DAN HAWIE
The Silhouette (McMaster University)

HAMILTON, Ont. (CUP) — Fresh off of snagging a Juno for Rap Recording of the Year last month, you’d be hard pressed to squeeze any bit of embellishment out of Shad.

Though he may have a vibrant, larger-than-life stage presence, the London, Ont.-based rapper reps an off-stage demeanour that is entirely humble.

He’s surprisingly modest, especially considering his third full-length album, TSOL, made waves last year as one of the nation’s freshest additions to an industry resting way up on the shoulders of hip-hop giants like the Toronto-based Drake.

But it’s Shad’s off-the-cuff delivery, always fringing on self-reflection, never steeped in expletives, and pensively honest in addressing the hardships of life, liberty and simply getting out of bed in the morning, that’s earned him the tag of hip-hop underdog.

“Jay Z has this one line, ”˜Would you rather be overpaid or underrated,’” explained the rapper the morning after his Juno win. “It’s always really clicked for me, you know, to have that underdog mentality in my work. It’s a nice place to play from because it makes you give your all while having fun. You’re never necessarily expecting too much of an outcome,” he added.

Without a doubt, the outcome of TSOL has been a gratifying bolster to Shad’s career. With a National Post nod for the top spot on its “Canada’s top 10 rappers” list, and a close runner-up position in the short-list round of the 2010 Polaris Music Prize, his recent Juno steal from Drake’s internationally heralded favourite, Thank Me Later, was a landmark feat in personal validation.

“Everyone knows there’s no such thing as picking a best album, so it’s a little arbitrary in terms of who wins, but the Juno win is something that I can now take and share with the people that have supported me from the bottom-up,” he said.

“On a personal level, then, it’s validated the whole grassroots vibe of my work,” he added. “I’ve never liked the idea of forcing my music down people’s throats, and I think it’s important, at least in my case, to make music for what it is and, from there on, letting it go wherever it may go. It’s a solid spin, and it’s always made sense for me, so I’m privileged that it’s worked out so far.”

In the wake of Arcade Fire’s Grammy triumph and the resulting exposure for the do-it-yourself brand of Canadian artists, Shad’s Juno pick-up couldn’t be any timelier.

With Drake’s Thank Me Later making the case for a number 1 charted album full of hip-hop’s biggest chorus-bringers — Kanye West and Jay Z — Shad’s TSOL, which locally reps the helping hands of rapper Classified and Broken Social Scene’s Brendan Canning, juxtaposes the hip-hop trend of polished A-list cred.

It shines on its own, as an album unabridged in honest wordplay, and on a broader level, as a testament to the merits of crafting music on one’s own terms.

“The do-it-yourself thing has become an appeal for music in general lately,” noted Shad. “It used to be that artist development was a top-down thing, and that still exists, but a lot of artists have been building fan bases and a distinct sound on their own, so it’s cool to finally see that kind of stuff being recognized.

“Arcade Fire’s a great example, because they came up blowing people’s mind on stage,” he said. “Being rewarded is one thing, but to follow in that path of being respected by peers and fans is more than enough for me. I can definitely get by on that.”