MC Shadow
- Composer
- Writer
- Music Department
MC Shadow (aka Kory Neely) (born June 30th, 1970) The first white rap artist in Canadian musical history.
MC Shadow's group Get Loose Crew produced the first Canadian hip hop record to be sold internationally. While the American group The Beastie Boys had released their rap recording years earlier, Hip hop historians have debated that their origins as a punk music band are different than Shadow. He was originally a hip hop artist and many regard him as the first white hip hop artist. The relevancy of this discussion is simply due to the rarity of white rappers in the history of this established African American genre.
In 2015, after a lengthy hiatus he returned to the music scene with several singles and a music video trilogy; edited into a short film format for Festival submission. Several songs from his catalog were scored into episodes and the soundtrack of US Television series Front Men (2017).
His rhyming skills were first discovered in the Flemingdon Park neighborhood in Toronto Canada during impromptu rap battles at his junior high school cafeteria - Valley Park Junior High. It was during one particular rap battle that took place in an underground basement party (similarly depicted in the Eminem movie 8 Mile (2002)), that inspired Shadow to pursue releasing a record career as a music artist.
In early 1984, Kory (then known as White Shadow) Neely was attending East York Collegiate Institute for their Performing Arts program. He teamed up with neighborhood friends Chris (DJ JEL) Jackson and Len (Mix-Master Len) Grant-Stuart to form the DJ group, Def Force Sound Crew. Their act was organized to feature White Shadow MC performing in freestyle rap challenges as they played at their school and community center dances. In 1986 White Shadow changed his name to MC Shadow, the group dropped the name Def Force Sound Crew, added local rapper Carl (MC B) Badwa and was re-named Get Loose Crew. The new group established their own indie label East Park Productions, with Shadow negotiating and securing a global distribution deal with Electric Distribution in December 1987.
When the group set out to press and release their first record in December, 1987, the bass was so forceful in the album's title track it damaged the manufacturers production equipment. Despite this and several other manufacturing delays, the group's self-titled multi track EP was released on March 16, 1988 in local and national record stores in Canada, United States, U.K and Europe. This defined them as the first Canadian Hip Hop group to achieve international distribution and record sales. Music tracking success was attained, reaching the #5 spot on the national CHEER Music Pool Chart alongside genre icons Kool Moe Dee, Boogie Down Productions, Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five and Ice-T & Big Daddy Kane.
This work confirmed front man MC Shadow as the first recorded white hip hop artist in Canada and subsequent to American Def Jam Records artists The Beastie Boys release of their first hip hop recording, Cooky Puss in 1984.
In 1988, the Get Loose Crew performed on the CBC Television show Switchback (1981) with host Eric Tunney interviewing the group's spokesman Shadow who was asked to describe the emerging music genre sweeping the nation.
An interview featured the group in the national music publication STREETSOUND magazine in June 1988, where again the attention was on the early Canadian rap scene, its perceived violence, and the importance of the group's performances. Neely commented: "When people come to a show, they're critical. They come to see a performance. It's got to be rockin' from beginning to end. It has to be an organized performance, unlike four years ago, when everybody would just jam. No fighting, no chain snatching, no B-Boy destruction".
British Knights (Schwartz Shoes Inc.), a small four generation family-owned company in New York City that created Hip Hop clothing and shoes sought by rappers everywhere at the time provided unofficial recognition and support for his group. In a February 1988 letter that Shadow wrote to the company seeking a clothing sponsorship for the group. Larry Schwartz (son of founder Jack Schwartz) responded that the company were already engaged in a campaign for rapper Kool Moe Dee and not taking on any other commitments. In recognition of the groups support for the brand, Schwartz sent a box containing numerous pieces of British Knights apparel (not available in Canada) for the group to wear at performances, interviews, and other events. In his television interview and performance for CBC Television show Switchback, and on the cover of the album, Neely can be seen wearing a sweatshirt from the clothier. While clearly not an official sponsorship of their group, the unofficial endorsement of recognition from the company was an exclusive opportunity for the group to promote the brand north of the border. This event is seen as the first and only known form of endorsement by a clothing manufacturer of a Canadian Hip-Hop group.
