There were a lot of places to be over the August 5th weekend. But if you were looking for good vibes and a great time, TD Toronto Jerkfest was the place to be. 

But first, let’s discuss the elephant in the room, shall we? Whilst there seems to be a bone of contention with many about my words regarding the festival, they are mine, yet not my experience alone.

On the other hand, there are also many who didn’t have any experience close to what I shared. I’ve seen comments ranging from, “Why is Jerkfest being jumbled up with the other two festivals?” and “It was a successful festival…” to.. “people were coming in through the fence by the time Konshens came on” and “I didn’t get half of what my VIP ticket promised.” 

I can only speak from my own experience, which you can read here. The concert was exceptionally good! But just because the end result worked doesn’t mean there isn’t any room for improvement. 

As previously mentioned, Jerkfest unequivocally didn’t even come close to the other disasters presented over the weekend. Jerkfest was a fantastic and safe place to be for all age groups. 

The comments from people on social media pointing out the issues were not for provocation; it was to offer insight on any improvements that could be included moving forward. 

Now, I got on here to talk about the music. Let’s get into it. 

I attended the Saturday showcase with Alison Hinds, Konshens and Maxi Priest—and it was a vibe! So it’s no wonder people arrived in droves at the park to celebrate. With an outstanding balance of soca and reggae, each artist sang a few of their well-known tracks to a sea of 15-20k people. It was marvellous to see flags waving and everyone jumping in unison when Hinds sang “Togetherness.” After that, the Bajan Queen had to put someone’s waistline to test, covered a few other select tracks, and ended her set with the fan-favourite “Faluma,” which prepped everyone for Maxi Priest to come through.

The British-Jamaican singer gave a phenomenal show displaying his golden vocals. I nearly lost my mind when I heard Maxi Priest break into “Housecall,” and crowd favourites “Wild World” and “Some Guys Have All The Luck” had everyone singing in unison. 

Konshens rounded off the show with a surge of energy, starting his set with the popular “Bruk Off Yuh Back.” He’s an artist for the fans. He likes to connect and get up close and personal—which he did when he flew into the crowd to jam. Fists pumpin’ and as animated as he could be, Konshens ripped through and delivered on “The Realest Thing” and “Simple Blessings.”  

There were sound issues to contend with initially, but the night went off without a hitch once fixed. I was told the Sunday show was just as packed with high-energy as the day before. The audience was celebratory, the artists’ performances were on point, and the vibes were just right. When it comes to the music, you absolutely will not find any complaints here. If you chose to be somewhere else, then you definitely missed out.   

ByBlacks Rating System:
BBBBB Outstanding
BBBB Extremely Good
BBB Good
BB Challenged
B Don't bother going