MCJ and Cool G were a four-time
Juno Award
The Juno Awards, more popularly known as the JUNOS, are awards presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music. New members of the Canadian Music Hall of ...
–nominated
Canadian hip hop duo from
Halifax,
Nova Scotia.
The duo were James McQuaid (MCJ), originally part of the Halifax hip hop group New Beginning, and Richard Gray (Cool G). MCJ was the rapper and Cool G mostly sang the choruses. Their sound was
new jack swing
New jack swing, new jack, or swingbeat is a fusion genre of the rhythms and production techniques of hip hop and dance-pop, and the urban contemporary sound of R&B. Spearheaded by producers Teddy Riley and Bernard Belle, new jack swing was mos ...
which was popular at the time.
History
MCJ and Cool G grew up in
Halifax, Nova Scotia. They relocated together to
Montreal in 1988 with plans to enter the music business.
In 1989, they signed to
Capitol Records
Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...
in Canada, becoming the first Canadian
rap group to be signed to a major label.
In 1990, they released their debut album ''
So Listen'' which featured the singles "So Listen" and "Smooth as Silk" which were typical of their
rhythm and blues influenced style.
MCJ and Cool G have been nominated for four Juno Awards. In
1991
File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...
, they were nominated for
Best R&B/Soul Recording with ''So Listen'',
Rap Recording of the Year with ''So Listen'', and
Single of the Year with "So Listen". In
1994
File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which Sinking of the MS Estonia, sank in ...
, they were nominated for Best R&B/Soul Recording with ''Love Me Right''.
The
African Nova Scotian Music Association awarded them the Music Pioneer Award in 2007.
See also
*
Music of Canada
References
External links
So Listen music videoat
YouTube
That's L.I.F.E. music videoat
YouTube
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mcj And Cool G
Black Canadian musical groups
Musical groups established in 1988
Musical groups disestablished in 1997
Musical groups from Halifax, Nova Scotia
New jack swing music groups
Canadian hip hop groups
Hip hop duos
1988 establishments in Nova Scotia
1997 disestablishments in Nova Scotia