{"id":4468,"date":"2012-03-21T10:51:51","date_gmt":"2012-03-21T10:51:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cusjc.ca\/capitalarts\/?p=4468"},"modified":"2012-03-21T15:21:05","modified_gmt":"2012-03-21T15:21:05","slug":"canadian-hip-hop-claims-respect","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cusjc.ca\/capitalarts\/?p=4468","title":{"rendered":"Canadian hip-hop claims respect"},"content":{"rendered":"

An unsigned Canadian rap artist known for playing Wheelchair Jimmy on the hit TV series Degrassi<\/em> took the rap scene by storm in 2009. Drake\u2019s So Far Gone <\/em>was the fifth-best-selling rap album of that year, with over 100,000 copies sold in the first two weeks of release.<\/span><\/p>\n

A year earlier, Kardinal Offishall\u2019s collaboration with American R&B artist Akon for the single \u201cDangerous\u201d reached number five on the Billboard Hot 100. This made Kardinal the first Canadian rapper with a major chart hit in the United States.<\/p>\n

\"\"
\n Thousands waited in the rain at Toronto’s Queen Street HMV for Drake’s Take Care <\/em>album signing, November 2011.<\/p>\n

But the international breakthrough came when K\u2019naan\u2019s single \u201cWavin\u2019 Flag\u201d became the official Coca-Cola theme song of the 2010 International Federation of Association Football World Cup (FIFA). The song has since been a chart hit in at least 16 countries worldwide.<\/p>\n

Now more than ever, Canadian hip-hop artists have emerged as mainstream stars, breaking into the American and international markets.<\/p>\n

Although some call it a passing trend, many industry professionals see the recent exposure as representing a steady Canadian movement that\u2019s just now become more prominent.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Canadian hip-hop scene has been going strong since the 1980s. Artists like Maestro and Michie Mee paved the way for the success of right now, which can\u2019t be dismissed as a coincidence,\u201d said Chris Jackson, a broadcast technician at CBC Radio. \u201cThis is not a copycat movement; Canadian artists are just mastering their craft better than ever, and the hard work is paying off.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jackson has been active in the hip-hop music industry for 25 years. As Senior Creative Director at Toronto-based rap label EasPark Productions in his spare time, he notes the Internet\u2019s role in providing the platform for Canadian artists to expose their music.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Internet\u2019s broken down the physical walls \u2014 it\u2019s so much easier now to get music from artists around the world,\u201d said Jackson. \u201cLocal artists used to be more self-contained in their own cities, but now they\u2019re able to expand and grab hold of the larger market.\u201d<\/p>\n

Drake\u2019s success<\/p>\n

Such was the case with Drake\u2019s So Far Gone<\/em> EP, which was certified gold in July 2010 for sales exceeding 500,000. The Toronto-born rapper (real name: Aubrey Drake Graham) had garnered mild success locally with his previous efforts, Room for Improvement<\/em> in 2006 and 2007\u2019s Comeback Season<\/em>, but these were nowhere near the accolades to come.<\/p>\n

Jackson says that it\u2019s partly luck but mostly because of digital exposure that Drake\u2019s third effort caught the attention of wildly successful American rapper Lil\u2019 Wayne. This resulted in Drake signing a 2009 multi-million dollar recording contract with U.S. label Young Money Entertainment.<\/p>\n

The label, founded in 2005, has since released five number-one albums, including Drake\u2019s debut studio effort, Thank Me Later<\/em>, in 2010.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo Far Gone<\/em> was by far his greatest effort to date, so the quality was there. But without the Internet to expose the music, Lil\u2019 Wayne would never have heard of Drake,\u201d said Jackson.<\/p>\n

Toronto’s Flow 93.5 radio host Jeni McKenzie acknowledges that while rappers like Drake and Kardinal Offishall have certainly tapped into the American market, any real prominence for Canadian artists is impossible without their being signed to U.S. labels.<\/p>\n

\"\"
\n Prince of the city. Kardinal Offishall, with radio host Jeni McKenzie, at his Toronto Christmas charity bash 2009.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is definitely a unique hip-hop movement in Canada, but in order for these artists to go mainstream, they can\u2019t rely on Canadian record labels, which don\u2019t have the financial backing,\u201d said McKenzie.<\/p>\n

