On April 30th, five dates into their first-ever headlining tour, Chicago-based artist and producer Jane Remover was welcomed to Toronto, Ontario, with a sold-out show at the Velvet Underground.
Their now nearly sold-out TURN UP OR DIE tour was announced back in December 2024, with everyone who secured presale tickets being blissfully unaware of how lucky they would become soon. Within the last four months of 2025, Jane Remover has already let the world know that this is their year. Their triumphs started directly on January 1st with the digitally boosted rap track ‘JRJRJR’ kicking off the Revengeseekerz era, earning immediate praise. Following that, they released their indie rock and shoegaze side project Ghostholding under the pseudonym ‘venturing’ on April 14th, as well as their upbeat dance track, ‘Dancing with your eyes closed’ towards the end of the month, both of which dropped spontaneously, a common theme for this album cycle. After near radio silence in March, Jane Remover came out swinging in April, surprise dropping their 3rd studio album Revengeseekerz via deadAir Records on April 4th, with some fans and critics deeming it album of the year after just a single listen. You can stream the project HERE.
After the release of Revengeseekerz, securing tickets to Jane Remover’s previously announced tour was near impossible, with tickets in some cities tripling in price since the initial sale. By the time the tour kicked off at the end of April, ‘sold out’ stickers were slapped on nearly all the tour dates, with the rest advertising a ‘low ticket warning’. The demand for Jane Remover is at an all-time high, which also means this may be the last time to catch the artist in these intimate venue spaces. So, if your city is fortunate enough to still have any tickets remaining, I’d scoop them up as soon as possible and get prepared to TURN UP OR DIE.
From the second you arrived at the Velvet Underground in Toronto, fans were lined up down the block, with the very first people having been there since eleven in the morning. As more and more people started to pile up, you could begin to differentiate who was attending the show. Fans were dressed for the occasion, decking themselves out in baggy jeans, tight patterned tops, baggy tanks, old merch, and some even wearing skeleton gloves, mimicking the ones Jane often wore in early promotional photos for Revengeseekerz. Though the lines were tame and well organized, the mass of people still drew attention to the venue, leading the average person to ask… “Who’s playing tonight?”
One look at the big ‘JANE REMOVER - SOLD OUT’ Marquee would give you your answer.
Entering the venue, you could feel everyone giddy from anticipation, as if the energy from fans was buzzing around the room, colliding with each person. As the venue began to fill up, everyone became more tightly packed under the fluorescent blue lighting, voices being loud enough to travel, allowing you to catch glimpses of conversations. Some fans found themselves busy showing off their newly bought merch, alerting their friends to what was remaining at the table (Posters, Vinyl, and CD were all sold out that night). Others were playing this game of who was the bigger fan- “Do you remember the Discord concerts?”, “Well, I was here for the release of Teen Week”.
However, the most memorable thing I heard someone say was: “When we hear the first glass shatter sound effect, that's when you know it’s going to get crazy”.
[ d0llywood1 via Instagram ]
Opening the show was d0llywood1, a Louisiana-based rapper who came up in the scene at a similar time to Jane. Her music blends together the iconic 2010s-inspired digicore sound with solid rap and trap elements, being an artist whose production is still reminiscent of the nostalgic sounds of the pandemic era of music, even though many of her counterparts have moved on from that sound. Unfortunately, due to an unforeseen sickness, d0llywood1 was only able to perform one track.
As the lights transitioned to a burnt orange, d0llywood1 hit the stage armed with a camo jacket, microphone, and an apology for falling ill, an apology she didn’t need to give as Toronto was very understanding and just wanted her to get some rest. She performed her newest song, ‘Whatcha want’, which you can stream HERE. The crowd, knowing they only had one chance to ‘Turn Up’ for d0llywood1, gave everything they had during the performance, jumping up and down and showing their love for d0llywood1. Some fans even sang back to d0llywood1, unsurprisingly familiar with her setlist going into the show. Despite leaving far too soon, d0llywood1 left a lasting impact on fans, doing the absolute most to hype up the crowd for dazegxd and Jane.
