KIND Fall 2023: Health & Wellness is Pleasure & Joy

Paulina Gretzky—super model mom, designer, actress—has intentionally waited her whole life for her closeup. Now, in an exclusive story for KIND, she’s decided the time is right for her to shine

BY BEN KAPLAN

PHOTOGRAPHER: ADAM FRANZINO

STYLIST: RAFAEL LINARES

MAKE UP: HAILEY HOFF

HAIR: HAYLEY HECKMAN

GROW ING UP GRET ZKY

PRODUCTION TEAM: HG PRODUCERS

Paulina Gretzky was raised in the strobe lights of Los Angeles and came of age as children of celebrity parents with high cheekbones turned their last names into brands. Paulina did things a bit differently. She sang and acted in movies, modelled and maintained a profile on Instagram, but the daughter of The Great One and Janet Jones, the actress who starred in The Flamingo Kid and A League of Their Own, and the wife of Dustin Johnson—winner of more World Golf Championships than anyone other than Tiger Woods—has been more reticent. Thoughtful. Wary. She says she admits feeling society’s tug for her attention, but intuited, for her family, that she had to be patient before telling the universe who she intended to be. She first had to find out for herself.

“Growing up in the 90s, there was this pressure on us as if we had to do it now, but I had to find myself—find my true happiness, first”, the 35-year-old says from her home in North Palm Beach, which she shares with Dustin and their two kids, eight and five. Her parents live ten minutes away and they often have Sunday dinner and play softball as part of a neighbourhood league. Family, she says, comes before branding, before fortune and fame. However, leaning into her routine as a wife, designer and mother and a healthy lifestyle built around clean eating, mental health check-ins and CBD, she’s also learned a few things on her road from model to mom and thinks, today, that she has something to share.

“I was stuck in this, ‘What is Paulina Gretzky going to do?’ But like, I don’t always know and it’s OK to not know—not many of us do. At the same time, I like who I am—I love who I am—and I’m ready to venture out now. Positive energy, surmounting

roadblocks and just thinking about How to Be Happy, especially for women. I feel like women can be our own harshest critics and everyone wants to tear us apart, but sometimes we do it to each other. I’ve learned over time that it’s OK to be upset. Let’s just process it in a healthy way.”

The Health & Wellness issue of KIND always begins with a long list of professional athletes. When we think about health, we imagine big muscles, white teeth and the Wheaties box cover. But now more than ever, certainly more than when Paulina’s dad brought hockey to the US the way Messi is doing today with soccer, sports are impossible to detangle from mental health. From Simone Biles at the Olympics to the world’s best tennis players, Naomi Osaka and Coco Gauff, athletes are showing the rest of us how important our mental and emotional wellbeing is to our overall physical health. It’s less about alley-oops and abs and more about empathy and communication. Paulina says she arrived at this coming out moment after a reflective pandemic and turbulent postpartum years.

“Pregnancy was tough and I’m not going to lie, adjusting to my new body, it took a toll,” she told KIND, “but then I realised I had to pull myself out of this for my children. But then I realised that wasn’t quite right either—I had to pull myself out of it for my relationship with Dustin. I had to pull myself out of it for me.”

In Walter Gretzky’s basement, Paulina remembers looking around at her father’s memorabilia as a child and feeling shivers in her bones. With big skates to fill, she’s uniquely aware of the pressure faced by her own children. She knew of all her father

I LIKE WHO I AM — I LOVE WHO I AM — AND I’M READY TO VENTURE OUT NOW.

accomplished—hockey’s all-time leader in goals and assists, the player simply known as The Great One. However, it was her time at her grandfather’s house in Brantford, Ontario—Walter Gretzky, a former Citizen of the Year, who passed away in spring 2021 and whom Paulina will tearfully discuss—where she learned about the true legacy of her dad. He changed the Canadian game with skill and dedication, but his embodiment as a teammate and ambassador is what showed Paulina, her sister and four brothers how to live.

“Growing up in the family I did, I was constantly surrounded by sports, but we’re not hard on ourselves. The lesson is always to do the best you can and have fun,” says Paulina, who plays golf, tennis and hockey, in addition to the family softball outings, and loves swimming and running, but also adheres to the lesson of all busy people—she gets her exercise wherever she can. “You do what you can with the environment that you’re given, so even if I’m just walking on a golf course, everything is about staying active: start small, set little goals and try to build healthy habits for consistency over time.”

Paulina has always been thoughtful and introspective and after spending time with the television personality, in her home and with her team, it’s clear she believes a sports hero is someone you admire, a father is someone you love. After twelve years with Dustin, it’s not the slapshot that she most admires about Wayne

Gretzky. It’s the way he still looks at her mom.

“The way he loves my mom and respects her is a huge part of everything—not just for me, but for all of us kids,” she says, and also recalls seeing that same kinetic romantic camaraderie in Walter’s home in Brantford when she was an impressionable little kid. Sports are terrific, as are accolades and big paydays, but when she thinks of success and happiness, it’s not money or Instagram followers she sees. It’s the way Paulina imagines Canada, seeing the very best of us, and how she wants to move forward with her step into the public sphere: the way her father and grandfather treated the women they loved. They listened. And always treated them with respect.

“It’s the same way my dad is with Dustin, and how he is with all his grandkids. Both of my parents set an amazing example and it comes down to paying attention and treating each other kindly, being present. I also need to point out how great Dustin is with our kids.”

When the KIND crew arrived in Florida to photograph Paulina— photographer, assistants and a team of stylists from the trendiest corners of LA—the team took a moment to process our surroundings. Was one of history’s greatest golfers taking a nap on the couch?

“Hi, everyone,” smiled Dustin, who, on a Sunday afternoon, looked

THE WAY HE LOVES MY MOM AND RESPECTS HER IS A HUGE PART OF EVERYTHING.

more like the Little League coach he is than the holder of 24 PGA Tour wins. By the front door stood his TaylorMade clubs and a middle-aged dad could almost see himself in the golfer’s legendary spikes. “Make yourself at home,” said Dustin, who then resumed his spot on the couch.

