SonReal: Have A Nice Day
The Vancouver-based hip-hop star generates major streaming and viewing numbers. Expect more with this catchy new cut that features his signature witty rhymes plus reggae-inflected vocals and a surreal video.
By Kerry Doole
SonReal - "Have A Nice Day" (Black Box Recordings/UMG): The Vancouver hip-hop artist known as SonReal (real name Aaron Hoffman) has been nominated for multiple Juno and MMVA Awards and has racked up Spotify and YouTube streams and views in the millions ("Can I Get A Witness" has 9.5M YT views). Expect those numbers to rise rapidly with the release of a video for this new cut, produced by Trevor Muzzy.
SonReal's signature is the free-flowing delivery of lines more witty and imaginative than most, and that skill is to the fore here. He rhymes "John Grisham," and "narcissism," with other names dropped including Walt Whitman and Tony Romo, while the positive vibe projected is welcome in these dark days.
His raps are interspersed with easy on the ear reggae-tinged vocalizing, helping make the track a definite commercial contender. Further aiding the cause is a twisted but fun surreal video, directed by Peter Huang, in which SonReal's face is photoshopped onto the bodies of other people and dogs.
Upcoming shows include the Safe & Sound Music Festival in New Westminster (Aug. 25) and at The Iceberg Alley Performance Tent, Mont-Saint-Pierre (Sept. 19).
Links
The Weeknd at Rogers Centre in Toronto on August 8, 2025.Hyghly Alleyne, Courtesy XO Records