Canadian rapper Shad will hit the stage in Sudbury Friday night at the Grand Theatre as he co-headlines Bloom 2019.
Fresh off tour stops in western and central Canada and the United States, Shad, born Shadrach Kabango, is back in his home province and playing a show in Sudbury for the first time in a number of years.
The rapper's latest album "A Short Story About a War" was released on Oct. 26, 2018 and is his fifth studio album. Shad has received a number of Juno Award nominations for best rap recording of the year, and his highly-touted 2010 release "TSOL" beat out one of the biggest rappers on the planet, Drake, for the 2011 award.
A true student of the hip hop genre, Shad has hosted the first two seasons of the immensely popular and informative documentary "Hip Hop Evolution" which chronicles the genre from its early roots and moving through its growth and influence as Shad speaks with some of hip hop's most prominent pioneers.
Having multiple projects on the go is Shad's comfort zone, and the process of putting together A Short Story About a War was one that he relished.
"I guess I've always been used to doing multiple things at once," he said. "Making this album I would be working on it for a few weeks, then I'd leave for a few weeks to shoot Hip Hop Evolution. It gave me a chance to step away and get some perspective."
When it comes to the documentary, the rapper doesn't classify himself as an all-knowing historian, but rather a conduit for those that came before him and helped build the genre to get their messages out.
"I think of myself as a facilitator to have them tell their stories," said Shad.
The documentary has also created an added element of interaction between the rapper and his fans when they get the chance to meet one another at shows.
"It's been really interesting because the doc is on Netflix too so some people have stumbled on it and seen it and are fans and some don't even know it exists, it's kind of a mix at this point," he said.
The opportunity to sit down with some of hip hop's biggest names and influencers has had a measurable impact on Shad and his views on the genre.
"I kind of have my own method but it's still inspiring, every conversation is unique, so there's nothing I can really glean as far as making music but it's inspiring. These guys have made contributions and have changed the music so it makes me think about culture and technology and what feels interesting and innovative," said Shad.
"I think it's indirectly influenced my process. I obviously have my own ideas I'm trying to communicate, but on a deeper level like culture and technology, it's made me think a lot about those things and how they shape music."
When it comes to his music, Shad has a pretty particular ranking as far as the different aspects of being a musician.
"I love the live setting, I love being on stage and getting that feedback from the crowd," he said. "In order of my preference I'd say writing is my favourite, I love the creative process; then it's live shows, then it's the recording process which can be a bit more tedious."
Even with more on his plate, juggling the documentary and putting together his newest album, Shad still managed to keep to the timeline he likes to live by as far as starting and finishing an album.
"I try to keep it to roughly a year, the longer you take on things the more doubts start to creep in and you start going back and changing things to make it more fresh, but then you're just straying from your original idea," he said.
"There were definitely challenges with this project and it had a higher degree of difficulty because it is a concept album, but I worked just as hard on this album as I have on my past projects. I'm a little bit older now, a little more focused so I think all that helps."
Shad is currently touring, and for fans of the documentary series, there will be a third season of Hip Hop Evolution down the road.
Heading to the Grand tonight to check out Shad live in concert? Send us your photos to [email protected] to have them shared on Sudbury.com
