment to date was being selected into the Top 64 in the World Beat Battle.