A Toronto Rapper Not Named Drake Won Canada’s Top Prize For Rap Music

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Seeing Drake’s name nominated in the same category as you at a Canadian music awards show has to be the same as seeing Adele competing against you anywhere else. But Toronto’s Jazz Cartier went up against the 6 God at the Juno Awards and came away with their award for the best rap album of the year.

Cartier’s Hotel Paranoia beat out Drake’s Views (as well as albums by Tory Lanez, Belly and Tasha The Amazon) to win Rap Recording of the Year at the annual awards ceremony celebrating Canadian artists. During his speech and later on Instagram, Cartier used his time to advocate for greater celebration of homegrown rap artists on Canadian radio and at the awards themselves.

“The Canadian radio is gonna have to stop bullsh*tting and start playing our own on our radio so these kids don’t feel the need to leave to the states in order to make it or get heard,” he wrote. “That’s going to be one of my goals this year to make sure that happens. And also @thejunoawards while you guys enjoy all the hip hop in the world at your after parties, next year you gotta have this category filmed on television.”

The big winners during the televised part of the ceremony were The Tragically Hip— who were honored with Group of the Year — and Leonard Cohen’s You Want It Darker which won Album of the Year.

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