Paulina looked at her husband and smiled. She said she was originally nervous to start a family with a professional golfer, someone who spends half his living life out of a suitcase, competing in tours. But she herself grew up the child of an actress and professional athlete, and says what she sees in Dustin is patience, attention, tenderness and care.

“The example I set for my kids with Dustin is we have to do it together. We’re not always on the same page, but we trust each other enough so that I know he’s doing right by our children and he knows I’m doing right by our kids—we talk about it, but at the fundamental level is trust,” she says. She also marvels at Dustin’s ability to focus. When he’s on the golf course, he’s golfing. Every other time, he’s with her and the kids.

“His patience is fantastic. No ego. It was funny seeing the kids realise who their dad is, and who my dad is, but we don’t want them to be raised differently. Of course we want them to know that they’re special, everyone is. But around the house, my dad is Grandpa and Dustin is Dad.”

Around the house, Paulina also likes CBD. Once gifted to her at a party, she says she uses it as massage ointment and in bath bombs and the healing nature of the cannabidiol helps her with breathing exercises and sleep. “CBD has been life changing,” she says simply. “It helps my body relax and since sleeping is so vital to everyone’s health and overall wellness, after the first time I tried CBD, I never looked back. It’s definitely part of my overall health and wellness routine.”

Today Paulina is feeling herself—healthy, radiant, alive. She has her good days and bad, like everyone. On the weekends, her kids might not eat broccoli at each meal and she has cheat days just like everyone else. She knows she needs to drink more water and she can get tired and testy and twist herself up into knots. These are conditions, however, she’s come to accept. They’re fleeting. And today she’s feeling empowered and comfortable—even in times of self-doubt and fear. “If I’m having a moment, I know not to put that energy around other people,” she says. “As you get older, you realise it’s about consistency, making little changes and not becoming overwhelmed. Focus on one goal at a time and take care of yourself. You have to tell yourself: ‘You’re worthy, you’re perfect, you’ve got this.’ Anything you need to feel lighter, more present, to feel in control.”

So maybe now Paulina will go into television or return to the movies. Maybe she’ll cut a record, release a CBD line or work on her own designs. Maybe she’ll do all the things. She cites Vera Wang as an influence—a designer who launched her brand at 40 and became one of the wealthiest female CEOs in the world—and thinks about what she wants to do with her platform. She’s seen her peers navigate their own lives and realises the power she wields and how it affects her inner circle. A child of the tabloid 90s, Paulina Gretzky has worked all her life to reveal herself completely, authentically, in the fall of 2023.

“There’s no start and end to me. If I want to start now, I can,” says Paulina Gretzky, again flashing that winning smile, which isn’t gloating, but rather calm and content. “You get to a point where you’re hard on yourself and you shouldn’t be—we’re the only ones who put limits on ourselves and I think now’s the time for my new chapter—not a new me, but a me that’s evolving. I want to help in any way possible, especially when it comes to sending positivity and love.”

FOCUS ON ONE GOAL AT A TIME AND TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF.

POSITIVE VIBRATIONS

New School Leaders of Canada’s Health & Wellness World Stress Mental Health, Joy and Kindness Alongside Their (Sometimes Brutal!) Workouts

BY ASHLEY HARRIS

CHRISTOPHER LEWARNE, THE PEACEFUL WARRIOR

Ontario local, Christopher Lewarne, @the_cuddlycanadian, started his career path in the field of law and it wasn’t until later in life, that he realized his true passion was fitness.

After seeing his best friend battle cancer, and taking on a charity boxing fight to raise money and awareness, Christopher began emphasizing his mental health and wellness regime. “When he passed, I think I just realized there was more to life and we don’t have enough time on this planet to do anything less than what we are passionate about,” Christopher said.

He started to take on amateur fights in N.Y.C. and ended up working in fitness at a gym called Barry’s Bootcamp—which he fell in love with immediately. “I couldn’t believe I was getting paid to make people happy,” Christopher said. “Eventually, I was asked to help bring the company here to Canada and made a partner in the brand. I guess mine is a story of sort of ‘failing forward,’” he added. Christopher’s mental and physical wellness comes from one uniform philosophy: work hard and be nice to people. He’s also a strong believer in trying your best, and then being kind to yourself afterward. When it comes to a specific workout that Christopher finds compelling and enjoyable, it would have to be a Barry’s class.

“I may be biased, but if there is a more immersive, effective and compelling workout than a Barry’s class, I haven’t found it,” Christopher said. “Short of actual competitive fighting, I don’t think I’ve ever had bigger adrenaline highs or calorie burns than in The Red Room.”

Introducing Kelsey Ellis, a body-positive fitness coach and dedicated content creator from British Columbia. With a commitment to fostering diversity, self-acceptance, and overall well-being, Kelsey has emerged as a prominent influencer within the health and fitness sphere. Spanning the past three years, her @healthy_with_kelsey platforms have cultivated a dedicated community of over 190K followers.

Kelsey’s online persona radiates positivity and warmth—so much so, that she has even been called “sunshine in human form.” She’s the fitness bestie and hype girl you’ve been searching for, creating content that educates and uplifts with relatability, inspiration and humour.

Her practical advice for readers is to “listen to your body.” With the goal of achieving a balanced approach and preventing burnout or injuries, Kelsey recommends listening to those internal cues.

For a fulfilling and effective workout experience, Kelsey suggests embracing the beauty of the fall season by engaging in hikes and trail adventures. To sustain motivation, Kelsey turns to her personally curated “Healthy With Kelsey Hype Girl Hitlist” playlist.

Her daily strategy for nurturing mental health revolves around the liberating power of using the word “no.” By reserving agreement for opportunities that evoke an enthusiastic “HELL YES” sentiment, she has discovered a path to relief and genuine fulfillment.

Guided by her life motto, “Be the change you wish to see in the world. If you don’t see it, create it!” Kelsey’s work is a testament to her unwavering mission.

“What keeps me going is knowing that I am leading by example and creating a hypothetical ‘table’ that I wished had a seat for me when I was younger,” Kelsey says. “That gives me hope for the future and for other women that look like me.”

