ANTIKKA CAFE (Shaunt and Raz Tchakmak): A CommUNITY Catchup to #SupportLocal

Brothers Shaunt and Raz Tchakmak have offered community through coffee and music in Toronto’s Queen West neighbourhood and beyond since opening the doors of Antikka Café & Records a few years ago. I interviewed the guys in January for Episode 19 and at the time, they were preparing to launch a new endeavour – The Oud & The Fuzz – another community-focused space in Kensington Market, this time offering a part of their own; inviting locals and visitors alike to experience elements of their Armenian heritage through food, drink, music and good company.

I have had the honour of playing some of my first DJ gigs at Antikka and these brothers are like brothers to me – never at a loss for support, an encouraging conversation, a comforting beverage at the café and a space where you can feel at home, connected to culture.

Nothing is stopping Antikka from keeping the good vibes up and they’re doing so in various ways; the cafe is still open for takeout coffee and tea at 960 Queen Street West, they're selling their carefully-curated vinyl, and bringing the space to you with Antikka Live, which can now be streamed weekly via Mixcloud.com/live/antikka. I caught up with Shaunt and Raz for the May 4 episode of CommUNITY Catchup to hear about what has been keeping them inspired, how they're engaging with the community, reflecting on the value artists and creatives hold and why the meaning of #supportlocal will transcend time and space.

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In the episode, we discussed a live DJ set Shaunt played with Sarah Jane Riegler to commemorate the 105th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide - listen to it below: