‘We really punch above our weight class,’ Daniel Caesar’s managers on why Toronto produces global stars

Scarborough-born artist Daniel Caesar rose from a young songwriter to a globally recognized, Grammy-nominated R&B artist in just over a decade. Through the years, Caesar’s claim to fame came along with the help of two people who had been beside him from the beginning, and say their relationship has evolved far beyond the artist-manager dynamic.

Before the duo was the principal producers for Caesar’s debut, two-time Grammy-nominated album, Freudian, they worked with other big-name artists, including Drake, Eminem, Tyla and Victoria Monét. 

Then Caesar’s managers, producers, and longtime collaborators Matthew Burnett and Jordan Evans met the young artist for the first time in 2013, after Evans was encouraged by a mutual friend to listen to the young artist’s music.

From there, Burnett said Caesar’s songwriting immediately stood out to him as a producer.

“Everybody who knows me knows what I really fantasize over and obsess over is melody and music, and the combination of both,” Burnett told Now Toronto. 

“In my personal process, lyrics are always kind of secondary to melody. So, if lyrics stand out to me, and if I’m noticing what somebody is saying and how they’re saying it, it means that it’s really, really impactful.”

Burnett added that Caesar was able to string together lyrics in a unique, never-done-before way.

“Hearing him, I was just like, ‘I’ve never heard anybody put words together like this, so poetically with such a strong religious undertone, but so clever and witty,’” he said.

Evans agreed, also adding that Caesar had a rare ability to connect with people even before he was well established in his career.

“Those early performances that he would do, and without any training, without any vocal or stage sort of development… he just could either bring people to tears or really get people to connect with his gift,” he said.

That early connection convinced the pair to take on Caesar as a client.

Young songwriter to global artist transformation

The relationship between Caesar and his managers changed over the years, with the professional partnership becoming more meaningful.

“Our relationship, it’s like family,” Evans said. “We’ve gone through so much, and we work together in so many different capacities. We’re as managers, we’re as business partners, we’re as creative collaborators. We’re as friends. We’re as brothers.”

When they first met, Caesar was an aspiring songwriter while Burnett and Evans were already established producers. They helped him develop his music and figure out how to bring his ideas to life.

More than a decade later, Burnett said Caesar has become more confident in his own creative abilities.

“When we first started, it was very much so him communicating to us what he wanted, and us being pretty heavy-handed in terms of helping to make it real,” he said. “Now, he can make it real. He just needs support.”

Burnett described their artist and producer dynamic as one where Caesar can send them a song and ask what they think, and sometimes their response is simply that it does not need too many further changes past the initial draft.

“There have been countless times where we’re just like, ‘Bro, I’m not touching a single thing,'” he said.

The pair said their early definition of success was not about becoming as big as possible quickly, but more so about three major pillars: releasing music, developing Caesar’s touring and performance business, and building merchandise around the artist, according to Evans.

“If we can establish real business in those three areas, this is a real business. This is a real label,” he said.

The success of “Get You” and Caesar’s 2017 album Freudian helped accelerate that process.

Burnett said “Get You’s” initial success gave them momentum to start opening doors and creating new relationships that helped quickly build out the business.

“There was nothing stopping us,” he added.

Caesar’s career is also deeply intertwined within Toronto’s music community.

Burnett and Evans said that when they were on the rise in their careers 10 to 15 years ago, they and many other Toronto artists and producers felt like outsiders in the hip-hop and R&B industry.

Although they said that position helped create something different, something that would stand out.

“When we did finally enter the chat, it was in a way that was fresh and innovative and very original and not what was going on at the time,” Burnett said.

But while Toronto has produced an impressive amount of talent, Evans said Canada’s smaller population means artists often have to look to break out in larger, international markets if they want to build their careers significantly.

“Canada is a relatively small market for not even just popular music, but popular entertainment as a whole,” he said.

Despite this, Evans said he sees that the hustle is part of what makes Canadian artists’ achievements impressive.

“I think it’s actually a beautiful thing that as Canadian artists… we really punch above our weight class,” he said. “What we’re able to do with less is really incredible.”

Matt also believes the rise of social media has contributed to excess popularity for artists.

TikTok and other social platforms allow music to spread globally, something Evans said helps artists, who no longer need to come from an established industry to find an audience.

“Talent is talent,” he said.

Writing with authenticity

Evans added Caesar’s ability to connect with people remains important in his work, with Burnett pointing to Caesar’s songwriting as something rooted in his own life.

“He’s always written about his experience, what he’s living at the time,” he said. “Human connection will always win and stand the test of time through generation after generation after generation.”

For Burnett, being recognized alongside Caesar and the rest of their team has been meaningful because of how long they have worked together.

Both Burnett and Evans were recognized for Managers of the Year in 2026. 

Burnett said that recognition and Caesar’s first Grammy nomination were memorable milestones, and added that the recognition also gave them a rare opportunity to appreciate how far they had come.

“It always feels good to be recognized, but especially when you’re able to do it with family,” he said.

Their advice to Toronto’s young generation of musicians is rooted in authenticity and connection, like Caesar’s journey.

“Make music that is true to you,” Burnett said.

Evans also added to build with the people around you, instead of waiting for a major industry connection to come along, mirroring what Evans and Burnett did as young, independent producers before founding their record label alongside Caesar, called Golden Child Recordings.

“You have to build and get good, build chemistry, try things, fail, try again with the people around you, and you come up together,” Evans said.