Hip Hop Invasion at ECMAs in Sydney

Two self-described "mother hens" working on the management side of the hip-hop scene in Nova Scotia are hoping an industry showcase at the ECMAs in Sydney will boost their artists to the next level.

Andree Gracie and Melissa MacMaster represent several hip-hop artists from both Cape Breton and the Halifax area.

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They've been working for months to make sure that industry professionals attend the ECMA conference this week.

"We kind of reached out to our connections both in Toronto and in the U.S. and made sure that we were bringing the right delegates here," said MacMaster.

"Whether it be PR agents, A&Rs, booking agents, programmers, we knew that when our artists are here and they're connecting with them and they're hearing their music, we feel very confident that something will happen afterwards, that they may get booked for a festival, they could get a distribution deal or other placements like that."

Product Americans love

Gracie says she and MacMaster travelled with a number of Nova Scotia artists to the A3C hip-hop conference and festival in Atlanta, Ga., in the fall.

She says international stars Drake and the Weeknd, both from the Toronto area, have piqued the interest of the industry in Canadian rappers and performers.

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"Melissa and I are finding that, especially stateside, we have a product here that the Americans love," she said. "It's different, so this is the first of many good things that are going to start happening with our ventures into the U.S. market."

"We wanted to make this Hip Hop Invasion really worthwhile," said MacMaster. "There's a lot of hip-hop artists that are showcasing that are officially part of East Coast Music Week, and then we have other artists that are coming because of this programming."

Such artists includes City Natives, who won the 2016 ECMA for Aboriginal Artist of the Year, Thrillah, Certi, Quake and Jay Mayne.

The Hip Hop Invasion at the ECMAs today includes two stages.

"We have an industry mixer; this is new to the ECMAs and it's very new to our artists," said MacMaster.

Later tonight, beginning at around 11 p.m., will be the official ECMA hip-hop showcase, featuring six artists and the presentation of the rap/hip-hop recording of the year award.