Manifesto 2010 begins today, taking over the city for a week of diverse and exciting music and arts events that will culminate with a massive all-day celebration at Yonge-Dundas Square on Sunday.

Featuring b-boy competitions, art exhibitions and a short filmfest in addition to numerous live music performances, Manifesto 2010 brings together some of the biggest names in North American hip hop, including Jay Electronica, J. Period & Black Thought of the Roots, Bilal, Jean Grae, Saukrates, D-Sisive, Rich Kidd, Nomadic Massive, Tanika Charles, Kae Sun, Eternia, and many, many more.

Check out our day-by-day breakdown of the Manifesto action taking place in Toronto this week.

D-Sisive has released a track to celebrate Manifesto 2010, which he has released for free download as a DJ pack - a ZIP download that contains three versions of the track - the original, a radio edit and the instrumental. (ZIP [right click, save as])

Monday, September 20 - Youth Arts Pitch Contest
Following the Governor General's Youth Dialogue (by invitation only), Manifesto kicks off for the general public with the ArtReach Youth Arts Pitch Contest at 99 Sudbury Street. Nine carefully selected participants will pitch their ideas live to a panel of judges for their shot at winning one of three $5000 prizes.
Free, 6 - 8:30pm.

Tuesday, September 21 - Bilal at Revival
Update: Bilal will not be performing tonight due to illness. The show will go on and is now FREE
Manifesto 2010's first major concert event takes place this coming Tuesday night at Revival (783 College St), where Philadelphia native Bilal will showcase his latest LP Airtight's Revenge with an exclusive two-hour live performance, where he'll be joined by a full five-piece band. The evening will also feature performances from Slakah the Beatchild, Everything That's Fly and Ania Soul, with the Main Ingredient DJs spinning in between sets to keep the crowd moving.
$30 advance, doors at 8pm.

Wednesday, September 22 - The Filmfest
The Manifesto filmfest takes place on Wednesday night at The Royal (608 College St), where a pair of feature films will be screened back-to-back starting with Hubert Davis' Invisible City at 7:30pm, followed by Nabil Elderkin's Bouncing Cats at 9:30. Crazy Legs (legendary NYC b-boy, president of the Rock Steady Crew and star of Bouncing Cats) will be on hand at The Royal for a live Q&A session regarding the film, and Cratery, The Recipe and Mustafa Ahmed will take care of the music before and after the screenings.
$10 advance, doors at 7pm.

Thursday, September 23 - Made You Look Art Exhibition Opening Party
The Made You Look Art Exhibition takes over Airship 37 (37 Parliament St) 99 Sudbury Street on September 23, launching this Thursday night with a party featuring musical contributions from Sarah Linhares (MTL), The Extremities, Circle Research, DJ Fase and DJ Moonstarr. The gallery will also be hosting Cubeworks - a 30-foot Rubik's Cube tribute to Canadian hip hop greats, as well as work from Atlanta's Dubelyoo, NYC-based hip hop photographer Ernie Paniccioli and many more.
Free/PWYC, doors at 8pm. Exhibition ongoing until October 2.

Friday, September 24 - TO meet NY, round two
The return leg of Manifesto's city-exchange series between Toronto and Brooklyn goes down on Friday night at The Great Hall (1087 Queen St W), where NYC emcee Jean Grae will headline after opening sets from a diverse mixture of North American emcees, including Citizen Kane, 4th Pyramid, Mr. Mecca, Vancouver's Son Real, Dj Serious and more.
$15 advance, 19+, doors at 9:30pm.

Saturday, September 25 - Canada Pro 2010 B-Boy Championship
Over $3000 worth of cash prizes are on the line at the Canada Pro 2010 Championship title showdown at the Manifesto Warehouse (358 Dufferin St) on Saturday night, where b-boys and hip hop dancers will come together under the roof of a converted industrial warehouse for an epic night of dancing. Music will be provided by b-boy/DJ Crazy Legs, Son of S.O.U.L. and DJ Gary Cronin, and the crowd will also be treated to a live performance by emcee Louwop. Get there early to check out the b-boy BBQ and judge workshops.
$15 advance, all ages, BBQ 6 - 8pm, Competition 8pm - 1am.

Sunday, September 26 - The Main Event.
Hip hop culture invades Yonge-Dundas Square on Sunday for the all-day mainstage event on Sunday, where J-Period & Black Thought of The Roots will present "The Live Mixtape" (Illadelph Edition) as the headlining act of Manifesto 2010. The hype behind New Orleans' emcee Jay Electronica continues to build despite the fact that he has yet to release a full-length album, as a steady stream of mixtapes, singles and EPs have made him one of the most buzzed about underground emcees in the hip hop scene. He'll perform directly before J. Period & Black Thought, taking to the outdoor stage at 10pm to deliver a much anticipated live set to eager Toronto hip hop heads.

Leading up to the headliners, the mainstage event will showcase some of the best talent that Canada has to offer, including T.dot legend Saukrates, producer Rich Kidd, D-Sisive, Mz. Chawls (Tanika Charles), Montreal collective Nomadic Massive, Juno-nominated emcee Eternia, Hamilton-via-Ghana songwriter Kae Sun, Lindo P, Masia One, 4th Pyramid and many, many more.

In addition to musical performances, Y-D Square will also play host to free workshops, live painting, b-boy battles & ciphers, healthy food vendors and the Freshest Goods Arts Market. Check out page 56 of the Manifesto Magazine for full listings and set times.
Free, noon to 11pm.

Lead photo: "Manifesto" by fallingshaun, member of the BlogTO Flickr Pool.