KELSEY ELLIS, THE HELL YES! GIRL

CHRISTIE BAUMGARTNER, THE RELENTLESS OPTIMIST

According to Christie, daily breathwork and yoga practice are vital to her well-being, both mentally and physically. “Prioritizing space to check in with my body and slow down overall is crucial for my mental health and also helps me be a much more present teacher, friend, daughter, dog mom...all of my hats,” she added.

If she were to offer some practical advice for readers to immediately implement, it would be to “slow down.”

“We live in a culture of rushing around and over-commitment. The exhaustion epidemic is a real thing and learning to say ‘no’ when we have reached our capacity is vital to our well-being,” she added. Christie finds enjoyment in any workout that you can get a good sweat on and still have fun, at the same time. “Recently I took an old-school aerobics class and had the best time,” Christie said.

As for a few daily mental health techniques that she finds valuable, anything that involves dog cuddles or cooking will suffice. Plus, time to yourself. One guiding principle she lives by is to “trust the process.” “It might sound cliche, however, this mantra has helped me stay in possibility when I’m going through a period of uncertainty, grief or self-doubt,” Christie said. “There is a lot of magic in the unknown when we can choose trust over fear.”

Christie Baumgartner, @alittlecbaum, is a yoga instructor from British Columbia, who has been teaching in the community for 15 years. She currently leads in-person classes at Equinox, Kin Culture and Lululemon’s head office, as well as private and online sessions.

MORGAN BRANCH, THE NATURALIST

Meet Morgan Branch, @morgan.branch, the head of Strength, Conditioning and Athletic Development at 10XTO by Hotel X Toronto.

He has had a passion for all things sports from the earliest days he can remember. Through his online social media presence, he tries to represent himself as honestly as he can.

“I’m very proud to be goofy, high energy, ambitious, motivating, and innovative with my training techniques/methods,” Morgan said.

One piece of wellness advice from Morgan is to “Sweat daily!”

“Everybody is different. For me, I’ve recognized that I much prefer to work out in the morning,” Morgan said, adding: “I have become addicted to an early heart rate elevation which sparks neurotransmitters releasing dopamine, endocannabinoids and serotonin AKA the feel-good chemicals!”

One practical piece of advice that Morgan recommends to implement immediately is to spend less time on the screen, and more time outdoors.

“You will find every step outside gets you closer to the real you,” Morgan said. “Be outside more often and you will cope with stress better, you will think more critically and you better appreciate this beautiful planet.”

As for specific workouts that Morgan finds enjoyable, combat sports at a local boxing club are his go-to. “They can seem intimidating, but once you begin you will find them to be quite the opposite of intimidating,” Morgan said.

When it comes to a guiding principle to live by Morgan emphasized: “Every day is a new day so seize it because what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.”

LIQUID DREAMS

Who says cocktails can’t be healthy?

The divine Adrian Stein mixes infused concoctions without booze for maximum frothy health & wellness

COCKTAIL RECIPES BY ADRIAN STEIN, DOPE COCKTAILS PHOTOGRAPHS BY MATTHEW SEE

24 CARROT DIAMONDS WITH EDIBLE SOIL— GARDENING AND THE OUTDOORS

This Dope Cocktail is inspired by gardening and the outdoors. Start with juicing orange and yellow heirloom carrots, punched with fresh ginger and yuzu. Now we add our “Diamonds”

infused Dope Cocktails

Spiced Honey Syrup, shake it all up and strain into a long, carrotshaped glass. The glass is painted with edible soil (made from raisins, hazelnuts, sesame crackers, pumpernickel, soy sauce, bitters and brown sugar), adding crumbly texture to snack on throughout the drink.

INGREDIENTS

3 oz Orange Heirloom

Carrot Juice

3o z Yellow Heirloom

Carrot Juice

1 oz Fresh Ginger Juice

1 oz Yuzu Juice

3/4 oz Dope Cocktails

Spiced Diamonds Syrup

5 dashes Non-Alc

Cocktail Bitters

EDIBLE SOIL

Raisins

Hazelnuts

Black Sesame Crackers

Pumpernickel

Brown Sugar

Soy Sauce

Cocktail Bitters

CELERY APPLE TOM COLLINS WITH A CITRUS COLLAGEN CLOUD—SELF CARE HEALTHY ROUTINES

This Dope Cocktail was inspired by self care and healthy routines. It all starts with fresh celery, and granny smith apple juice. A touch of fresh lemon and agave help balance and kick up the flavour. We garnish with celery and rhubarb ribbons, then use sparkling water to dilute and fizz, adding a few dash of Fee Brothers Rhubarb Bitters. Complete with a citrus collagen cloud. We have come to learn in our own journey that without self care and healthy routines, we don’t really have much.

INGREDIENTS

2oz Fresh Celery Juice

2oz Granny Smith Apple

2oz Sparkling Water

1oz Fresh Lemon Juice

1/2oz Agave Nectar

5 dash Fee Brother

CITRUS COLLAGEN CLOUD

Lemon

Lime

Grapefruit Collegen

Agar

Vegan Foamer

Agave

ISI Whip Syphon

2 Cream Chargers

LAUGHING BUDDHA BOWL — MINDFULNESS AND MEDITATION

Inspired by the practice of mindfulness and meditation. We start by combining matcha, coconut water and chai. We soften things up by adding unsweetened oat milk and finish with a touch of black sesame honey syrup. The drink is kept cool and infused with a THC/CBD laced

Dope Mocktails Qush

Qube. To receive your cannabis, you must be present and sit with the bowl. They say, “Everyone should sit in meditation for 20 minutes a day, unless you’re too busy, then you should sit for an hour.”

INGREDIENTS

3 oz Unsweetened

Coconut Water

2 oz Unsweetened

Steeped Chai

2 oz Unsweetened Oat

Milk

1 oz Black Sesame Honey

Syrup

1/2 tsp Matcha Powder

3 dashes Bark & Bitters

Aztec Chocolate Bitters

1 oz Dope Mocktails Qush

Qube (coming to OCS Winter 2024)

ROCKET POP “SOOTHIE” — BASEBALL AND SPORTS

This Dope Cocktail was inspired by baseball and sports. This three-flavour smoothie starts with a layer of blueberry and blue spirulina yogurt, infused with 5 mg THC. The next flavour is the white layer: dragonfruit, vanilla and honey yogurt, infused with 10 mg CBD. The final layer is the red/pink, using fresh raspberry and a drop of Rosewater to flavour, infused with 10mg CBG. Smash a Rocket Pop Soothie after a few hours at the batting cages and off you go.

