Canadian Music Week was proud to present Kardinal Offishall with the Social Justice Award at the CMW Music Summit on June 10, 2023 at the Westin Harbour Castle. Canadian media personality Master T hosted a keynote interview with Kardinal Offishall, followed by the presentation of this second annual award.
Social Justice is grounded in the idea that everyone deserves the full spectrum of political, economic and social rights, and opportunities. The annual Social Justice
Award recognizes a current artist/celebrity pursuing social justice and upholding the values of equality, respect and inclusion.
After years of earning global respect as one of Canada’s most energetic and innovative emcees, Kardinal Offishall has been a staple in the global music scene. He has collaborated on hit records such as “Beautiful” with Akon, “Just Dance” with Lady Gaga, “Numba 1” with Rihanna, and made history with his monster classic “Dangerous” which scorched to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 charts, making him the first rapper from Canada to do so in history.
Kardinal has added TV star to his repertoire, serving as a judge on Canada’s Got Talent alongside Howie Mandel, Lilly Singh and Trish Stratus. He has also continued to be a cultural and musical ambassador for a new wave of Canadian superstars and has had the pleasure of working with everyone from the likes of Drake, K’naan, Daniel Caesar, Boi 1da, and Glenn Lewis to even finding himself as one of the few to land music on the end credits on one of Dave Chappelle’s comedy specials on Netflix (“Equanimity”). As an artist, Kardinal has participated early on in the careers of Rihanna, Alex Da Kid, T-Pain, Vybz Kartel, Estelle, and Sean Paul, to name a few. Diversifying his portfolio, by adding executive to the already proven titles of Rapper, Producer and Philanthropist was done without hesitation. “What I do naturally as a creative allows me to also view the corporate structure with a unique lens. It is very rare that one learns how to master both the magic and science of the music industry”.
Kardinal is continuing to lead and inspire by releasing his own creative projects, as well as the work of the artists he signs and mentors. He has quite literally ran with the torch during the Olympics, performed for Nelson Mandela, was federally appointed one of Canada’s ambassadors during the country’s “150th anniversary of its confederation” and proudly serves as Global A&R at Def Jam Records. Forever pouring into the minds and hearts of current and future legends, Kardinal is the definition of excellence, “coming from the cold”.