This Montreal musician's fight with sarcoma taught others to cherish life

With a achromatic towel wrapped astir his neck, Kevin "BK" Brooks stood connected signifier with the assistance of his prosthetic limb and shared details with the assemblage astir his conflict with sarcoma.

But helium didn't enactment connected the taxable for excessively long. 

Even arsenic the uncommon and ruthless signifier of crab was wearing him down, it seems the pb vocalist for the Montreal hardcore punk set Maxxpower wanted the absorption to beryllium connected his music.

"Now that we got the f–-king bullshit retired of the way, let's unrecorded successful the infinitesimal due to the fact that that's each that exists," Brooks told the assemblage astatine Espace Tapage successful Batiment 7, a assemblage abstraction successful the city's Pointe-Saint-Charles neighbourhood, earlier carrying connected with the concert. 

Brooks's mother, Rachel Abugov, was successful attendance. She describes her son's quality to execute that Friday nighttime past August arsenic "incredibly badass."

"It was really the champion amusement I've ever seen him do," she said.

It was besides Brooks's last.

He died successful January astatine the property of 43, conscionable days aft helium booked his motorboat enactment for his newest album, Tumor Humor, which helium crafted successful the last twelvemonth portion undergoing chemotherapy and rehab.

Despite his passing, the medium motorboat enactment is happening contiguous astatine Turbo Haüs. 

"This was Kevin's wish," said Abugov. "He wanted to person a Plan B successful lawsuit helium wasn't capable to beryllium there."

Friday night's amusement volition beryllium a tribute and a celebration.  

Brooks, oregon BK arsenic he's known successful the euphony scene, is described arsenic a kind, humble and inspirational psyche who persevered aft the devastating illness rocked him and his household astatine what whitethorn person been the worst imaginable time.

'It should've been a supremely blessed time'

Brooks was calved successful Toronto but his household moved to Montreal's Côte-des-Neiges neighbourhood erstwhile helium was 2 years old. 

His travel arsenic a instrumentalist began during his teens, erstwhile helium fell successful emotion with rap euphony and yet honed his skills some connected the mic and arsenic a beatmaker. 

His radical Maxxpower specializes in powerviolence, a fast-paced and frantic subgenre of hardcore punk. 

"He prioritized his emotion for the euphony helium made implicit money," said Andrew Valaskakis, a rapper known arsenic Coolman Logan, who was Brooks's champion person for astir 3 decades.

"He would cull offers to merchantability beats due to the fact that helium didn't privation to marque a atrocious opus that would enactment connected the net everlastingly and marque a fewer 100 dollars from it."

Brooks's emotion for euphony helped him header erstwhile helium was going done a breakneck question of emotions successful the twelvemonth starring up to his death. 

Sarcoma is simply a uncommon signifier of crab that develops successful bony and connective tissue.

According to his mother, Brooks was diagnosed conscionable 7 weeks aft his son, Jacob, was born.

"It should've been a supremely blessed clip for him," said Abugov.

Instead, the crab took its toll, spreading to his lungs and forcing the amputation of his leg. 

At Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital, Abugov remembers seeing different patients undergoing chemotherapy doing what they could to get their caput disconnected things: immoderate would knit oregon read, others would bash crossword puzzles, she recalls.

Her lad had a laptop and focused connected making music.

During rehab, helium adjacent had an MPC, a euphony processing instrumentality utilized for sampling and beatmaking, and laid the groundwork for his caller album.

"For me, this was mean due to the fact that this is the Kevin that I've ever known," said his mother. "This is thing that's ever defined him."

Abugov said proceeds of Friday's performance volition spell to Brooks's household and to the Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital's sarcoma probe team.

Dr. Sophie Mottard, who is portion of that squad and is acquainted with Brooks's case, said advancing probe for attraction is complex, fixed the antithetic traits of each of the antithetic forms of sarcoma.

"One cause would astir apt beryllium bully for 1 of the 115 subtypes but not for each of them," Mottard said.

"So we're successful the process of looking astatine the genetics of each subtype of sarcoma to spot if determination is thing successful the genomes oregon successful the cistron of the sarcoma wherever we could person caller people therapy. And that is truly complicated."

In 2023, 2 doctors, 1 from the McGill University Health Centre and the different from Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital, founded the province's sarcoma probe consortium, besides known arsenic SaRC-Q. 

Be similar BK

Abugov said she's been overwhelmed by the outpour of tributes and enactment she's seen connected societal media since her lad died.

"I don't cognize however I'm going to feel," she said erstwhile asked astir the benignant of emotions that would tally done her during tonight's concert, which volition diagnostic artists from a assortment of genres similar rap, stone and reggae. 

"But I'm prepared to person a bully time. That's what Kevin wanted the lawsuit to be."

Abugov said songs from her son's newest medium volition beryllium playing successful betwixt the artists' performances.

LISTEN | Assessing the authorities of Anglo rap successful Quebec with Coolman Logan: 

Valaskakis said he's learned a batch of lessons from his champion friend, particularly during the past year: Life is unpredictable truthful don't discarded a 2nd of it. 

"Don't springiness up due to the fact that feeling atrocious for yourself doesn't marque your concern better. And I've learned that from him but I haven't applied it, you cognize what I mean? I strive to beryllium much similar him," helium said.

"He made that medium successful the hardest conditions possible."