BLUE LAYER

Blueberry and blue

Spirulina Yogurt 5 mg THC

WHITE LAYER

Dragonfruit, Vanilla and Honey Yogurt, 10mg CBD

RED/PINK LAYER

Raspberry and Rosewater

yogurt 10 mg CBG

IN-HOUSE BRANDS

PARTNER BRANDS

“The universe of cannabis...”

IT HAS TO BE GREAT

Toronto’s first haute Caribbean-inspired dining house brings a culinary mash up of regional & sub-regional flavours and ingredients— curiously explored through unexpected, globally infused moments. 433 King Street West, misslikklemores.com.

MISS LIKKLEMORES JERK CHICKEN

INGREDIENTS

Your choice of hot peppers

Garlic, peeled

Fresh Thyme

Ground Allspice

Red Onion

Ginger, cleaned

Fresh Lime Juice

Ground Cinnamon

Ground Nutmeg

Brown Sugar

Canola Oil

Begin by pulsing the hot peppers, garlic, red onion, green onion and ginger in a food processor. Add thyme. Grind the allspice, reserve.

Heat half of the oil in a smaller pot and add the ground spices. Cook them on medium heat; stir constantly to prevent burning.

Add brown sugar to the cooked spice mixture. Let the mixture cook until it turns a deep colour and forms a thick paste.

In a separate pot, add the remaining oil. Put in the onions, garlic, ginger, peppers and thyme. Cook until they become soft and fragrant.

Introduce the allspice mixture to the vegetables, allowing them to cook down and reduce by about 1/4. The end result should be a thick sauce, not loose and watery.

Rub the jerk marinade evenly over your chicken, ensuring it’s evenly coated. For optimal flavour, you can gently lift the skin and spread some marinade directly on the meat.

Place the marinated chicken in a smoker, close the lid and let it smoke for 3 to 4 hours, or until the internal temperature of the thickest part of the chicken reaches 165°F (74°C). Alternatively, chicken can be baked with smouldering woodchips if you do not have a smoker.

CRAB XO

INGREDIENTS

Crab Meat

Shallots, minced

Garlic, minced

Thai Chilis, cleaned

Brown Sugar

Soy Sauce

Fish Sauce

Canola Oil

Rum

Vegetable Stock

Korean Chili Flakes

INSTRUCTIONS

Gently fry the minced garlic at around 275°F (135°C) until golden brown.

In a wide pan, use the reserved garlic oil to sauté the minced shallots and Thai chilis until fragrant and tender.

Add brown sugar, soy sauce, fish sauce and the remainder of the garlic oil to the pan.

Sprinkle in the Korean chili flakes to infuse a vibrant colour.

Allow the mixture to gently simmer and cook down by 1/4.

Introduce the crab meat claws, letting the flavours and textures meld over 15 minutes.

Finish with rum.

Alpha-Pinene, Caryophyllene, Farnesene Tangy,

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE DRESSING:

Green Papaya, cleaned

Garlic, peeled

Fresh Lime Juice

Cumin Seeds

Honey

Kosher Salt

Green Onion, cut

Canola Oil

Cider Vinegar

Coriander, picked

Thyme, picked

Pineapple Juice

FOR THE SLAW:

Pear

Pickled Red Onion

Pickled Cucumber

Green Mango, cleaned

Carrots, cleaned

Kohlrabi, cleaned

Watermelon Radish, cleaned

Taro

Green Cabbage, cleaned

NUFF NUFF SLAW

Blend the pineapple juice with the green papaya, peeled garlic, fresh lime juice, cumin seeds, honey, chopped green onion and kosher salt.

Gradually emulsify the canola oil into the mixture until it reaches a smooth consistency.

Add in thyme leaves and sliced cilantro to infuse the dressing with aromatic depth.

Peel and julienne the taro, fry at 275˚ F for 3 minutes or until crispy.

Drain on paper towel and season with salt; set aside.

Julienne all the vibrant vegetables and pickles to create a colourful ensemble.

Dress the slaw with the prepared dressing, gently tossing to ensure each ingredient is coated with the delightful flavours.

ART NATURALS: OLGA ZIEMSKA

Sculptor and public artist Olga Ziemska mines nature, philosophy, and science in search of connection points among the physical forces, biological structures, and mystical underpinnings of existence. She often attempts to make visible those concepts or properties that are indiscernible to the naked eye, such as cellular formations or magnetism. By making visual associations between the visible and the invisible — or the microscopic and the macrocosmic — Olga poetically underscores the interrelatedness of all things.

To Learn More visit www.roomandwild.com @roomandwild @olgaziemskastudio

LONG LIVE THE LOW-FI R&B GONG PUNK VIBES

Celebrating Pantayo, who carves out their niche one diaspora community at a time

BY BEN KAPLAN | PHOTOGRAPHS BY GWEN LIM-BRYDSON

Pantayo is a rocking quintet of queer Filipinx musicians who make new school kulintang music, which uses traditional Philippine gongs. Combining pop elements like R&B, electronic and country, the group is improvisational, yet learns about the traditional, and also reaches for higher goals than record sales and sold-out tours—though the bandmates appreciate both things. Their name means “For us, of us” and they’re community-driven musical activists, opening minds, exposing culture and enjoying cannabis on their journey of creative experimentation. Currently raising money for Filipino families displaced in Yellowknife from the recent wildfires while launching a free online kulintang learning platform called “KuliVersity,” the group is multidimensional, thoughtful and funky—and recently sat down to explain their mindfulness mission with KIND.

KIND: How do you organise your time?

MICHELLE: Aside from making music, we have a digital project called KuliVersity set to be released this fall. It will be a digital version of our in-person kulintang workshop that will be available in Canada and eventually worldwide. Pantayo started off as a workshop group and it’s so cool that soon folks will be able to join us digitally to learn about kulintang!

KAT: We’re also making a sound piece for a collaboration with installation artist Leeroy New, which ties in our love for sci-fi, fashion and art.