At the time Toronto served as the epicenter of Canadian hip hop music and hosted rap battles (dubbed Monster Jams) with established US performers. In 1988 the rap battles changed from primarily NYC artists and expanded to invite talents from other US cities. A contest was proposed between Philadelphia's Fresh Prince (Will Smith) and MC Shadow. The invitation was declined by Smith's management team in part based upon the successful launch of his album release Parents Don't Understand.
The Get Loose Crew disbanded in 1990 and Shadow pursued a solo effort under the name JUST ME. He teamed up with Kaye Sargeant, a local R&B female singer and fellow alum from East York Collegiate and began studio work recording their first album.
In 1991 he signed a management deal with Alric Hutchinson and joined the artist roster of independent label 'Altrax Records'. Television show Extendamix, hosted by Master T (Tony Young) established a tour featuring labelmates Self-Defence (who were Get Loose Crew alum) Chris "DJ Jel" Jackson and producer Stanley "S-Blank" McCook where Shadow opened for the show under the group name JUST Me.
September 3, 1991 meeting with Resource Media's Kevin Fox in Toronto became the closest opportunity to produce a music video project for the song What I'm Sayin. Concept and production notes dated September 8, 1991 laid out the concept for the video shoot. Ultimately, the project was not completed due to an inability to secure funding for the project.
Neely was also invited to an audition for retailer Woolco (rebranded as Woolworth in United States and UK Canadian chain later acquired by Walmart Canada) on July 14, 1991 in downtown Toronto for Lynx brand running shoes. Though selected for the commercial and provided with the lyrics prior to the audition, after the performance he was told by the Director that "he wasn't the type of rapper that they were looking for." The final edit was changed from the original format and featured a softer type of rapper (much different in appearance and performance than the material provided initially to Altrax Records.)
In 1994 the duo led by Shadow was featured on MIRGIN / UKA Records multi-track CD compilation Mega Dance Vol. 1 with their song What I'm Sayin and again on America's Most Wanted Freestyle 94 compilation album with the track Do a Little Dance. They toured as part of a Toronto-based television program Extendamix, and performed in an Ottawa-based music festival that included actor/comedian Tom Green and his local group Disorganized Rhyme. Shadow and Sargeant separated later that year with a catalog of unreleased material.
In March 2010, the Toronto Free Gallery hosted an exhibit called T-Dot Pioneers: An Exploration of Toronto Hip Hop History and Culture. The exhibit featured items from the birth of Toronto hip hop including old photographs, posters, vinyl, and awards. Featured at the exhibit and prominently displayed was his previous group (Get Loose Crew) album.
In 2011 Toronto Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC) held a Hip Hop Summit and Shadow was once again reunited with his peers and fellow pioneers in the local and Canadian hip hop industry. He soon realized that audiences did not appreciate the rich history and profound roots of the genre. This inspired him to launch an initiative to establish a modern-day bookend album to his historical involvement and testimonial to his contributions to the subculture.
2015 saw MC Shadow in collaboration with former Capitol records artist and "Canada's Got Talent" production contributor, Frank (Tekniq) Morel. Shadow credits bands such as Massive Attack, Evanescence, Portishead and the Arctic Monkeys as musical influences for his new sound. The single Resurrection received critical acclaim and was described by music reviewer Samantha Stevens as "phenomenal and a credit to the rap and hip-hop genres" The song debuted on Canadian Independent Campus Radio Music Chart! Earshot in the #5 position, holding that spot for several weeks and garnering nationwide airplay.
Ready to reaffirm his place in music history in 2016, Shadow began planning the production of a three-part music video trilogy which will ultimately be combined into a short film directed by Manee Osman, inspired by films similar to "Fast and the Furious", "Revolver" and "Ocean's Eleven".
Part One kicks off with the song Resurrection, Stevens described as "a dark and powerful song". The story is set in the backdrop of a metropolitan city and follows four friends all having mysterious, shady pasts and specialized skills who come together to plan a colossal bank heist.
In Part Two the song Lost continues the story with the revelation that there is a thief and treacherous turncoat among them. Someone is slowly killing members of the crew as the Police are closing in on them. The viewer is immersed deeper into the story with each characters' demise, series of plot twists and unforeseeable endings.
Part Three, music track Lullaby of Pain is set to reveal the identity of the killer and divulge the turn of events throughout the journey of deception, betrayal and murder. The individual Director's Cuts are expected to be merged into a short film and premiered in Hollywood, California and then submitted to film festivals in the US and Canada in 2022.
