TLDR: Budding star Maneesh (“Maneesh On The Beat… Shabang!”) headlines Sky Lounge in Ottawa on Saturday, July 18 [POSTPONED], with DJ Markus, Ray Ray and more.
Toronto has spent the last decade turning producers into architects, and Maneesh has been one of the city’s sharpest builders. On Saturday, July 18 [POSTPONED], the Canadian hitmaker brings that résumé to Ottawa for a late-night takeover at Sky Lounge, presented by Oxygen Entertainment and Kapacity Mikey.
The event runs from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. at 73 York Street, with doors opening at 9 p.m. The night is a 19+ affair, with proper identification required, and tickets available through Eventbrite.ca.
For casual listeners, Maneesh may be a familiar name because of his ties to Drake and his OVO orbit. For those paying closer attention, he is part of the machinery behind some of the most polished, emotionally tuned records to come out of Toronto’s global run. Born Maneesh Bidaye, he first made noise in the DJ and scratch scene as DJ M-Rock before shifting fully into production, where his ear for live-feeling arrangements gave his work a different kind of weight.
His credits stretch across hip-hop, pop and R&B, including “Too Good” by Drake and Rihanna, “Maria I’m Drunk” by Travis Scott, and Givēon’s “Heartbreak Anniversary,” which earned him a Grammy nomination. More recently, his production has been highlighted on Drake’s Iceman tracks “Shabang” and “Make Them Cry,” further cementing his place as one of Toronto’s most trusted behind-the-scenes forces.
The Ottawa bill, hosted by Bobby Brugal, adds more movement around him, with DJ Markus coming in from Toronto, Ray Ray representing Ottawa, and some other Ottawa acts that have yet to be announced also set to perform.
While producers usually stay behind the curtain, Maneesh has stepped into a different kind of spotlight. His name has circulated in industry circles for years, but Drake’s Iceman changed that. By weaving “Maneesh on the Beat” directly into “Shabang,” one of the album’s standout records, Drake helped turn a familiar producer tag into something fans now shout back, as the track continues to rack up viral moments across TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and other platforms.
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