KATRIN: There’s also the Sound, Meaning, Education Conference at the University of Guelph. Kulintang tradition has a layer of improvisation and this is a good avenue

to talk to academics about how Pantayo merges all these ideas on the art side of our practice. It’s exciting that we get to spread the word about kulintang with a new group of people!

KIND: We were impressed by your work in Yellowknife.

MICHELLE: Filipinos make up the largest visible minority in Yellowknife and there’s close to 2000 people currently displaced by the recent wildfires there. They’re not getting support for food, just shelter, and the need is urgent, because the mortgage bills, the phone bills, none of that stops. And a lot of Filipinos who come here as temporary foreign workers also support families back home, so we’re not just seeking donations for the displaced people, but also their families back home.

KIND: You played a festival in Yellowknife this summer and I think it says a lot about the group how you maintain your relationships with the communities you play.

KAT: Community is central to how we function. It speaks to our values and the Filipino concept of the individual being part of a group. Our mandate as a band is that of a collective; we record and perform music, but we also teach. There’s no extracting ourselves from the community.

MICHELLE: We formed as a group of people of a smaller subset, the Filipino-Canadian community, and within that community, the Diasporic Queer community, too.

KAT: That’s why even after our shows are finished, our connections never end from our trips. Like with Yellowknife, we don’t just visit a place and do handshakes and

that’s it. What motivates us is to keep the conversations going. That’s what it means to be part of a community. Changing the world doesn’t have to be huge gestures, it’s all the little ways we stay involved.

KIND: You were a Polaris Music Prize finalist and the popularity is growing, but can you describe your sound for the uninitiated?

KAT: We create music outside of any one genre. It touches on our influences as individuals. It’s rooted in kulintang music and us playing together, but it’s also a reflection of us as individuals.

KATRIN: Our sound is kulintang with each of our individual influences mashed up together. We’ve described it as lo-fi R&B gong punk, but if you whittle it down it can be lots of different things, depending on how you use the term pop. Contemporary

pop has a lot of R&B, country and electronic influences, and our music reflects all our influences—it’s pop with a kulintang soul.

KIND: Did you start Pantayo, in a way, to create the group that you would’ve loved when you were growing up?

MICHELLE: Growing up, we saw lots of Filipino folks who worked in healthcare and I just didn’t see art as a big possibility as I, too, first started my career in the healthcare industry. In the early 2010s, I became a fan of Ohbijou’s music, and when I found out that this band had queer Filipinx members, my mind was blown. It opened up my world and I eventually found my way to this wildly creative Filipinx community. Fast forward to 2020, we had an opportunity to make a short film for the Polaris Music Prize that was directed by Tricia Hagoriles, a talented Filipinx

filmmaker. In this short film, we got to pay homage to the folks who paved the way for Pantayo. These characters were called “The Ones Before Us,” with one of them being Casey Mecija from Ohbijou, along with apè aliermo of Phèdre!

KATRIN: Representation is important. Seeing brown queer bodies onstage with these instruments can be captivating. It’s queering not just to the eye, but to the ear, too, because it’s not everyday that people get to see and hear folks who look like us create the music that we do using these kulintang ensemble instruments, which are not very common.

MICHELLE: We are at a point where we want to explore our queer culture and identity and we’re fortunate to be in a safe place to do that.

KIND: Are things safer now in the queer diaspora than it was when you were all kids?

KATRIN: Four of us were born in the Philippines and one member was born here in Canada, so we’ve all had different experiences and different backgrounds.

EIRENE: It’s interesting in our evolution. It was only in our later releases that we more explicitly identified the group as queer. It was always there, but not talked about.

KATRIN: Back then, like in 2012, I feel like maybe we weren’t able to talk about our queerness, it wasn’t safe yet to say outwardly at that time. There were pioneers in our community, but if I mentioned I was queer, I didn’t know if I would be safe. Especially outside our bubble.

KIND: So hard on a kid growing up.

MICHELLE: Filipino culture is interesting. You’ve got queer comedians that are revered, but if you come out as queer, because it’s a predominantly Catholic country, it might not be a great experience. I’m generalising, but I do think there’s a contrast.

EIRENE: I’ve been a queer artist for as long as I’ve been making music and I’ve seen a shift in how we identify ourselves. I think it’s a good thing, outside of the arts and academia and corporate settings, to discuss identity politics.

KAT: Definitely, and pop culture more broadly changes, shifts and grows. When we started, we were “Filipinas,” or Filipino women, but now it has shifted to Filipinx and other descriptors of the diasporic queer community. The identifiers have become part of our journey and when we found the language, it helped us selfidentify. I remember the conversation about adding the word “queer” to our bio. It speaks to how much we’ve grown.

KIND: You’ve also grown in your videos, costumes and stage show. Can you talk about how cannabis helps you create?

KATRIN: I use cannabis medicinally and recreationally. It helps me manage and be pain-free after my concussion, and improves my life. I also like it recreationally and it’s a nice way to unwind and feel the feels. I like to try different strains grown in different parts of the country, but we’re only able to do that because of the activists who first believed in cannabis and were persecuted and put into jail for their beliefs. That’s still an issue that we need to fix.

KAT: Creativity and cannabis can help me dream up visualisations, concepts and ideas. It also helps me narrow down and fine-tune my ideas. The most recent creative project that we’d like to share is our music video for our song “One More Latch (Give It To ‘Ya),” directed by our frequent collaborator Tricia Hagoriles. It draws inspiration from Helmut Newton, Lesbian-cult classic Bound by the Wachowskis and good ol’ The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. Check it out on Youtube and on our social channels!

For more on Pantayo, including how to donate to their Yellowknife fundraiser and learn kulintang, follow their journey on Instagram @pantayomusic.

WE REALLY ARE AT A POINT WHERE WE WANT TO EXPLORE OUR QUEER CULTURE AND IDENTITY AND WE’RE FORTUNATE TO BE IN A SAFE PLACE TO DO THAT.

AND THERE’S

NO GUARANTEES THAT I WON’T GET STONED!”

Sam Roberts, erstwhile Canadian rockstar, on “Bridge to Nowhere” and his hot new record, all consumed with the holy trinity of hockey, beer and electric guitars

BY ERICA COMMISSO

“Hockey, beers and rock n’ roll,” the voice on the other end chuckles. “The Holy Trinity. My life.”

