Phillips Backyard Music Festival – REVERB 2025 has officially come to an end, and what a crazy weekend it has been. The final day of the festival featured an assortment of Rap, Reggae, Funk and finished off with a headlining set by The Roots. While we crushed our final Phillips beverages, we couldn’t help but look back at the fantastic times we had in the backyard this year. The organizers outdo themselves each year and because of this, these festivals will always be our favourite times of the year. As we fight back the feelings of sadness due to the fun being over, let’s revisit the final day of music!
The main stage was HOT for day three, and in more ways than one. While the acts were throwing down some absolutely fire performances, the crowd was under a blazing sun and dealing with 27-degree weather. As everyone stayed hydrated, the music began. Tarell Safadi started things off with an energetic opening set. The Vancouver based rapper showed off his skills and gave a solid performance. He also brought out a few guests to perform on stage with him, showing his connection to the island. Prado Monroe and her full band were next to perform. Her last Victoria performance was in 2022, so her set was long overdue but well worth the wait. Drip, Stephen, and Elastic, were just some of the tracks she performed in the backyard and hearing these tracks with a live band was a bonus. King Cruff closed out the main stage opening acts. Jumping from one end of the stage to the other, Cruff brought through some of the freshest dancehall vibes and the crowd was loving it. We will be honest though, he had so much energy that we found ourselves getting tired on his behalf. Being some of the first artists of the day isn’t easy but these three absolutely showed out to kick off the final day in the best way possible.
For day three of the Music BC stage, we got a bunch of different genres throughout the day to wrap up a very successful experience. Ivan Hartle was up first, and his west coast sound fit our locale quite nicely. Laid back sound but also very polished musicianship from the whole band. Then, Zada and her band were up next. She gave R&B vibes with an afrobeat feel in her music and it sounded so good. She was shining on that stage, so if you get another chance to check her out, take that opportunity immediately. Finally, Vancouver’s Kapok took the stage and stood on business. Easily one of the most underrated rappers in BC currently, Kapok put on a stellar performance prior to the main stage headliner going on. To make the experience even better, he brought up Kaya Ko to perform their new song, PASSION which released last Friday. The magic those two created and performed on stage is next level. With that final performance, The Music BC stage concluded in elegant fashion. We hope the stage returns for next year’s festivals because it was an amazing addition this Summer.
Can you imagine working in a career your whole life, and then leaving said career to start creating music? That’s the case for New York’s Danielle Ponder and after working as a public defender for years, she took the R&B world by storm. We are so happy she did that because her voice could not be hidden from the airways. Her set was like going into a time machine and just when you did think it could get any better, she covered a bit of Dionne Warwick’s classic song, Walk On By and we felt so fulfilled. If we learned anything from her set, it’s that no matter where you are in life, you can change what you’re doing. If you are passionate about what you do, anything is possible, and Danielle Ponder is proof of this.
How do we even begin to talk about this final headlining set? Philadelphia’s The Roots are legends in the game and the fact that we can talk about them performing in our small, big city doesn’t feel real, but it is. The band hit the stage much earlier than expected, but when they hit the main stage, the whole crowd roared with excitement. Black Thought, Questlove, and the rest of band played a non-stop set to close out the festival and featured a plethora of covers, solos, and grooves. If you thought we were only going to get one genre from The Roots, then you had another thing coming. The set included some Funk, Reggae, Rock, and this is happening all while Black Thought is doing what he does best, giving us bars after bars after bars. As mentioned, each member of the band got to perform some type of solo, but the highlight was the dedicated drum solo for Questlove. What we saw was a masterclass in percussion and someone who has truly mastered their craft. I mean, when other members were dancing to the songs, Questlove was doing something to join in with those dances, like moving his head from side to side all while still playing the kit! It was a party to end all parties, and The Roots just know how to do it right. It was a surreal experience getting to see them perform in our city, especially while they are still the house band for The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. Will The Roots ever return to the island? We can’t say for certain, but we can say that this moment will go down in local history.
We’re not crying that it’s over, you are. Ok fine, maybe we all are crying. This has been an incredible weekend, and it couldn’t have happened without all the hard-working individuals behind the scenes that make these festivals happen. On behalf of Rocktographers, we thank those individuals for their work to give us a great summer. Now, can we start guessing on who’s going to play next year?
