Dance Appeal

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Can't Repress The Cause, originally titled Dance Appeal: Can't Repress The Cause, better-known as Can't Repress The Cause, was a Toronto-based supergroup of politically-motivated Canadian hip hop, rap, reggae and soul artists that made up the monumental 1991 Can't Repress The Causecampaign [1] for greater recognition and representation of historically Black cultural-rooted artistic works within the Canadian music industry. [2] Led with the release of the soundtrack single titled Can't Repress The Cause, [3] the carefully crafted song title composed to capitalize on the dualities of "CRTC" initialism, [4] the socio-politically driven public campaign was sparked as a direct response to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission's 1990 decision that denied an FM radio license to Milestone Radio for what would have become Canada's first urban music station. [5]

Participating artists included Maestro Fresh Wes, Dream Warriors, Michie Mee, B-Kool, Eria Fachin, Lillian Allen, Devon, HDV, [6] Dionne, Thando Hyman, Carla Marshall, Messenjah, Jillian Mendez, Lorraine Scott, Lorraine Segato, Candy Pennella, Self Defense, Leroy Sibbles, Zama and Thyron Lee White. [7]

The song, Can't Repress The Cause, received a Juno Award nomination for Best R&B/Soul Recording at the Juno Awards of 1991, [8] and the music Video Can't Repress The Cause won the MuchMusic Video Award for Best Dance Video. [9] [10]

References

  1. TheRealDonCarlito (2014-11-23). '91 "Cant repress the cause" Much Music Video Awards . Retrieved 2025-06-21 via YouTube.
  2. Weaver, Jackson (August 11, 2023). "Canadian hip-hop got huge without help. It shouldn't have had to, say artists". CBC News .
  3. Wheeler, Brad (2024-02-22). "Maestro Fresh Wes becomes the first ever hip hop recipient of the Governor General's Performing Arts Awards". The Globe and Mail . Retrieved 2025-06-20.
  4. "Song has a double message: Dance song disputes new FM station licence". The Globe and Mail , September 21, 1990.
  5. D’Amico-Cuthbert, Francesca (December 6, 2021). ""We Don't Have Those American Problems": Anti-Black Practices in Canada's Rap Music Marketplace, 1985–2020". Canadian Journal of History. 56 (3): 320–352. ISSN   0008-4107.
  6. Jacky Jasper (2024-02-26). Dance Appeal - Can't Repress The Cause (HDV Performance 1991) . Retrieved 2025-06-21 via YouTube.
  7. "Urban Music" Archived November 2, 2012, at the Wayback Machine . The Canadian Encyclopedia .
  8. "Rap music makes presence felt in '91 Juno Awards nominations". Montreal Gazette , February 7, 1991.
  9. "Crash Test Dummies pick up MuchMusic's top video award". Waterloo Region Record , September 30, 1991.
  10. "Dance Appeal: Can't Repress the Cause (Music Video 1991) - Release info". IMDb. Retrieved 2025-06-21.