The Insider

If anyone has their finger on the pulse of Canada’s music scene, it’s Shad, a rapper and the new host of CBC Radio’s culture flagship Q. Here are four reasons he says we’re hotter than ever:

1. The Aubrey Graham Effect “The continued reign of Drake has been great for the hip-hop scene and inspired so many singers and rappers, like Brendan Philip. He’s a cool new artist who has released some material that’s really catching on.”

2. A New Indigenous Sound “There is a current wave of indigenous artists—A Tribe Called Red, Tanya Tagaq, Leonard Sumner, Buffy Sainte-Marie—who are offering a range of different voices that have never crept so close to the mainstream in recent memory. They’re presenting progressive perspectives on important issues.”

3. Our Cutting- Edge Producers “There are a lot of great new Canadian music producers, like Ryan Hemsworth (Grimes, Cat Power, Frank Ocean) out of Halifax and Kaytranada out of Montreal. People say ‘moody’ is something Toronto does really well, but in general, I don’t think Canada has a distinct sound, which is something that’s pretty cool about the music culture we’ve managed to foster here. There’s a lot of creativity.”

4. We Export The Best “The next to go global will be Hey Rosetta! from St. John’s, N.L. They’re already quite big here in Canada, but I really think they’re as good as anybody.”