“I apologize Toronto very embarrassed very sick but thank yall for showing me love, Imma make it up 2 those dat came 2 see me plz go stupid for daze n jane <3333”
-@d0llywood1 via Instagram Stories
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[ dazegxd performing @ Cafe Erzule in NYC via @_jonescope on Instagram ]
Following d0llywood1 was dazegxd (pronounced daze god), the genre-agnostic DJ and producer from New York. His discography is heavily influenced by early 00s rave music, video games, his Jamaican and Ghanaian heritage, and the sounds of his Brooklyn neighbourhood, creating a sound that is uniquely and recognizably his. dazegxd released his last solo project, Exhibition Mode, via deadAir Records in June of 2024. Stream the album HERE. To get a glimpse of his DJ work, you can check out his set in Tokyo HERE (57-minute mark).
Rather than taking centre stage with a microphone, dazegxd settled himself behind a Pioneer DJ deck and sticker-covered MacBook, entrancing the crowd with a high-energy DJ set. Initially, dazegxd had planned to curate 5 different setlists to rotate between through the course of the tour, but allegedly, that went out the window quickly, with the majority of the mixes being dazegxd simply winging it.
With all DJ sets, there’s bound to be a chunk of the songs that listeners aren’t overly familiar with. Yet, with dazegxds set, the unfamiliar feeling did not seem to be as looming, with the feedback on the set seeming to be overwhelmingly positive. Some fans even said they recognized 90% of the set, including the portions that were focused more so on highlighting the mixed instrumentals in comparison to lyrics. dazegxd ensured that even those who weren’t as tapped into the entire set could still have their ‘Ah-ha!’ moments by throwing in Kelis’ ‘Milkshake’, an intense version of ‘Heads Will Roll’, and if my memory serves me correctly, the NFL (National Football League) theme song. These were sprinkled in between other popular tracks that shifted the behaviour of fans from dancing in their own space, being wary of others around them, to completely letting loose, occasionally singing along to the looped vocals or shouting ‘Hey!’ on beat.
What stood out to me, beyond dazegxds apparent musical talent, was the versatility of the lighting during his set. At previous shows at Velvet Underground, openers seemed to have been somewhat restricted to a single solid colour. However, dazegxd’s lighting reflected that of a headliner, utilizing every stage light that was present, including the ones that could spin around, casting different coloured beams across the stage and into chunks of the crowd. Throughout his set, the lighting transitioned between this sunset-esque combination of orange, yellow, and pink, a heavy contrasting blue and red, and even slipped some bright green in now and again, creating this diversity that worked alongside the tracks being played.
Between the music and the lighting dazegxd shifted the Velvet Underground into his personal club, washing away the pre-show jitters with the perfect opening set.
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[ Jane Remover Shot By Brendon Burton ]
Picking up the microphone off the table, dazegxd spoke. The ominous sentence “You know this one” was broadcast through the speakers, being followed swiftly by a ringing sound that was well-known by every soul in that building. Upon initially hearing this, I assumed that dazegxd was simply about to remix one of Jane’s tracks, as I’ve seen openers incorporate the headliners into their own set. However, as soon as the venue lights clicked off and the glowing rods that surrounded the stage flicked on, it clicked. Everyone knew what was about to happen, and there was no time to anticipate it, no time to settle down and collect your thoughts. It was time to ‘Turn Up’.
From the second Jane Remover stepped out on stage, the energy in the venue shifted, going from zero to a hundred in the blink of an eye. Every single person in the venue, from those pressed against the barricade to the back sound booth, was catching air, not caring who they were jumping into or onto. ‘TWICE REMOVED’ had everyone scratching their vocal cords as they screamed along to the lyrics, finally letting all their pent-up excitement go. Fans were especially loud during the third verse with “‘03-'03 bitch, I'm Avril Lavigne Zero-Zero, twice removed XP”, nearly drowning out Jane completely, which was impressive considering I was stood right next to one of the venues main speakers.
