Main Source was a Canadian and American East Coast hip hop group based in New York City/Toronto, composed of Toronto-born DJs and producers, K-Cut and Sir Scratch, Queens DJ J.O.D and Queens MC and producer Large Professor. Later, another Queens MC, Mikey D, replaced Large Professor.
Breaking Atoms is the debut album by American/Canadian hip hop group Main Source, released in 1991 on Wild Pitch Records. It was produced by the group, primarily by member Large Professor, with recording sessions taking place from 1990 to 1991 at Homeboy Studio, Power Play Studios, and Libra Digital in New York City. Recorded during the golden age of hip hop, Breaking Atoms is distinguished stylistically by its incorporation of jazz and soul music samples. The album has been highly regarded by music writers due mostly to its production, whose heavy and original use of sampling influenced hip hop producers for a considerable portion of the 1990s.
Roland "Rollie" Pemberton, better known by his stage name Cadence Weapon, is a Canadian-American rapper based in Toronto, Ontario. Born and raised in Edmonton, Alberta, Pemberton released his first album, Breaking Kayfabe, in 2005 with positive reviews. He subsequently signed with the American record label ANTI-, releasing the albums Afterparty Babies in 2008 and Hope in Dirt City in 2012. In 2009, Cadence Weapon was named Edmonton's Poet Laureate. His first book Magnetic Days was published by Metatron in 2014. Cadence Weapon released a self-titled album in 2018.
Silk-Anne Semiramis Dawn Craig Kaya, better known by her stage name Eternia, is a Canadian rapper who has released several albums of hip-hop music.
Shadrach Kabango, known professionally as Shad or Shad K, is a Canadian rapper and broadcaster. Beginning his career in 2005, has released seven studio albums and three extended plays. He won a Juno Award for Rap Recording of the Year in 2011 and five of his albums have been shortlisted for the Polaris Music Prize, the most short-list nominations of any artist in the prize's history. In 2013, CBC Music named Shad the second-greatest Canadian rapper of all time. Shad hosted Q on CBC Radio One from 2015 to 2016, and hosts the International Emmy and Peabody Award-winning documentary series Hip-Hop Evolution on HBO Canada and Netflix.
LGBT representation in hip hop music have existed since the birth of the genre even while enduring blatant discrimination. Due to its adjacency to disco, the earliest days of hip hop had a close relation to LGBT subcultures, and multiple LGBT DJs have played a role in popularizing hip hop. Despite this early involvement, hip hop has long been portrayed as one of the least LGBT-friendly genres of music, with a significant body of the genre containing homophobic views and anti-gay lyrics, with mainstream artists such as Eminem and Tyler, the Creator having used casual homophobia in their lyrics, including usages of the word faggot. Attitudes towards homosexuality in hip hop culture have historically been negative, with slang that uses homosexuality as a punchline such as "sus", "no homo", and "pause" being heard in hip hop lyrics from some of the industry's biggest artists. Since the early 2000s there has been a flourishing community of LGBTQ+ hip hop artists, activists, and performers breaking barriers in the mainstream music industry.
TSOL is the third studio album by Canadian rapper Shad. It was released in Canada on May 25, 2010 and in the United States on October 5, 2010. It is his second album released on Black Box Recordings, and his first album of new material since 2007's Polaris Music Prize-nominated The Old Prince.
"Monster" is a song by American rapper Kanye West, released as the third single from his fifth studio album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010). The song features rappers Jay-Z, Rick Ross, and Nicki Minaj, along with indie folk group Bon Iver. All five credited acts have writing credits on the posse cut, with the production handled by West and Mike Dean. The instrumental is atmospheric and drum-heavy, and the lyrics reflect influences from horror films, creating an eerie composition which drew critical comparisons to the Michael Jackson track "Thriller".
Marlanna Evans, better known by her stage name Rapsody, is an American rapper. After signing with music producer 9th Wonder's music label It's a Wonderful World Music Group, she released a series of mixtapes and collaborated with Erykah Badu and Talib Kweli. Soon afterwards Rapsody released her debut album The Idea of Beautiful (2012). She would attain further prominence when she was featured on Kendrick Lamar's 2015 album To Pimp a Butterfly, on the track "Complexion ".