In 2019, Shadow was approached by director Neil D'Monte, an accomplished film actor, storyboard artist, producer and musician. He was asked to contribute material from Shadow's music catalog for an up and coming comedy television series Front Men created by Jon Simon. A directorial debut for his friend D'Monte, Shadow's songs Doin' It All Night and Played Out were featured in the pilot and "Episode Four". Shadow was thrilled to attend the Hollywood Red Carpet premiere at the LA Downtown Theatre and gratified by having legacy musical works included in a modern-day television series. Shadow continues working with creator Jon Simon to produce a music video for "Played Out", featuring sequences from the episodes.
Most recently, Shadow has been "identified as a prominent member of "Toronto's Hip Hop history and the history of Canada's culture industries" by Dr. Francesca D'amico-Cuthbert PhD of the Jackman Humanities Institute, at the University of Toronto. The institution is conducting an academic research study is tracing the history of Toronto hip hop, and the relationship that artists and industry professionals have had within the music marketplace between 1984 to 2020. This project explores how the hip hop scene has unfolded over the past thirty-five years in both the City of Toronto and Canada. Referred to as "an Architect" in the Canadian Hip Hop Music scene (by Dr. D'amico-Cuthbert), his direct contributions, efforts, and memorabilia as a Hip-Hop artist from as early as 1984, through to 2021 have been officially documented into the Canadian Council of Archives (CCA), a joint initiative of CCA, the Provincial and Territorial Archival Networks, and Library and Archives Canada (LAC).
The spring of 2021 saw the official recognition of his musical contribution and accomplishment. Inducted into the Canadian Museum of Music in Alberta both as MC Shadow and the Get Loose Crew, it signaled the long-awaited official affirmation of the groups contribution in Hip-Hop and ultimately enshrining his group and himself as artists in Canadian music.
2020's COVID having stalled production globally, Shadow looks forward to continue production of the final chapter of the trilogy and premiere in Los Angeles. He is also excited about upcoming collaboration with several successful music artists. Among them, is Nashville Country Music artist Rick Henry who has gained notoriety in the US as 'The signing Cop'. Also, he has confirmed reunion releases with JUNO award Rap Artist, Carlito (aka MC B & B-Kool), in the summer of 2022. The project is expected to have videos in support of the singles.
MC Shadow's group Get Loose Crew produced the first Canadian hip hop record to be sold internationally. While the American group The Beastie Boys had released their rap recording years earlier, Hip hop historians have debated that their origins as a punk music band are different than Shadow. He was originally a hip hop artist and many regard him as the first white hip hop artist. The relevancy of this discussion is simply due to the rarity of white rappers in the history of this established African American genre.
In 2015, after a lengthy hiatus he returned to the music scene with several singles and a music video trilogy; edited into a short film format for Festival submission. Several songs from his catalog were scored into episodes and the soundtrack of US Television series Front Men (2017).
His rhyming skills were first discovered in the Flemingdon Park neighborhood in Toronto Canada during impromptu rap battles at his junior high school cafeteria - Valley Park Junior High. It was during one particular rap battle that took place in an underground basement party (similarly depicted in the Eminem movie 8 Mile (2002)), that inspired Shadow to pursue releasing a record career as a music artist.
In early 1984, Kory (then known as White Shadow) Neely was attending East York Collegiate Institute for their Performing Arts program. He teamed up with neighborhood friends Chris (DJ JEL) Jackson and Len (Mix-Master Len) Grant-Stuart to form the DJ group, Def Force Sound Crew. Their act was organized to feature White Shadow MC performing in freestyle rap challenges as they played at their school and community center dances. In 1986 White Shadow changed his name to MC Shadow, the group dropped the name Def Force Sound Crew, added local rapper Carl (MC B) Badwa and was re-named Get Loose Crew. The new group established their own indie label East Park Productions, with Shadow negotiating and securing a global distribution deal with Electric Distribution in December 1987.
When the group set out to press and release their first record in December, 1987, the bass was so forceful in the album's title track it damaged the manufacturers production equipment. Despite this and several other manufacturing delays, the group's self-titled multi track EP was released on March 16, 1988 in local and national record stores in Canada, United States, U.K and Europe. This defined them as the first Canadian Hip Hop group to achieve international distribution and record sales. Music tracking success was attained, reaching the #5 spot on the national CHEER Music Pool Chart alongside genre icons Kool Moe Dee, Boogie Down Productions, Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five and Ice-T & Big Daddy Kane.
