Tony Young (born 1961), professionally known as Master T, is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

television and radio personality and

urban music Urban contemporary music, also known as urban music, hip hop, urban pop, or just simply urban, is a music radio format. The term was coined by New York radio DJ Frankie Crocker in the early to mid-1970s as a synonym for Black music. Urban contem ...

promoter. He was born in

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, and moved to Canada with his

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

n family in 1974.

Early life and education

He was raised in

Kitchener, Ontario ) , image_flag = Flag of Kitchener, Ontario.svg , image_seal = Seal of Kitchener, Canada.svg , image_shield=Coat of arms of Kitchener, Canada.svg , image_blank_emblem = Logo of Kitchener, Ontario.svg , blank_emblem_type = ...

, where he attended

Kitchener-Waterloo Collegiate and Vocational School Kitchener-Waterloo Collegiate and Vocational School, commonly called Kitchener Collegiate Institute or KCI, is a public education, public secondary school in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. It is a member of the Waterloo Region District School Boar ...

and met his future wife. He later studied television broadcasting at Mohawk College in

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

Career at MuchMusic

He found work as a camera operator at

MuchMusic Much (an abbreviation for its full name MuchMusic) is a Canadian English language specialty channel owned by BCE Inc. through its Bell Media subsidiary that airs programming aimed at teenagers and young adults. MuchMusic launched on August 31 ...

before he was hired to host a dance show, ''X-Tendamix'' (later "Da Mix"). As a VJ for MuchMusic, Young (as "Master T") continued to host various programs, including ''

Rap City ''Rap City'' is a music video television program block that originally aired on the Black Entertainment Television (BET) network from August 11, 1989, to November 8, 2008. The program was an exclusive showcase for hip hop music videos, and featu ...

'', from 1990 to 2001. When he left MuchMusic, his on-air farewell party featured an exclusive live performance by

Lauryn Hill Lauryn Noelle Hill (born May 26, 1975) is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. She is often regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, as well as being one of the most influential musicians of her generation. ...

. During his time with Much, Master T was the primary promoter of the channel's '' Much DanceMix'' series of

compilation Compilation may refer to: *In computer programming, the translation of source code into object code by a compiler **Compilation error **Compilation unit *Product bundling, a marketing strategy used to sell multiple products *Compilation thesis M ...

CDs, and received a Diamond plaque for over one million in sales.

Post-MuchMusic career

Since leaving MuchMusic, he has produced and promoted his own ''Master T's'' series of hip hop and

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

compilations. In 2014, he publicly called for the "Much" television channel to return to the hands of

Moses Znaimer Moses Znaimer (; born 1942) is a Tajik-born Canadian media executive of jewish descent. He is the co-founder and former head of Citytv, the first independent television station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and the current head of ZoomerMedia. ...

. Young has also hosted the syndicated radio program ''Wall of Sound'', produced by CIDC-FM. As of 2017, Young has been hosting the online interview and performance series ''RX Music LIVE,'' featuring past guests such as

Wyclef Jean Nel Ust Wyclef Jean (; born October 17, 1969) is a Haitian rapper, musician, and actor. At the age of nine, Jean immigrated to the United States with his family. He first achieved fame as a member of the New Jersey hip hop group the Fugees, a ...

Kardinal Offishall Jason Drew Harrow (born May 11, 1976), better known by his stage name Kardinal Offishall (), is a Canadian rapper, record producer, DJ, and record executive. Often credited as Canada's " hip hop ambassador", he is regarded as one of the country ...

, Vance Joy and more.

Awards

Young has been awarded a Toronto Bob Marley award, a Ghanaian Community Award, and a Mohawk College Alumni of Distinction award.

Bibliography

* Foreword by

Shaggy Shaggy may refer to: People *Shaggy (musician) (born 1968), Jamaican American reggae rapper and singer * Shaggy 2 Dope, half of the hip hop, horrorcore band Insane Clown Posse * Shaggy Flores (born 1973), Nuyorican poet, writer and African diaspor ...

References

External links

* Living people 1961 births Canadian people of Jamaican descent Canadian radio hosts English emigrants to Canada Black Canadian broadcasters Much (TV channel) personalities People from Kitchener, Ontario Canadian VJs (media personalities) {{Canada-tv-bio-stub