Hip Hop in Canada
Canada’s hip hop sector is energetic, committed and ever-evolving. Its cultural roots are based in African oral traditions; it is grounded in community relations and activism. Currently, in Canada, hip hop artists work in a number of art forms, including music, dance, visual arts, spoken word, and inter-arts.
The research paper presents a state of the art of hip hop. It provides a profile of the hip hop sector and highlights its role a form of cultural expression and community development. Initially commissioned by the Canada Council in 2005 as an internal document, it is now available online to inform broader discussions of hip hop in the arts community.
Canada Council Support for Hip Hop
Here are a few recent (2007-08) examples of Canada Council funding that has supported hip hop artists and organizations:
Grant program: Aboriginal Peoples Collaborative Exchange Travel Grants
Purpose: to share his contemporary urban indigenous cultural perspectives from Turtle Island through Hip Hop, while embracing and experiencing indigenous Maori culture and perspectives at the Nice'N'Native Gathering in Auckland, Aotearoa-New Zealand.
Grant program: Audience and Market Development Travel Grants Program: International
Purpose: To promote his film, Nikamowin (which uses the Cree language for hip hop/trance/electronica rhythms) at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, from 16 to 28 January 2008.
Grant program: Annual and Project Funding - Dance
Purpose: Multi-year contribution in 2007-08 to encompass the off-festival event "Hip Hop 360" and in 2008-09 towards travel, per diem, accommodation for artists and co-production costs for the 2008 Festival.
Grant program: Capacity Building Grants for Culturally Diverse Arts Organizations - Equity
Purpose: Annual capacity building 2007-08.
Grant program: New Music Program
Purpose: To stage a live, public concert even featuring Taylor and Japanese musician Yuki Abe aka Kaigen.
Grant program: Artists and Community Collaboration Program (ACCP) - Writing & Publishing
Purpose: to create "Slam poésie," a slam poetry course, in collaboration with the INM's summer school.
Grant program: Artists and the Community Collaboration Program (ACCP) - Visual Arts
Purpose: AGYU-Medina Urban Arts program.
Grant program: Integrated Arts Program for Artists - Inter-Arts
Purpose: Towards research, creation, production and professional development costs from September 2008 to March 2009.
Document
Profiling Hip Hop Artistry in Canada (PDF 460.8 KB)