After a string of Quebec appearances in recent weeks, Ottawa singer Massari was again in town to play the Dome Thursday.
Although the show was scheduled for 11:30p.m., the half empty crowd waited at least two hours before there were any signs of Massari.
For those fans patient enough to wait it out, they were treated to a performance that showcased Massari’s heart and soul.
“I like to give my fans everything that I got, like to my last breath, so the least I can do is put on the best show of my life every time,” Massari said.
Such a show is structured to allow us to get to know Massari better, because “it really matters that you get to know the artist that you’re working with,” said Massari.
This is especially the case in Montreal, where Massari takes every chance to play because “the Montreal crowd really just wants to have fun. They get into the vibe, they get into the music and they make me feel like I want to give them my best every time I perform here”. Being “the first city I came to when I moved from my [birthplace of] Lebanon, I feel like Montreal gave me the chance of a lifetime, basically saved me and my family’s life for taking me in at a time when we had a civil war back home.”
French was his first language after Arabic, so Massari definitely harbors special sentiment for the city. “I feel like I’m coming home when I’m in Montreal.”
And he wants Montrealers to know that his music is all about love. “I’m here to bring the love back because we need it. We had it a while ago but now it’s gone. People feel like being mean, devious, shady and think stuff like that is cool but it’s not. Love is truly a stronger power and the only reason it’s not out there is not because it’s not strong, but because we don’t have enough of it. So I’m here to spread the word of love.”
Massari’s message isn’t only limited to our borders; he hopes eventually to extend his music worldwide. With several American shows completed and more booked for Europe, Massari is ecstatic he’s getting gigs even though his album isn’t on sale outside Canada.
“It’s really just the music has made its way over there and it’s the fans that just helped it make its way there,” said Massari. “I’m very very proud of that fact and the work that we’ve put into the album and this is basically tasting the fruits of our labour. I want the whole world to know my name by the end of it.
“I know I got what it takes to make it so I’m here to show you what I got. It feels so good when I’m in a club and I see all types of people coming to see me because that’s like I’m breaking down barriers. It’s not just a black crowd or just a white crowd or just an Arab crowd or an Asian crowd; it’s everybody and that’s the point because music is the language of love. I’m speaking to people in my language when I speak to them in the language of music.”
And one of Massari’s biggest musical goals is to work his hardest so that he’ll have no regrets. “Every day I feel like I work as if there’s no tomorrow so, I want to accomplish everything that I can.”
With his singles topping charts across the nation, it certainly looks like Massari is well on his way to doing just that.
