City Fidelia
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada | Established. Jan 01, 2015 | SELF | AFM
Music
Press
There is no moniker more fitting for this nomadic rapper. Born in Montreal, raised in Ottawa (with a detour in Brooklyn), and now Toronto-based, City Fidelia is clearly a bit of a vagabond. His specialty is lacing electro-soul instrumentals with melodic bars, and now that City has touched down in Toronto for good, a well-traveled sound has him poised to make a dent in a crowded local scene.
“This song is about change—it's about a dark time in my life,” City Fidelia told Complex via email. “‘Lately’ is about seeing through that dark cloud, embracing that grind, and developing through that struggle.”
“Lately” sees City working through his issues, self-medicating and directly addressing an unnamed subject, on top of a lively instrumental, produced by Vic NS. A staccato synth lead, a warm bassline, and sparkling 808s form the basis of this backdrop, giving City plenty of room to simultaneously flex his melodic chops and work out what he’s going through in real time. "Lately I've been dealing with some stress/And everything I do is not the best/I'm just tweaking, I'm not crazy/I've been kind of fucked up lately." Who can’t relate to that sentiment? This is introspective rap at its best.
Apparently, “Lately” took shape as a direct response to moving to a new city, and coming to terms with the end of a relationship. “I took inspiration for this song from a low point in my life in 2014,” he said. “I was going through a breakup, moving from my hometown to a new city, meeting new people, and trying to find a new comfort zone. I was really going through it. I want for this song to strike a positive chord with anybody that listens to me, whether it is their first time discovering my music, or if they've known me since my days in Ottawa.”
Listen to City Fidelia’s “Lately” below. Stay tuned for his next EP, FreeDumb, which should be dropping soon, and will reportedly include a feature from G.O.O.D. Music affiliate Malik Yusef. - Complex
Being drunk in an Uber is just a part of life in any major city, but Ottawa-raised & Toronto-based City Fidelia finds deeper meaning in it for his latest video "Lately." The first single from his project FreeDumb, "Lately" is an ode to the late night thoughts we'd prefer to sooner forget. The guitar-driven and bass-heavy track finds the rapper hopping into a ride with a revolving cast of random passengers, making for a few awkward encounters and even more self-reflection. "It's a metaphor for life; people come in and out of our lives and we all cope with that differently," says City. We follow him as he stumbles out of the into a condo party already on full tilt without him. Distracted by his own stress, he does what any self-respecting 20-something would do: drink until they pass out and wake up the next morning in the same clothes.
"We stuck with the phrase I been kinda fucked up because it's the only way you can really explain that feeling of the dark moments in life." The real-life Hennessy shots he took didn't hurt either. "I'm actually surprised that I was still responsive throughout the video." Watch the video below. - Noisey
Ottawa artists are on fire this week! This is the third full project from a capital city artist we've featured in the past five days. Goddamn.
City Fidelia returns with yet another character-defining project, this one titled Freedumb, a follow up to last year’s A Pisces' World. Throughout the EP, Fidelia addresses his lifestyle change when moving to Toronto from his original hometown Ottawa and adjusting to the bigger city.
City’s conscious and impactful wordplay over excellent, lively production gives listeners an intimate ride on an emotional roller coaster. He speaks on the finer things, those not being materialistic along with the focus of becoming self reliant in a business as demanding as the music industry. His quality of rap is one thing, but City really impressed us with his singing, a talent that is becoming popular among hip hop artists, a skill City prominently excels in.
The project also includes a feature from one of Fidelia’s partners in crime Carpe DM, also a native of the nation’s capital, as they join forces in the track “Self Conscious”. Assisting with some inspiring vocals in the final song, The Freedom Choir add the final touch to a well constructed musical composition. The EP is led by the single “Lately” which debuted on Complex back in April. We’re hoping to see a video to go along with it soon.
Fresh off a tour in Japan, Fidelia returned to Toronto to prepare for the release of Freedumb (he will be hosting a release party in Toronto this Sunday). Check out some his tour videos here.
The day leading up to the release of Freedumb, City addressed his fans and the project in this Facebook message:
"Tommorow is going to be a big day for myself, my team and everyone who has been in my corner. This EP really reflects on the ups and downs that was occurring during my transition to the city of Toronto. I was going to keep this project for myself because I very much dislike the politics and the fake people that come with the music business, however, I decided to share this project with you all because there are valuable lessons to take from it and changing people lives for the better always been my goal with this music. I would like to let everyone out there know that nobody nobody nobody! can appreciate you more then yourself,everyone deserves love and respect. Thanks to those who took on this journey with me and the amazing supporters, I love you all.
FreeDumb - Written by a Haitian man raised in the city of Ottawa."
Well, thank you City for the great music and also never forgetting where you came from (as many artists from Ottawa that disappear into the 416 area code often do). - Small World Ottawa
Discography
Still working on that hot first release.
Photos
Bio
Part raw, street poet and soulful RnB singer, City Fidelia is an artist whose music and storytelling defies traditional labels.
An Ottawa native with Toronto has his home, and with NYC and LA frequent destinations, the rapper/songwriter’s humble and grounded upbringing is naturally woven into the fabric of his music and the stories he tells through his art. City’s ability to be vulnerable and authentic in his lyricism, telling stories about his own struggles and the unspoken nuances of modern life, is grounded in his goal to inspire inner-city youth to leave the path of hardship in order to pursue their dreams. City Fidelia spearheads Ensemble, a collective of creatives in music, fashion and art working on singular mission: to bring people together and teach that anything is possible through art.
City’s work ethic, focus and lyricism has already paid off. His music has caught the ears of Malik Yusef (Kanye West’s long time friend and member of G.O.O.D Music), who will be providing vocals on his upcoming project, and also legendary producer Timbaland, who is providing the production for City’s hot new single, “Fire”. City has also taken his music outside of North America, touring in Japan and collaborating on projects with Japanese producers (Avalanche).
City Fidelia has shared the stage with artists such as Obie Trice, Fabolous, Bow Wow, and A$AP Rocky, and many more, and has held his own slots at major festivals like Bluesfest (Ottawa) and Manifesto (Toronto).
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