This work confirmed front man MC Shadow as the first recorded white hip hop artist in Canada and subsequent to American Def Jam Records artists The Beastie Boys release of their first hip hop recording, Cooky Puss in 1984.
In 1988, the Get Loose Crew performed on the CBC Television show Switchback (1981) with host Eric Tunney interviewing the group's spokesman Shadow who was asked to describe the emerging music genre sweeping the nation.
An interview featured the group in the national music publication STREETSOUND magazine in June 1988, where again the attention was on the early Canadian rap scene, its perceived violence, and the importance of the group's performances. Neely commented: "When people come to a show, they're critical. They come to see a performance. It's got to be rockin' from beginning to end. It has to be an organized performance, unlike four years ago, when everybody would just jam. No fighting, no chain snatching, no B-Boy destruction".
British Knights (Schwartz Shoes Inc.), a small four generation family-owned company in New York City that created Hip Hop clothing and shoes sought by rappers everywhere at the time provided unofficial recognition and support for his group. In a February 1988 letter that Shadow wrote to the company seeking a clothing sponsorship for the group. Larry Schwartz (son of founder Jack Schwartz) responded that the company were already engaged in a campaign for rapper Kool Moe Dee and not taking on any other commitments. In recognition of the groups support for the brand, Schwartz sent a box containing numerous pieces of British Knights apparel (not available in Canada) for the group to wear at performances, interviews, and other events. In his television interview and performance for CBC Television show Switchback, and on the cover of the album, Neely can be seen wearing a sweatshirt from the clothier. While clearly not an official sponsorship of their group, the unofficial endorsement of recognition from the company was an exclusive opportunity for the group to promote the brand north of the border. This event is seen as the first and only known form of endorsement by a clothing manufacturer of a Canadian Hip-Hop group.
At the time Toronto served as the epicenter of Canadian hip hop music and hosted rap battles (dubbed Monster Jams) with established US performers. In 1988 the rap battles changed from primarily NYC artists and expanded to invite talents from other US cities. A contest was proposed between Philadelphia's Fresh Prince (Will Smith) and MC Shadow. The invitation was declined by Smith's management team in part based upon the successful launch of his album release Parents Don't Understand.
The Get Loose Crew disbanded in 1990 and Shadow pursued a solo effort under the name JUST ME. He teamed up with Kaye Sargeant, a local R&B female singer and fellow alum from East York Collegiate and began studio work recording their first album.
In 1991 he signed a management deal with Alric Hutchinson and joined the artist roster of independent label 'Altrax Records'. Television show Extendamix, hosted by Master T (Tony Young) established a tour featuring labelmates Self-Defence (who were Get Loose Crew alum) Chris "DJ Jel" Jackson and producer Stanley "S-Blank" McCook where Shadow opened for the show under the group name JUST Me.
September 3, 1991 meeting with Resource Media's Kevin Fox in Toronto became the closest opportunity to produce a music video project for the song What I'm Sayin. Concept and production notes dated September 8, 1991 laid out the concept for the video shoot. Ultimately, the project was not completed due to an inability to secure funding for the project.
Neely was also invited to an audition for retailer Woolco (rebranded as Woolworth in United States and UK Canadian chain later acquired by Walmart Canada) on July 14, 1991 in downtown Toronto for Lynx brand running shoes. Though selected for the commercial and provided with the lyrics prior to the audition, after the performance he was told by the Director that "he wasn't the type of rapper that they were looking for." The final edit was changed from the original format and featured a softer type of rapper (much different in appearance and performance than the material provided initially to Altrax Records.)
In 1994 the duo led by Shadow was featured on MIRGIN / UKA Records multi-track CD compilation Mega Dance Vol. 1 with their song What I'm Sayin and again on America's Most Wanted Freestyle 94 compilation album with the track Do a Little Dance. They toured as part of a Toronto-based television program Extendamix, and performed in an Ottawa-based music festival that included actor/comedian Tom Green and his local group Disorganized Rhyme. Shadow and Sargeant separated later that year with a catalog of unreleased material.
In March 2010, the Toronto Free Gallery hosted an exhibit called T-Dot Pioneers: An Exploration of Toronto Hip Hop History and Culture. The exhibit featured items from the birth of Toronto hip hop including old photographs, posters, vinyl, and awards. Featured at the exhibit and prominently displayed was his previous group (Get Loose Crew) album.
