Israeli-American rapper returning to Toronto for celebration of music, film
· Toronto Sun
OTTAWA — It’s all about keeping it in the family.
That’s the message New York-based Israeli-American rapper Rami Even-Esh — better know by his stage name Kosha Dillz — is bringing to Toronto this weekend when he returns for a weekend of music, stories and comedy, as well as promoting his long-awaited documentary that’s garnered as many plaudits as controversy.
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“The big reason we come to places that have a lot of turmoil is to expose the fact that we all have issues but the show must go on,” Dillz told the Toronto Sun .
Turmoil is something Toronto’s Jewish community is far too familiar with.
Documentary highlights struggles of North American Jews
Toronto, in the grips of a years-long campaign of antisemitic violence fostered by anti-Israel activists, saw tensions ramp up again earlier this month in response to American and Israeli military operations to eliminate Iran’s despotic regime.
Gunmen opened fire at North York’s Temple Emanu-El in North York shortly after congregants left to celebrate Purim on March 2, followed four days later when bullets tore through Beth Avraham Yoseph of Toronto (BAYT) in Vaughan, and again in Toronto at Shaarei Shomayim Congregation less than an hour later.
Dillz’ film, Bring the Family Home , is a feature-length documentary that initially was about liberating the Israeli hostages taken captive by Palestinian terrorists on Oct. 7 2023, but shifted focus after the remains of the final hostage was returned.
The film largely documents Dillz’ visits to anti-Israel encampments on college campuses, interviewing both protestors and Jewish students.
“Now that the hostages are free, we still seem to be hostage to another thing that’s happening,” he said.
“This could be applied to any war, the war within ourselves, the war within our societies, or literal wars that are happening that we have no control over.”
Saturday’s show takes place at the Free Times Cafe at 320 College St., west of Spadina Ave., starting at 7 p.m.
It’s described as a “seated rap show” and features local comics and musical guests.
Tickets are available at Eventbrite .
Need to outweigh negativity with positivity
The film, which is complete and in the midst of an official release, has already courted controversy.
An attempt to screen the documentary and a panel discussion at a Chicago theatre in May 2025 was abruptly cancelled by the venue, citing safety concerns.
“Based on the public posts made by Kosha Dillz and the overall tone surrounding the event, we determined that proceeding would not align with our values or our responsibility to protect the safety and well-being of our community,” read the now-deleted social media post, although according to an article in T he Times of Israel the theatre never explained the nature of these posts.
“We reject antisemitism in all forms — just as we reject Islamophobia, anti-Palestinian racism, and any form of hate or dehumanization.”
The documentary, according to The Hollywood Reporter, was later screened at a different theatre.
Dillz, who frequently visits and documents anti-Israel protests, was assaulted and subsequently arrested by the NYPD during a March 6 rally in Manhattan’s Washington Square Park.
“I know Toronto has been through a crazy spree of attacks, but I feel that we must outweigh the negative with positive, especially in Toronto,” he said. “It sounds like a privileged take but I got ten stitches at a protest for touching an Ayatollah poster in NYC.”
Dillz’ Toronto show is the latest stop on an international tour promoting his documentary, having just returned home from a series of shows in the UK, as well as a visit to the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano-Cortina, Italy.
“I’m not a gold medalist, but I feel I’m authentically creating now, so Bring the Family Home was sort of my ode to the world — navigating as a Jewish rapper and comic,” he told the Sun.
“I just want to tell my story, no one else is going to do that for me, and with all of these protests, that’s what they’re essentially doing.”