She notes the strictly local success of artists like Classified and Buck 65, who are often played on Canadian radio but who have yet to be signed on an American label.<\/p>\n

\u201cYoung Money and Lil\u2019 Wayne had the financial resources to promote Drake\u2019s albums and create his marketing brand,\u201d said McKenzie.<\/p>\n

She says it was part of their business marketing strategy for Drake to proudly represent his roots in Canada. Often referred to as \u201cToronto\u2019s hometown hero,\u201d he consistently name drops his love for the city in his lyrics.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know for a fact Lil\u2019 Wayne sat Drake down and told him he needed to make his album at home, film his music videos behind Toronto backdrops and surround himself with the city\u2019s support,\u201d said McKenzie. \u201cHe\u2019s a smart businessman; he\u2019s making sure the city belongs to him.\u201d<\/p>\n

She adds that Drake\u2019s marketing strategy has been beneficial for other local artists coming up.<\/p>\n

‘Up North Wave’ a branding ploy?<\/p>\n

Anupa Mistry, a Toronto-based freelance journalist who covers hip-hop, agrees with McKenzie.<\/p>\n

\u2018It\u2019s become cool to say you\u2019re from Toronto.\u2019 \u2014 freelance journalist Anupa Mistry<\/p>\n

\u201cDrake often brands himself as being a part of an \u2018Up North Wave,\u2019 which is partly mythological, a branding ploy,\u201d said Mistry. \u201cThe spotlight he\u2019s created does, however, bring attention to other Canadian artists who otherwise wouldn\u2019t have had the exposure.\u201d<\/p>\n

For example, she said, there\u2019s the Toronto-based Airplane Boys, recently featured in Complex<\/em> magazine. And The Weeknd is an artist whose rise to success is directly related to being promoted by Drake on Twitter. The Weeknd was also asked to open at the yearly OVO concert series founded by Drake. Sold out for the past two years since its formation, the concert is known for having special guests like Stevie Wonder and Jay-Z.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe in the past Canadian artists put out their music without relating back to their roots.\u00a0 But now, with Drake putting the spotlight on them, they\u2019re more prone to capitalize on that,\u201d said Mistry. \u201cIt\u2019s now become cool to say you\u2019re from Toronto and to feel like you\u2019re a part of a movement.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"OVO
\n Canadian bakin’. Hip-hop artist The Weeknd, opening for Drake, at Toronto’s OVO Fest in July 2011.<\/p>\n

Jackson agrees that in addition to the Internet, it took a big \u201cmarquee\u201d star like Drake or Kardinal to bring the spotlight to Canada.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s definitely something local artists should take advantage of, because this doesn\u2019t happen often,\u201d said Jackson. \u201cNow more than ever, artists in Canada should focus on making sure they put out unique music to capture an audience.\u201d<\/p>\n

McKenzie can only hope that the \u201cUp North Wave,\u201d even if fabricated as a brand, continues to bring attention to Canadian talent.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are so many different cultures expressed in our hip-hop.\u00a0 Shad has the African influences; Classified\u2019s got the East Coast; and Kardinal has the reggae beats,\u201d said McKenzie.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve got a bunch of amazing talent here that is different from the rest. And it\u2019s exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Canadian hip-hop has been riding mainstream airwaves more and more these past few years,\u00a0with artists like Drake and K’Naan leading the pack. Why now? And is it more than just a passing ‘Up North Wave’?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":48,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4468","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-all"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cusjc.ca\/capitalarts\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4468","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cusjc.ca\/capitalarts\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cusjc.ca\/capitalarts\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cusjc.ca\/capitalarts\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/48"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cusjc.ca\/capitalarts\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4468"}],"version-history":[{"count":114,"href":"https:\/\/www.cusjc.ca\/capitalarts\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4468\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6775,"href":"https:\/\/www.cusjc.ca\/capitalarts\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4468\/revisions\/6775"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cusjc.ca\/capitalarts\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4468"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cusjc.ca\/capitalarts\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4468"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cusjc.ca\/capitalarts\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4468"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}