In 2011 Toronto Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC) held a Hip Hop Summit and Shadow was once again reunited with his peers and fellow pioneers in the local and Canadian hip hop industry. He soon realized that audiences did not appreciate the rich history and profound roots of the genre. This inspired him to launch an initiative to establish a modern-day bookend album to his historical involvement and testimonial to his contributions to the subculture.
2015 saw MC Shadow in collaboration with former Capitol records artist and "Canada's Got Talent" production contributor, Frank (Tekniq) Morel. Shadow credits bands such as Massive Attack, Evanescence, Portishead and the Arctic Monkeys as musical influences for his new sound. The single Resurrection received critical acclaim and was described by music reviewer Samantha Stevens as "phenomenal and a credit to the rap and hip-hop genres" The song debuted on Canadian Independent Campus Radio Music Chart! Earshot in the #5 position, holding that spot for several weeks and garnering nationwide airplay.
Ready to reaffirm his place in music history in 2016, Shadow began planning the production of a three-part music video trilogy which will ultimately be combined into a short film directed by Manee Osman, inspired by films similar to "Fast and the Furious", "Revolver" and "Ocean's Eleven".
Part One kicks off with the song Resurrection, Stevens described as "a dark and powerful song". The story is set in the backdrop of a metropolitan city and follows four friends all having mysterious, shady pasts and specialized skills who come together to plan a colossal bank heist.
In Part Two the song Lost continues the story with the revelation that there is a thief and treacherous turncoat among them. Someone is slowly killing members of the crew as the Police are closing in on them. The viewer is immersed deeper into the story with each characters' demise, series of plot twists and unforeseeable endings.
Part Three, music track Lullaby of Pain is set to reveal the identity of the killer and divulge the turn of events throughout the journey of deception, betrayal and murder. The individual Director's Cuts are expected to be merged into a short film and premiered in Hollywood, California and then submitted to film festivals in the US and Canada in 2022.
In 2019, Shadow was approached by director Neil D'Monte, an accomplished film actor, storyboard artist, producer and musician. He was asked to contribute material from Shadow's music catalog for an up and coming comedy television series Front Men created by Jon Simon. A directorial debut for his friend D'Monte, Shadow's songs Doin' It All Night and Played Out were featured in the pilot and "Episode Four". Shadow was thrilled to attend the Hollywood Red Carpet premiere at the LA Downtown Theatre and gratified by having legacy musical works included in a modern-day television series. Shadow continues working with creator Jon Simon to produce a music video for "Played Out", featuring sequences from the episodes.
Most recently, Shadow has been "identified as a prominent member of "Toronto's Hip Hop history and the history of Canada's culture industries" by Dr. Francesca D'amico-Cuthbert PhD of the Jackman Humanities Institute, at the University of Toronto. The institution is conducting an academic research study is tracing the history of Toronto hip hop, and the relationship that artists and industry professionals have had within the music marketplace between 1984 to 2020. This project explores how the hip hop scene has unfolded over the past thirty-five years in both the City of Toronto and Canada. Referred to as "an Architect" in the Canadian Hip Hop Music scene (by Dr. D'amico-Cuthbert), his direct contributions, efforts, and memorabilia as a Hip-Hop artist from as early as 1984, through to 2021 have been officially documented into the Canadian Council of Archives (CCA), a joint initiative of CCA, the Provincial and Territorial Archival Networks, and Library and Archives Canada (LAC).
The spring of 2021 saw the official recognition of his musical contribution and accomplishment. Inducted into the Canadian Museum of Music in Alberta both as MC Shadow and the Get Loose Crew, it signaled the long-awaited official affirmation of the groups contribution in Hip-Hop and ultimately enshrining his group and himself as artists in Canadian music.
2020's COVID having stalled production globally, Shadow looks forward to continue production of the final chapter of the trilogy and premiere in Los Angeles. He is also excited about upcoming collaboration with several successful music artists. Among them, is Nashville Country Music artist Rick Henry who has gained notoriety in the US as 'The signing Cop'. Also, he has confirmed reunion releases with JUNO award Rap Artist, Carlito (aka MC B & B-Kool), in the summer of 2022. The project is expected to have videos in support of the singles.