Alaclair Ensemble is a Canadian hip hop musical collective based in the province of Quebec. Their musical style draws on traditional Québécois folk music as well as contemporary Hip hop music and Electronic music. They are known for PR stunts and tongue-in-cheek lyrics that border on the comedic.
Pierre Kwenders is the stage name of José Louis Modabi, a Congolese-Canadian musician. His 2014 album Le Dernier empereur bantou was a shortlisted nominee for the Juno Award for World Music Album of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2015, and a longlisted nominee for the 2015 Polaris Music Prize. Kwenders, who sings and raps in English, French, Lingala and Tshiluba, is noted for blending both African music and western pop music influences, including hip hop and electronic music, into his style.
Safia Nolin is a French Canadian folk-pop singer-songwriter from Quebec City, Quebec.
Loud is the stage name of Simon Cliche Trudeau, a Canadian rapper from Quebec.
Haviah Mighty is a Canadian rapper from Brampton, Ontario. She rose to prominence in 2016 as a member of the hip hop group the Sorority, before releasing several EPs on her own, most notably Flower City, in 2017. Her first album, 13th Floor, was released in 2019 and won the Polaris Music Prize. After her debut, XXL named her one of the "15 Toronto rappers you should know" and CBC Music called her one of the "New Faces of Canadian Hip Hop".
The following musical events and releases that happened in 2020 in Canada.
Etmet Musa, also known by her alias Ayo Leilani and her stage name Witch Prophet, is an Ethiopian/Eritrean musician based in Toronto, Ontario. As Witch Prophet, she has released 3 albums: The Golden Octave (2018), DNA Activation (2020), and Gateway Experience (2023). She co-founded and is the co-director of 88 Days of Fortune, a collective based in Toronto since 2009 that rebranded as Heart Lake Records in 2018. She also is a member of Above Top Secret, an electro-hip hop group. Above Top Secret has released three studio albums since 2010. DNA Activation was shortlisted for the 2020 Polaris Music Prize. In 2021, she released a new song "Leilani", which appeared on the deluxe edition of DNA Activation. The deluxe edition was released July 23, 2021. Her third album as Witch Prophet, entitled Gateway Experience, was released May 1st, 2023. The first single from the album, "Energy Vampire", was released on February 23, 2023 and featured DillanPonders. Gateway Experience was longlisted for the 2023 Polaris Music Prize.
The 2020 edition of the Canadian Polaris Music Prize was presented on October 19, 2020. The longlist was announced on June 15, 2020, with the shortlist following on July 15, 2020 and the winner announced on October 19, 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the traditional winner's gala did not take place this year, and instead a special cinematic tribute to the shortlist was streamed online by CBC Music and CBC Gem, following which the winner was announced.
God Has Nothing to Do with This Leave Him Out of It is the second studio album by Zambian-Canadian rapper Backxwash. It was self-released on May 28, 2020 through Grimalkin Records. Production was primarily handled by Backxwash herself, along with Fatherfake, Skin, and Will Owen Bennett, who are featured on the project as well as Black Dresses and Malldate. The album won the 2020 Polaris Music Prize.
I Lie Here Buried with My Rings and My Dresses is the third studio album by Zambian-Canadian rapper and producer Backxwash. The album was self released on June 20, 2021, through Ugly Hag Records. The album features guest appearances with artists such as Ada Rook, Censored Dialogue, Sad13 and features extra production from NOWHERE2RUN, Will Owen Bennett, and clipping. The first single of the album, titled "I Lie Here Buried With My Rings and My Dresses", was released on May 6, 2021.
His Happiness Shall Come First Even Though We Are Suffering is the fourth studio album by Zambian-Canadian rapper Backxwash. The album was announced on July 14 and released on October 31, 2022, via the Ugly Hag label. The album concludes Backxwash's three album trilogy and features collaborations from various vocalists.