It’s one thing to understand that trifecta as the quintessential pieces of the Canadian identity, but it’s another thing altogether to be part of the fabric of it. And, with a decades-long career that’s garnered national acclaim and success—and the best-selling independent EP in Canadian history— Sam Roberts definitely counts as the latter.

The singer/songwriter is set to drop his eighth studio-length album, The Adventures of Ben Blank, on October 20th, with the pre-released tracks “Picture of Love,” “I Dream of You” and “Afterlife” offering a taste of the chill, introspective brand of rock n’ roll the Sam Roberts Band has come to adopt. Each of the nine tracks offers Blank, who is both familiar and unknown, ancient and endlessly reborn, as its narrator through the musical journey. Blank, like Roberts himself, is a man in constant creation.

“There’s always a moment before you start making a new album where it’s like, ‘OK, why do I do this? Why do I love doing this? What’s the reason behind this?’ Not in terms of what are the songs gonna be about, but just what makes you want to sit there for the next six months or year or two years and pour your heart and soul into making new music,” Roberts says. “I come up against that question every single time and it’s important to think about it. What are your intentions? Are your intentions about showing a new side of yourself, are they about pushing a new part of your musical vision?”

The Adventures of Ben Blank, which was recorded in Toronto, doesn’t feel like a new musical vision, but rather an extension of the band’s 2020 release All of Us, complete with genre-bending music that challenge the status quo while appealing to fans of all ages. It is, in its purest form, an extensive of Roberts’ love of music as a form of communication.

“I think it really comes down to it just being about what I love to do. And my whole life has revolved around it and continues to revolve around it,” he says. “There’s something not just inside me, but I think in anybody who writes music, whether it’s for a living or just something that they do for personal reasons, that makes you want to push forward, and every song that you write for that new album is a response to that. It’s a redefining of your relationship with music and why you do it.”

Roberts has built his career off of a sound that takes rock and adds an additional layer of intellect and storytelling—often without the use of love songs. “I don’t know if there’s anything

that I’ve ever made that isn’t introspective,” he says. “And every time we make a new album, I have to almost flip to try to figure out how I’m going to start talking about this thing that I don’t necessarily have the words to describe. There’s a lot of reasons why I write songs instead of writing books, because I can say things about myself that I guess I don’t really show, that don’t come naturally to me if I just put it down in a journal or spoke to somebody across the table from me in conversation.”

His honest approach translates to his life outside of music, from his optimism about the Montreal Canadiens’ “exciting” rebuild to his partnership with Spearhead Brewing Company, the Kingstonbased outfit that created both of his limited-edition beer releases. “I am unashamedly very passionate about beer,” he says. “In the drinking of it, but now also in having the opportunity to bring it to life, to actually go in there and be the scientist a little bit. We had an English-style ale which was great. I had it all year round, but let’s just say it’s technically great for October until spring, and then we had this really nice session IPA that came out as well.”

While a third collaboration with Spearhead is not out of the question, Roberts says the band’s focus is in its primary function. “Who knows what the next chapter in the beer world will be, but for the moment, we’re going to focus on the music.” That focus goes beyond the album into the first coast-tocoast Canadian tour since the pandemic altered the course of live music for what felt like an eternity.

“I’m excited. It’s almost like a double record tour because I still feel like our last album needs to played up on the stage as well,” Roberts says, referring to 2020’s All of Us that could only be played live at outdoor venues for the years following its release. “The tour is what cements the relationship between that new music and the audience. And also, for the band, it’s where you learn the music deep down inside you, playing it every single day. At first, you’re not super comfortable, everything feels brand new, but then a couple of weeks into it, it starts to sink into your bones and then you can shape it and twist it into a direction that you couldn’t before. The tour allows you to do that on a musical level.”

For Roberts, that connection amongst people, transcending the artist-audience connection, is the most important part of being a musician. “Making music, for my bandmates and myself, it’s a language without words that we connect to and speak amongst each other.” And, with its eighth studio album, the Sam Roberts Band continues to strengthen that bond.

BREATH OF FRESH AIR

King Cruff makes the music that’s good for the soul

BY BEN KAPLAN

Solomon Marley-Spence goes by King Cruff and, even though he’s a Marley, the Jamaican-raised, Ontario-based MC and reggae musician wants the world to know him not for his name, but for his music.

“I want people to love Solomon first before they love Solomon Marley—like how when Bob was starting out, there was no ‘Bob Marley,’ people had to gravitate to the music,” says the musician, one of the biggest stars on Universal Music Canada’s roster this fall. “Now, the cycle is repeating itself: King Cruff represents a new star being born.”

King Cruff began life as a crooner in hometown Jamaica when his mom moved there from Ontario to run the Bob Marley Museum. But it wasn’t reggae, even though it was the music he was immersed in, that first made him believe in himself as a musician. It was rap.

“I thought maybe, growing up in Jamaica, there were already enough reggae singers and I just couldn’t find my lane,” says Cruff, who’s 26 and released the blazing, Jamaican-shot video SHEDOENEED, an independent-women’s anthem, this month.

“In hip hop, I saw myself. I could see myself telling stories, and I learned music is my space to say whatever I want to— dark or comedic, heavy or personal—it’s the space I give myself where nothing I do is wrong.”

Talking to Cruff, who’s thoughtful and present and knows better than most about the high price of fame, it’s apparent that he makes music not for fortune and fame, but for the art of expression. We talked as much about guitar licks and dancehall choruses as we did about mental health and communication.

“Music is an extension of me, it’s me in my purest form, and I use this space to express emotions I have trouble expressing in words,” he says. “My music exists to make me a healthy human being.”

Mental health, he adds, especially in his community, isn’t always a priority amongst young Black men. To that end, King Cruff makes it a point of pride amongst his friends to communicate openly and honestly. For our Health & Wellness issue, it’s impressive how many of our interview subjects bring up the subject naturally.

“In our community, it’s not really a thing to talk about our emotions, but to be honest, that leads to more problems, so I’ve started being transparent with the homeys,” he says, offering phrases such as, “This is bothering me, let’s talk it out.”

