Related Research Articles
Drop the Beat was a Canadian television series produced by Back Alley Film Productions, which aired on CBC Television in 2000 and 2001. A short-run dramatic series, the show was one of the first television series in the world centred around hip hop music and culture.
The Canadian hip hop scene was established in the 1980s. Through a variety of factors, it developed much slower than Canada's popular rock music scene, and apart from a short-lived burst of mainstream popularity from 1989 to 1991, it remained largely an underground phenomenon until the early 2000s.
"Northern Touch" is a Canadian hip hop single, which was released in 1998 by Rascalz in collaboration with Checkmate, Kardinal Offishall, Thrust and Choclair. It is one of the most important individual songs in the history of Canadian hip hop, which almost singlehandedly transformed the genre from a largely ignored underground movement into a viable commercial endeavour.
Jason Drew Harrow, better known by his stage name Kardinal Offishall, is a Canadian rapper, record producer, DJ, and record executive. Often credited as Canada's "hip hop ambassador", he is regarded as one of the country's best hip hop producers, and is best known for his distinctive reggae and dancehall-influenced style of hip hop.
Kareem Blake, better known by his stage name Choclair, is a Canadian rapper. He was one of the most successful Canadian rappers in Canada in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Choclair has been nominated for six Juno Awards, winning four.
BrassMunk was a Canadian hip hop group from Scarborough, Ontario. It was formed in 1997 by emcees S-Roc, Clip, May One 9 and DJ/producer Agile. May 19 was replaced by King Reign in 2006.
Rascalz are a Canadian hip-hop group from Vancouver, British Columbia. The group played a crucial role in the artistic and commercial development of Canadian hip hop as well as specifically for the Westcoast scene in Vancouver popularizing the term “Van City”. The group consists of emcees Red1 and Misfit, and record producer DJ Kemo. Breakdancers Zebroc and Dedos were also part of the group.
Melanie Durrant is a Canadian urban contemporary-style singer. She attended the Arts program at Earl Haig Secondary School and also trained at the Royal Conservatory of Music. Melanie Durrant has received multiple accolades throughout her career. She was nominated in several categories at the 2004 Canadian Urban Music Awards and at the MuchMusic Video Awards. Melanie Durrant has collaborated with artists such as Kardinal Offishall, Choclair, Common and Slakah The Beatchild. She has shared the stage alongside Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Jill Scott and Sean Paul.
Tone Mason is a Canadian hip-hop and R&B production team from Toronto, Ontario, composed of Mellenius, Don D, and formerly, Aloysius Brown. Tone Mason speaks to a deep-rooted dedication to craftsmanship, quality and originality. With over 15 years of experience in the music industry as a collective, they have contributed their eclectic brand of music to MuchMusic & MuchVibe, Barbershop: The Next Cut, BET, EA Sports, Russell Peters' Red, White and Brown and many more.
Christopher France, better known by his stage name Thrust, is a Canadian rapper from Toronto, Ontario. He is most known for his appearance on the Rascalz' 1998 single "Northern Touch," which also features Kardinal Offishall, Choclair, and Checkmate. He was also featured on the pop band soulDecision's biggest hit "Faded". Thrust has taught an Artist Series at the Harris Institute of Music in Toronto.
Sheldon Pitt, better known by his stage name Solitair, is a Canadian rapper and record producer from Toronto, Ontario. He is a founding member of the now defunct Black Jays record label and production team. Solitair has been producing hip hop and R&B for nearly 20 years, and has produced for Nina Sky, Glenn Lewis, Cham, Maestro, Rascalz, Kardinal Offishall, Ivana Santilli, Jully Black, Choclair, and Sugar Jones among others.
Knee Deep Records was a Canadian independent record label, specializing in hip hop music.
Eye & I is the debut album of Canadian rapper Kardinal Offishall, released independently in December 1997, on Capitol Hill Music, and distributed by St. Clair Entertainment. The album was critically acclaimed. One single, "On wit da Show", was released from the album.
"Let's Ride" is the first single from Canadian rapper Choclair's debut album, Ice Cold. Produced by Kardinal Offishall, the song features ad-libs by Saukrates. The song is well known for its catchy piano hook and chorus. Commercially, "Let's Ride" reached number 38 in Canada and number 37 on the US Billboard Hot Rap Songs chart.
Da Grassroots is a Canadian hip-hop production team from Toronto, Ontario, composed of Mr. Attic, Mr. Murray, and Swiff. The Juno Award-winning group contributed to the development of Toronto hip-hop throughout the 1990s, highlighted by the release of their debut album Passage Through Time in 1999.
"Ol' Time Killin'" is a hip-hop song by Kardinal Offishall featuring Jully Black, Allistair, IRS, and Wio-K, released in 2001. Produced by Mr. Attic, it was the second single from his second album Quest for Fire: Firestarter, Vol. 1.
"On wit da Show" is a hip-hop song by Kardinal Offishall. It was the only single from his debut album Eye & I. The song also appears on his second album, Quest for Fire: Firestarter, Vol. 1. The original version of the song was released in 1996 as a B-side of "Naughty Dread". In 1997 Kardinal recorded a remix of the original, which was released as a single.
"Naughty Dread" is a hip-hop song by Kardinal Offishall. It is his debut single, released in 1996 on Knee Deep Records, before being featured on the Rap Essentials Volume One compilation album. The song contains a sample of "Natty Dread" by Bob Marley & The Wailers. It earned him a Juno Award nomination for Best Rap Recording in 1997.
