On September 14th, Haitian-Canadian artist, KAYTRANADA kicked off his “Timeless Tour” in Burnaby, BC, selling out the 10,000-capacity outdoor venue. While a seemingly peculiar venue booking, the unique setting ultimately created an incredible ambiance, leaving fans dancing until the 10 pm cut-off at the festival lawn. With KAYTRANADA bringing along two collaborators, Channel Tres, a rapper hailing from Compton, California and Lou Phelps, who also happens to be the headliner’s brother, fans were in for a treat.

Full gallery and review by Kianna Sumitani.

Lou Phelps kicked off the night, taking the stage at 6:45 pm, playing through his hits during the 30-minute set, including “MUST BE” AND “DALOUISBACK”. Utilizing mainly C02 and a simple logo graphic displayed behind him as accessories to his performance, concertgoers were also able to see a sneak peek of the lighting that would prove to be a huge component of this tour.

Channel Tres followed the energetic opener with an instrumental intro, where the rapper utilized the stairs set up at the back of centre stage. Channel Tres’ performance was great, however, his performance quality was what was beyond impressive, as his set incorporated multiple dancers. Bringing energy that created “you have to have been there” moments, the rapper danced throughout his 45-minute set, cycling through his tracks including “Cafuné” and “Controller”, leaving fans hyped for what was to come.

Now, for the star of the show. KAYTRANADA graced the stage at 8:45 pm, immediately creating a moody atmosphere. With a simple table set up for his gear, the multihyphenate artist began his set with “Pressure”.

See, there aren’t many if any, artists that are currently doing what KAYTRANADA has been cooking up over the past few years. If you’re unfamiliar with his work, this producer, rapper, singer, and DJ is a true artist, working with many known industry vets, including H.E.R., Childish Gambino and Thundercat. The artist, born Louis Kevin Celestin, even released a collaborative project with Aminé in 2023 titled, “KAYTRAMINÉ”. With a rather simple stage setup with no dancers, one would think that the set may not be the most eye-catching. However, KAYTRANADA was quick to prove this wrong. The producer’s stage presence captivated the audience from the get-go, playing through his hits including, “4EVA”, “10%” and “Witchy”. Keeping the audience entertained with a few covers was a great touch too, playing Tinashe’s “Nasty”, and The Weeknd’s “Out Of Time”, to…you know, keep it Canadian.

KAYTRANADA’s performance quality was impressive, but what elevated the show so much more was the set’s lighting. displaying multiple colours and using C02 to create ambiance, KAYTRANADA and his team lit up the whole park and the lake behind the stage, creating an unforgettable experience for fans, as this venue is not used too often for shows of this calibre.

The one drawback of this show was the length of the headliner’s set. His set was high-energy, and the artist interacted with the crowd, mimicking the feeling of an intimate show, despite having 10,000 attendees in the crowd. However, for an artist with 6 projects out, his one hour and 15-minute set felt a tad short. Understandably, the set time for this particular show was planned around the City of Burnaby’s quiet hour bylaw, which lists a strict cut-off at 10 pm. To put it this way, KAYTRANADA’s set was so good that we wanted more. Even an extra 15 minutes to round off a 90-minute set would have added to the show. That being said, with other more common, larger venues being played out throughout the Timeless North American Tour, one can hope that a city’s bylaws don’t hinder the entirety of the rest of the tour run.

This has been a highly-anticipated tour and fans were not left disappointed. From high-energy openers to a captivating and futuristic set played by KAYTRANADA, we highly recommend you check this tour out for yourself. Tickets can be purchased at https://www.kaytranada.com/tour/