Toronto has a way of breeding late-night music. From the moody textures of The Weeknd to the confessional croons of Daniel Caesar, the city has long embraced artists who treat darkness not as a void but as a canvas. Into this lineage steps River Man, a brand-new voice whose debut single “2CUPS (+18)” carries the same shadows but with a different kind of glow. The song, released this summer, is raw and indulgent, a hazy cut that simmers between confidence and vulnerability.
“I guess I was in a more moody period of my life,” River Man admits when asked about writing the track. “I try to keep my music as real as I can, not by what I’m saying but more by the mood of the song and what it makes the listener feel. Words don’t always mean the same thing to everyone, but energy is something that everyone can feel.”
That focus on energy is what separates River Man from being just another Toronto newcomer. “2CUPS” doesn’t hinge on lyrical storytelling as much as it does on capturing a fleeting sensation—the heady blur between pleasure and danger. “I was drinking a lil bit at the time and two cups was just enough to have me feeling some type of way,” he says. The title might sound playful, but beneath it lies his larger ambition: to make music that hits you in your body first, leaving the interpretation up to you.
What stands out most in River Man’s delivery is his self-assuredness. His voice doesn’t waver, and there’s a slow-burning confidence baked into the way he lingers on syllables. That energy didn’t appear overnight. It’s the product of years of influence and observation. “I’ve always been a very confident person,” he explains. “Music has definitely helped me become even more, but I feel like all that confidence just comes from being myself. The artists I listened to growing up and the people in my life were always very real and very true to their character. Everyone was themselves and there was no stepping on each other.”
Among those inspirations, he names 2Pac, Brent Faiyaz, Childish Gambino, and even actors like Denzel Washington. Their example gave him a blueprint for authenticity: the ability to walk into a room and command it without overcompensation. For River Man, confidence isn’t a mask or a performance. It’s the day-to-day. “The confidence I have just comes from what God and the universe allow me to experience every time I get out the bed,” he says.
If “2CUPS” sounds like it was made after midnight, that’s intentional. River Man built the track around the mood of Toronto itself. “I’m definitely just trying to create an atmosphere that makes you feel confident and feel yourself,” he explains. “The late-night vibe was intentional. I felt like it matched the theme, the mood, and the city. That’s the vibe Toronto gives you. Toronto in the nighttime just has that feeling that makes you wanna do something with your life.”
It’s an interesting observation, one that connects him to the city’s wider musical DNA. Toronto has long thrived on the blurred hours between dusk and dawn, where the lines between bravado and confession, partying and loneliness, are always shifting. River Man understands that, and “2CUPS” is his attempt at bottling that texture.
Still, he’s quick to remind listeners that “2CUPS” is just a taste. “It’s definitely a single, just a standalone to get myself out there and show people some of my songs,” he says. “Next step is the EP. It will be coming out very soon, and I’m super excited to share it.”
That sense of forward motion is crucial. He doesn’t talk like someone chasing streams or trying to go viral. Instead, he frames releasing music as a natural next step in a process that’s already been happening privately for years. “At the moment that I made the song I didn’t even think I was gonna release it,” he recalls. “I had hundreds of songs in my phone that I listened to regularly. I just thought, what if I released this? I wasn’t really chasing any type of reaction—just chasing a purpose and something to leave in this world.”
For a new artist, River Man seems refreshingly unbothered by pressure. “I didn’t feel any pressure,” he says of his debut. “I released it because I was tired of going to my files to hear my music. I wanted it to blend with the sounds I like to hear. I love myself, and no one believes in me more than me. If I felt like I was under pressure or that I shouldn’t do it, then I wouldn’t have done it. I felt confident and comfortable with releasing my own music—and it’s something I intended on doing even if no one listened, because I make this music for me.”
It’s a telling answer. While so many newcomers feel weighed down by expectations, River Man treats his art as an inevitability rather than a gamble. The disruption he’s bringing to the Toronto scene isn’t necessarily about reinventing the sound. It’s about bringing a “breath of fresh air,” as he calls it, into a space that can sometimes feel crowded. “It’s an honor to add on to the R&B scene in Toronto. I think it’s good to have breaths of fresh air with music, and new music never gets old.”
When asked to describe his artistry without referencing music, River Man leans into metaphor. “City would definitely be Toronto because that’s where this project started, and I believe I transpire that vibe through my music a lot,” he says. “I feel like the soul of my music is definitely blue. My color is lavender, so I’d say a healthy mix between the two. I don’t know how to describe my artistry as a movie, but any movie that makes your hairs stand up with its music—those are the movies that made me want to create sounds.”
It’s a poetic answer, one that aligns with the way he talks about mood and energy earlier in the conversation. River Man is less interested in fixed categories and more invested in the emotions music stirs up. For him, artistry is less about definition than it is about vibration.
That openness extends to his view on vulnerability. In hip-hop and R&B, especially for men, softness has often been treated as a liability. But River Man sees things shifting. “Yes, I believe that we are in an era where we need to hear all different types of voices,” he says. “Nowadays in hip hop and R&B you have all those types of voices, so it’s good to have variety, especially with the size of the catalog we have on our phones.” It’s a progressive stance, one that shows he’s aware of the cultural moment he’s stepping into. His bravado is real, but it doesn’t erase his willingness to be soft when the music calls for it.
The debut of “2CUPS (+18)” marks the beginning of River Man’s public journey, but he’s already thinking about longevity. His vision isn’t to make a splash and fade out—it’s to build a catalog that matters. “I wasn’t really chasing any type of reaction,” he reiterates. “I was just chasing a purpose.” That purpose, as he sees it, is to make music that resonates beyond words, music that leaves behind an energy long after the track ends. In a world oversaturated with voices, River Man’s is just starting to cut through, fueled by self-belief and an unshakable connection to his city.
For now, he’s a fresh addition to Toronto’s late-night soundscape, a new name with one single, but one who already carries himself like he’s been here before.
Featured Images: Smith Christopher