“I just feel like it’s a more authentic way to connect. I find with my bredren, if I say, ‘This is happening to me,’ they’re likely to say, ‘Oh, this is happening to me, too.’”

Cruff came on the scene with Samurai Chop last fall and in a year, he’s rocketed from unknown to up next. For the young singer who still calls Jamaican stages the toughest to play, the pressure of being a major label, highly touted artist can be daunting. But his only ambition is to stay true to his roots.

“Music is this magical, alien thing for expressing emotion, a beautiful, magical escape and an art form,” he says. “I see myself as a genre-less storytelling artist and all I want to do is share my vision with the fans.”

To follow the adventures and releases of King Cruff and download the single, follow him @KingCruff.

ILLICIT CBD IS DANGEROUS, UNREGULATED AND OUT OF CONTROL

A $4-billion US industry struggles mightily in North America’s only legal cannabis market

BY ALEX NINO GHECIU

“Synergistic healing.” “Superior mental health.” “Achieve inner balance and serenity.”

Those are just a few of the Goop-y claims you’ll find on the many websites selling illicit CBD products in Canada’s bustling black market. Walk through Yorkville in Toronto and you’re bound to see some unlicensed CBD shops keeping that same sorcerer’sbrew energy, hawking everything from oils to creams to caramels promising to do everything from “inhibit the spread of cancer cells’’ to cure your dog’s heart disease. But those assertions are as illegal as the products themselves, which are an unregulated health risk operating right out in the open.

Canada’s CBD illicit market is “exceedingly large,” says George Smitherman, president and CEO of the Cannabis Council of Canada, which represents cannabis businesses nationally. “We know that it has a huge online footprint and quite a substantial retail-level footprint as well.” It’s not uncommon to find illicit CBD items here in unlicensed shops, farmer’s markets, online, and even in pet stores, but “the customers that go in there probably don’t even know that they’re buying illegal products.”

And since those items are unregulated, customers can’t even be sure if what they’re buying is CBD at all. Finding a tincture to help you get some shut-eye is a lot trickier in Canada than it should be. “People are familiar with these products being ubiquitous in the States and there’s a perception that they’re benign,” Smitherman says, “and in that environment there is a tremendous amount of risk for the consumer.”

CBD, or cannabidiol, is a natural compound found in cannabis that doesn’t get you high, and according to a growing stack of studies, has potential health benefits, including pain management and anxiety reduction. In recent years, it’s soared to the forefront of the wellness industry, thanks to the legalization of hemp (which CBD comes from) in the U.S., a herbal supplement boom, and endorsements from Martha Stewart, Kristen Bell, Gwyneth and DJ Khaled alike. Stateside, it’s sold legitimately at every gas station, convenience store, CVS, and Whole Foods. You can buy CBD pain patches, chicken-flavoured CBD chews for your anxious cat, and even CBD pillows for better sleep. U.S. CBD sales reached $4.17

billion in 2022, and the market is forecasted to quadruple by 2026.

In Canada, things are different. Though consumers here, too, are increasingly canna-curious about CBD’s ability to help with medical issues—whether for themselves or their pets—government regulations restrict product packaging and retailers from making explicit health assertions. They also prevent it from being sold anywhere but government-licensed cannabis retailers. That’s because unlike in the U.S., CBD is a controlled substance in Canada, subject to legal restrictions due to what the government sees as its potential for abuse or harm. It’s regulated the same as high-THC marijuana, which it’s illegal to make any health or cosmetic claims about. up purchasing the illegal stuff.

“It’s a clear-cut health and safety issue,” says Ivan Ross Vrána, a cannabis industry consultant who previously worked for Health Canada on the cannabis file.

“Primarily it seems people are using CBD for healthcare purposes, whether it’s sleep or anxiety. We could talk about how effective

it is, but the very starting point is, if I am going to use it, I want to use the legal market because I know it’s being tested and I know what the hell’s in there. On the illegal market, you have no clue.”

And that applies to CBD for pets as well. In Canada, it’s against the law to market CBD products intended for animals, and veterinarians are prohibited from prescribing them. Which means that the bacon-flavoured oil you’ve been putting in Groucho Barks’ kibble is 100 percent illicit market.

A recent study of illicit CBD products for pets in Canada found those items to have CBD potencies that were “dramatically lower than the stated cannabinoid content, veterinarian, who notes “there’s a huge and continuously growing demand” for CBD pet products to treat issues spanning from “chronic pain and arthritis to seizures to anxiety, sometimes things like skin issues, digestive issues, cancer, and palliation.” Yet the only items currently available to Canadians “would never meet the requirements for legal distribution.”

I believe in the benefits of CBD, that’s why I’m in this business, but it doesn’t cure everything and it’s not the be all and end all. Claiming it cures everything under the sun actually does a disservice to consumers.”

— Keith Strachan, president and co-founder of MediPharm Labs.

In the world of licensed retailers, every move is dissected under the magnifying glass of inspections and a strict adherence to sourcing products through the official channels. But in the Canadian illicit market, it’s the wellness Wild West, and law enforcement isn’t exactly cracking the whip.

But it’s not just “non-compliant behaviour” that’s putting Canadians at risk. It’s the government-enforced lack of communication with CBD consumers too. A Health Canada report on adverse reactions associated with cannabis in 2020 found the majority of

“As an illicit market provider, you have no accountability… They’ve dressed up CBD as a cure-all. And it’s not. I believe in the benefits of CBD, that’s why I’m in this business, but it doesn’t cure everything and it’s not the be all and end all. If you have a certain type of cancer, it might not help you. Claiming it cures everything under the sun actually does a disservice to consumers.”

So what can be done to protect healthconscious Canadians from getting rolled up? “Empower the legal market,” suggests Strachan. CBD could easily be moved under the Canadian Food and Drug Act, he says, which would make it a natural health product. You’d then be able to add a health claim to it, which allows it to be sold at your local drug store. “So in the same aisle that you buy your multivitamins, vitamin B, and your zinc and iron, you would be able to buy CBD. That really empowers consumers to be like, okay, if I want to choose CBD, I’ll have accurate dosing and indications on the bottle.”

