Record-high levels of snow couldn't stop Torontonians from descending upon the Danforth Music Hall to see Nemahsis in concert. Last night (February 19) marked the second and final Toronto stop on the Milton, ON-raised singer-songwriter's Don't Go Where You'd Hate to Be Found Tour — her first headlining North American trek. Originally a one-night affair, another date was added to meet demand for the newly thrice-JUNO-nominated Palestinian-Canadian artist born Nemah Hasan.
No matter the first or second performance, the turnout was impressive. I expected the crowd, abundant with keffiyehs, to be less dense during the opening act, local indie rock artist, Seago, but it seemed like everyone was prompt. The communal laughter made it clear that he had already wormed his way into their hearts, and I could see why: accompanied only by fellow local artist harper on the piano, Seago commanded the vast Danforth stage with animated ease.
"I bought tickets to this tour. I had no idea I'd end up on this stage," Seago confessed before launching into a medley of his discography highlight "Ticket Holder" and "Royals" by Lorde. "He's having a lot of fun," I heard someone behind me say.
At precisely 9:01 p.m., Nemahsis took the stage to raucous applause and ecstatic screams. In a long, military-like overcoat, she grabbed the mic with authority and launched into "i wanna be your right hand," saluting us as she went. The glee on her face as the crowd sang along was almost childlike, but she sounded stifled. Soon after the intro, she clarified what I'd suspected: she was sick with the flu.
To put less strain on her instrument, Nemahsis often prompted us to sing along, but for what she lacked in vocal vitality, she made up for in crowd engagement. She exuded gratitude in repeatedly thanking us, her family, and her manager Chass — "The only person who didn't drop me in October 2023" — as well as shedding more light on her songwriting process, delving into the meanings behind some of her songs. There was also a funny, heartwarming break where she took the time to look out into the crowd through binoculars, selecting random members of the audience to gift with merch.
As the night began winding down, Nemahsis rallied to deliver stunning ballad performances of "misconstrued" and "chemical mark" from her debut album, Verbathim, before closing with viral track "stick of gum" — an energetic performance that definitely scratched my itch to experience the fervour of one of her explosive choruses live. The crowd wouldn't let her go without an encore, for which she returned with a giant Palestinian flag emblazoned with the words "Free Palestine" wrapped around her shoulders like a cape.
For her finale, Nemahsis whizzed around the stage, stopping frequently to scream the lyrics along with us. To the crowd's delight, Seago and harper also joined her before she left the stage the same way she arrived: with gleeful determination, the Palestinian flag trailing behind her.
Nemahsis has built a dedicated and inspired community in her hometown and beyond — an impressive feat considering the obstacles she's had to face both within and outside of the music industry. As she heads to her last stop in Montreal, I hope she gets well soon so that she can keep spreading this invaluable joy and hope; the world definitely needs it right now.