As the lights cut, fans settled back on their feet, relieved at the chance to breathe and calm themselves, especially the venue's temperature already rising, making the show feel like a workout. It was at this point that I first noticed Jane’s outfit for the night- a Canadian Tuxedo. For those of you who are unfamiliar, a Canadian Tuxedo is a popular denim-on-denim look, typically consisting of a denim jacket and jeans. Nobody was given much time to question if this was an intentional choice or not, as Jane gave a sharp “Let’s go” into the microphone, signalling that it was time to continue. The lighting rods flashed and changed to fiery orange, the luminance within them bouncing to the beat of ‘Psychoboost’, one of the most anticipated songs of the night. The crowd picked itself back up instantly, as if there had been no break after ‘TWICE REMOVED’, keeping that high energy up. Both Jane and the crowd gave the performance of a lifetime, as the crowd was tasked with filling in Danny Brown's vocals, while Jane treated his lyrics like ad-libs between her own verses.
While Jane may sing “I play for tough crowds” in ‘Psychoboost’, it seems like Toronto was easy to please, with their cheers and body language providing nothing but endless praise to Jane, giving her a warm welcome to the city. The next track, ‘angels in camo’, had Jane spinning around on stage like a torpedo, breaking out these jumpstyle adjacent dance moves. Jane also brought in this level of crowd work during the track, doing this repeating call and response of “I can’t let you bitches win”, by saying the lyric first themselves before tilting the microphone out towards the crowd for them to shout it back. Following ‘angels in camo’ was ‘Dancing with your eyes closed’, one of my personal favourites off Revengeseekerz. With the repeated mantra of “Promise I like it like that!” the crowd seemed uplifted in a way, transitioning their movements into actual dancing compared to the previous borderline moshing.
By this point, everyone in the venue was coated in a sticky layer of sweat, one that wouldn’t start to dry until the show was long over. This also meant that no matter how many times Jane told us “Turn Up”, a phrase that has clearly become the tour's slogan, they were met with only slight bouncing and heavy breathing as the crowd tried to recover from the first 4 songs. This behaviour continued throughout ‘Experimental Skin’ and ‘The 1’ (An additional track off Revengeseekerz that Jane released exclusively on Soundcloud). The slowed movements from the crowd allowed for a focus to be placed on Jane, rather than trying to survive the crowd crush and keep your spot in the pit. Jane seemed to bask in this new attention, dripping with this insane confidence, especially as they perched on the edge of the stage (luckily not bonking their head on the hanging speaker this time), leaning out into the crowd, offering their microphone to the people like some type of ruler. Looking down on their adoring fans from the raised platform, they gave a curt nod of approval, sealing Toronto's fate as a ‘good crowd’ before stalking off to centre stage.
By the time ‘Star People’ rolled around, the crowd had mostly recovered, erupting into song as soon as the track began, matching Jane’s aggressive and sharp performance. There was this sheer passion put behind the lyrics “Maybe your mom gave you up, boy, And your dad didn't love you” and “I look at him like that 'cause I'm a fucking perv” from all parties, as if everyone there had just been waiting to scream those lyrics their entire lives- even though they had only been released a month prior. During the beat switch in ‘Star People’, the one that samples the Venturing project, Jane requested that the crowd hold their flashlights up towards the stage, causing this white glow to flow towards the stage, acting like a spotlight and putting the orange stage lights to shame.
Jane opened ‘Dreamflasher’ by having the crowd do an acapella of the main chorus- “Please, God, save me, I'm so turnt right now, I disappeared like it's my last night out, I don't know if he loves me, but he loves me right now, I'ma lift his shirt off when the lights go down”- before dazegxd, who had been in control of Jane’s backing tracks all night, cranked up the volume, the glass shattering sound effect hitting the venue speakers with full force, with the sound of warping synths and futuristic gun blasts quicky following. As ‘Dreamflasher’ whirled out, it transitioned smoothly into the softer explosions and rhythmic electric guitar of ‘Flash in the Pan’, one of the four singles initially released for Jane’s now scrapped third album. ‘Flash in the Pan’ sounds like a tamer ‘Dreamflasher’, focusing on an atmospheric, melodic, and indie-pop feel. The track stood out within the setlist, being a sharp contrast to the sensory overload provided by the heavily produced rap and electronic tracks. ‘Flash in the Pan’ was nothing short of beautiful, and in the future hope Jane decides to keep it on the setlist, as everyone deserves to experience ‘Flash in the Pan’ live once in their life.
