Press Release
Grammy-nominated Toronto singer-songwriter Jessie Reyez made history tonight as the first artist ever to perform both the American and Canadian National Anthems from atop of Toronto’s CN Tower on the Edgewalk, 116 stories above ground, ahead of Round 1 Game 1 of the Toronto Raptors’ NBA Playoffs Series. The larger than life event is groundbreaking for television and solidifies another incredible moment in the early career of one of the most talked-about artists of 2020. The internationally-televised performance will air during the late afternoon game, starting at 4pm EST, between the reigning NBA champs, and the Brooklyn Nets. The NBA has been an incredible ally to the Black Lives Matter movement in 2020 and this moment will be another great feat of history.
The momentous news comes after a busy summer for Jessie Reyez. Last week, the Toronto native performed “Before Love Came To Kill Us” on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, UPROXX called it “an intimate and aesthetically lovely few minutes.” Watch HERE. Just prior, Reyez turned heads with an impressive and menacing cameo during the song “SCAR” in Beyoncé’s Black is King visual album.
Earlier this year, Reyez released her debut studio album, Before Love Came To Kill Us, on FMLY / Island Records. With both peer accolades and critical acclaim, Reyez’s debut album was praised by The New York Times, Variety, Pitchfork, Vibe, Time, etc. With over 350M global streams upon release the debut resulted in a nomination for the 2020 Polaris Music Prize for best Canadian album, earning the title of Top Female Debut Album, Top R&B album of 2020, and charting in the Top 5 on Billboard’s R&B album chart where it has remained since release. The debut was then followed by a support run on global superstar Billie Eilish’s U.S. stadium tour which was abruptly stopped due to the Covid-19 pandemic and is slated to be rescheduled at a later date. Shortly thereafter, Eilish introduced Reyez before she performed her hit single “Crazy” on Jimmy Kimmel Live!.
The performance was then followed by a duet performance of her RIAA certified-platinum reimagined hit “Imported” with 6LACK on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