Removing the excise tax on CBD—similar to the one on tobacco and booze—would also level the playing field with illicit merchants selling the products for way cheaper. “There’s no other medicine that is taxed in Canada,” stresses Vrána.

Even if CBD won’t grace pharmacy shelves anytime soon, the government should allow budtenders to offer customers insights into harnessing CBD’s potential for health benefits, says Stachan. “We need to do more as an industry and as a regulator to help those consumers as far as education and access go, which the current legislation doesn’t really allow.”

are not aware they are engaging in noncompliant behaviour, and come back into compliance with the Cannabis Act, and its regulations, once contacted by Health Canada. If warranted, other cases are referred to law enforcement, including illicit cannabis sales.”

“I think the main problem is confusion,” says Keith Strachan, president and cofounder of MediPharm Labs, a Canadian pharmaceutical company specializing in cannabis concentrate-based products.

But Health Canada already knows all of this. In July 2022, it published recommendations by the Science Advisory Committee on Health Products Containing Cannabis, an external body it asked to assess the possibility of making CBD available through mainstream retailers, rather than restricting its distribution solely to cannabis shops or by prescription. The panel concluded that CBD is “safe and tolerable for short-term use” and that “approval of health products containing CBD should be accompanied by public education to explain possible benefits and risks.”

The panel even decided CBD is safe for

I want to use the legal market because I know it’s being tested and I know what the hell’s in there. On the illegal market, you have no clue.”

dogs at low doses, though only for treating osteoarthritis under a veterinarian’s supervision.

Still, it’s ultimately up to Health Canada whether those recommendations are implemented—and the regulator’s been taking its sweet-ass time. “Here we are over a year later and nothing’s been done,” says Vrána. “I mean, you’ve done the work, so what’s taken so long to actually start thinking about it?”

In its statement, Health Canada pointed out that a review of the Cannabis Act, which legalized marijuana in Canada in 2018, is currently underway. The review, led by a panel of five experts, will focus, among other areas, on “assessing progress towards providing adults with access to strictly regulated, lower risk, legal cannabis products, and progress made in deterring criminal activity.” It’ll be presented to both Houses of Parliament “within 18 months.”

But Vrana, having worked for Health

Canada, isn’t buying what they’re selling. “It’s disingenuous to say, ‘Well, we’re having a Cannabis Act review.’ That’s a nonstarter because you can start the regulatory development. We don’t need to wait for the Cannabis Act because one’s legislative, one’s regulatory. They can certainly get the work done and give a signal to Canadians that this is actually going to happen so everybody can start preparing for it.”

Vrana says Health Canada operates on geologic time scales because it wants to avoid mistakes various states in the U.S. made by changing cannabis policies too soon. But we’re now five years into legalization, and over 20 years into a regime that’s been offering cannabis for medicial purposes. “There’s already a ton of lessons learned, so good God, you have to start making those changes.” Even the Cannabis Act review was delayed by a year—with no explanation from the government. “It’s taking a lot longer than it needs to be.”

“I’ve been at this for six years and have

a big callus on my forehead banging my head against a wall,” says Silcox, who is also president of the Canadian Association of Veterinary Cannabinoid Medicine. On top of urging Health Canada to regulate CBDinfused pet products, she wants veterinarians to have the authority to prescribe CBD to pet owners. You get her frustration. People’s pets are suffering, and the regulator’s sluggishness only feels that much longer in dog years.

It’s all a bit like having a GPS system that knows the best route to a safer, healthier Canada, but is repeatedly ignoring it in favour of long and meandering rural paths. The feds already have the road map, but until they actually start taking its directions, it’ll just be another tome on the shelf of beauracy, gathering dust like a neglected jar of CBD-infused skin elixir.

“The government put together this Science Advisory board, they asked them for their advice and they haven’t acted on it,” says Strachan. “Just them acting on their own project would make a big difference.”

Extra Strength Pain Relief

Across

1 Greek letter T

4 Did a farrier's work

9 Floppy disk successor

14 Don't ___, don't tell

15 Cousin's mère

16 It's flatter than a pancake

17 Most common type of shamrock

20 Film studio with Pegasus in its logo

21 "___, vidi, vici"

22 Some, but not much

25 Coloured emergency alert

27 Device for photographing stages of development

30 "You rang?"

31 Top of the clock, maybe

32 When the flight ends, approx.

33 "You can't teach ___ dog..."

36 ___ ops (intel agency tactics)

38 What Rhett didn't give

42 ___ Lingus (Irish airline)

44 So-called ankle biter

46 Beam of light

47 Spongy dessert with a base, a middle and a top

53 Quality of non-latex paint

54 Tiny treat to have with a Double Double, maybe

55 Look like a jerk?

56 Total ditz

59 Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg, collectively

64 "___ die for!"

65 Liberal cabinet member ___ Anand

66 Realm of Hemingway's "old man"

67 "False!"

68 Leaves fully full

69 Compassionate healing found in 17-, 27-, 47- and 59-Across

Down

1 Popeye's is an anchor, briefly

2 Reminder of an old flame?

3 Kiev's ctry.

4 Solid form of alcohol

5 Dalhousie University city

6 There are 2 in 11

7 Coup d'___

8 Scribble on money, say

9 Half of D, in Ancient Rome

10 Sent off the deep end

11 Admire intensely

12 Warmup band

13 Yucatán capital

18 Feminine suffix

19 "Time in a Bottle" singer

22 "Right back ___!" ("Likewise!")

23 Well: Fr.

24 "___ Excited" (Pointer Sisters hit)

26 Census output, maybe

28 Domino dot

29 Gansta gal

by Barbara Olson

34 What air passengers buckle up

35 Crème-crème connector

37 "We scored!"

39 Oman man, e.g.

40 Rolled type of sushi

41 "Nope, Nikita"

43 Further shorten, as a plank

45 Thawing of international tension

47 "Yer darn ___!"

48 "Jolly good, old chap"

49 Most unwell

50 German-made Kodak rivals

51 Roundup ropes

52 Space shuttle honcho: Abbr.

57 Canadian home building store

58 "Deux" cubed

60 "Hug hug hug!" in a love letter

61 The end?

62 Slithering fish

63 Cul-de-