For the last five tracks of the setlist, I decided to abandon my friends up near the front of the stage to disappear into the pit, curious to see what the atmosphere was like. Much to my surprise, once you worked past the first four or five rows, the venue felt completely different. There was a newfound space that did not exist up near the front, something unexpected considering the Velvet Underground has been home to their slightly crazy wall-to-wall pits. Fans also seemed to be more considerate, saying excuse me as they slinked through the bodies and leaving breathing room for the shorter fans. Although I was shocked, as this was not what I expected from the Jane Remover crowd, I was not complaining, as the space was refreshing, a good break from physically sticking to people.
‘movies for guys’ started off the string of ‘closing songs’, being one of two older tracks Jane had decided to put onto their setlist. This tour was the first time in three years ‘movies for guys’ had been played, and it paid a little homage to Jane’s debut album Frailty (2021), which was largely critically acclaimed, jump-starting their career out of obscurity. Following that came ‘Professional Vegeance’, a bit of a 180 from ‘movies for guys’, as ‘Professional Vegeance’ is faster paced, more vigorous, and overall more intense. From the second the sampled intro began, the crowd burst into loud cheers, as ‘Professional Vegeance’ was yet another highly anticipated song. However, what I was blown away by was Jane’s performance of the song’s bridge. Even live, they managed to capture the same passionate, strained, and near-distressed vocal performance that was given in the studio version, striking every last emotion right into your soul.
‘TURN UP OR DIE’, the track the entire tour was named after, was the ‘final’ song of the night. The low, bassy, and sludgy song had fans throwing themselves around in this unorganized and messy mosh pit, bodies colliding to the beat. As everyone settled, the realization hit that Jane had left the stage, disappearing behind the black side curtain. The crowd began to chant a rhythmic “Jane”, keeping a beat that was familiar to a certain track, one that hadn’t been played yet.
Soon, the chant coincided with the beginning beats of ‘JRJRJR’, with Jane running back onto stage for their encore, being adorned by these purple lights. Finally, the setlist had come full circle, as ‘JRJRJR’ was the track that kicked off the beginning of Revengeseekerz era. There was this wonderful push and pull throughout the entire track, with ‘JRJRJR’ arguably drawing the loudest crowd of the night, though certain chunks of the song still allowed for Jane’s performance to shine, both vocally and movement-wise, as she ran about on stage. It felt as if we were taking turns, with the crowd having their moments of moshing, screaming, and jumping, completely being in their own little world, while also being able to watch Jane in wonder, giving them much-deserved attention.
To officially end the night, Jane returned to one of their oldest projects to be released on major streaming services, Teen Week. They pulled ‘homeswitcher’ out from deep in their discography, instantly granting the wishes of several people who had been calling out “Play Teen Week!” all night. ‘homeswitcher’ felt like the perfect ending, as the crowd seemed to find this newfound unity during the song. Somehow, the unorganized moshing from before had stretched to become venue-wide, with people up near the front of the stage coming to engage with those in the middle, and even some fans from the back deciding to join in with the tradition of people throwing their bodies against one another. While being tossed around, you could catch glimpses of everyone’s faces, each one filled with this sense of pure joy and enjoyment, a feeling that could only be produced by moments like this.
[ Jane Remover Shot By Brendon Burton ]
As ‘homeswitcher’ ended, Jane and dazegxd headed off stage. In an instance, the venue was washed over with this wave of sound, a mix of music and the excited chatter of fans. Everyone seemed to have something to discuss with one another, almost as if the crowd was collectively trying to relive the experience, ensuring they’d engraved every memory deep into the grooves of their brain.
It did not take long for crowds of people to begin piling out the door, leaving behind the heat of the venue for new horizons. Some people loitered around the venue, taking the time to say their last goodbyes to old and new friends before vanishing into the quiet streets, heading off towards parking lots and subway stations, eager to shower and rest. Although everyone had gone their separate ways, there was this universal thought hanging in everyone's mind…
When is the next time Jane Remover will be in Toronto?
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