Canadian rapper Shad (Shadrach Kabango) exploded on the scene recently with both Polaris Music Prize and Juno Award nomnations for his sophomore effort The Old Prince (technically released last year but just getting on most people’s radars in 2008). Though the Canadian music scene may primarily be known for creating some of the best “Indie Rock” of the past decade, if The Old Prince is any indicator, a burgeoning Hip Hop movement may also be in the cards.

The intro track Quest for Glory loosely outlines an ongoing theme in the record, the idea of a prince trying to become king. The theme is a metaphor for becoming an adult, and Shad attaches the sentiment of growing and learning to many of his tracks. The raps are self referential and self-deprecating, casting himself in the part of the old prince (though he is only 26). In “The Old Prince Still Lives at Home” Shad presents himself as a cheapskate who lives at his folks place to save money, “I live at home still/ not payin’ phone bills/ hydro or rent/ and my mom makes most meals.” The song’s funky jazz beat takes some cues from Pete Rock’s production style and it really connects when it is coupled with Shad’s laid back flow (plus it ends with Shad freestyling over handclaps, since he claims he could only afford to buy the first two minutes of the beat).

The rest of the album generally takes a more serious direction. Shad doesn’t shy away from social themes, contrasting the racism in the music industry towards black artists with the biblical story of the Babylonian exile in “I Heard You had a Voice like an Angel – Psalm 137.” Religious themes continue in “Compromise,” a clever examination of the dichotomy between what we expect from God and what he expects from us. In “Brother (Watching)” Shad takes on the misguided aspirations of some of his fellow black youths, and actually comes up with a relatively fresh take on a theme that is as old as Hip Hop itself. Due to caustic lyrics like “With mental slavery the shackles is loose/and it’s hard to cut chains when they attached at the roots,” Shad is able to bring new poignancy to the tradition of conscious rap. He isn’t really saying anything that hasn’t been said before, but his poetry is such that it brings freshness to an old theme.

photo by Robyn Cumming

Shad’s lyrical ability and smooth style have found him a fan in Chicago’s Common, with whom he has many similarities (he also considers Common one of the guiding forces in creating his approach to Hip Hop). The two emcees share a deep spirituality in their writing as well as a heavy interest in jazzy neo-soul. Before you can say “Emo Rap” though, Shad beats you to the punch in “Out of Love, Pt. 2” in which he parodies himself as a Vegan-eating, The Notebook-watching romantic. While he may make fun of himself a little for some D’Angelo-esque crooning, Shad seems unapologetic about the lack of “hardness” in his rhymes. And he should be. While some starry eyed “soft” rappers may have weak flow, Shad’s rhythm is as tight as a metronome. He may be an amorous dreamer who still lives with his parents, but there is nothing juvenile about his lyrics and delivery. The Old Prince may not be that old yet, but he already sounds like he has perfected his art.

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