Luke Boyd (born December 13, 1977), better known by his

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

Classified, is a Canadian rapper and record producer from

Enfield, Nova Scotia Enfield is an urban community located north of Halifax Stanfield International Airport in the Shubenacadie Valley on the border of Hants and Halifax counties in Nova Scotia, Canada. Specifically, Enfield exists in both the East Hants Mu ...

Musical career

1995–2004: Early beginnings

Boyd attended

Hants East Rural High School Hants East Rural High (HERH) is a Canadian high school located in Milford Station, Nova Scotia. The school was opened in 1957 and is administratively part of the Chignecto-Central Regional School Board. One of its feeder schools is Riverside E ...

Milford Station, Nova Scotia Milford Station (pop. 1,000) is a village in Nova Scotia, Canada. It is located in the East Hants municipal district in the Shubenacadie Valley. The community is home to the largest open-pit gypsum mine in the world. History Milford Station ...

. He started his own production label, Half Life Records, and released his first full-length LP called ''Time's Up, Kid'' in 1995. After years of working on

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspe ...

, including eight studio albums and sorting through

label A label (as distinct from signage) is a piece of paper, plastic film, cloth, metal, or other material affixed to a container or product, on which is written or printed information or symbols about the product or item. Information printed ...

contract A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to tr ...

s, Boyd produced, recorded, and released his ninth album, '' Trial & Error'', and signed a nationwide distribution deal with Toronto-based

URBNET Records URBNET Records is an independent record label based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. URBNET was formed by Darryl Rodway and Janusz Jarosinski in 1999 to provide distribution, marketing and promotional services to Hip Hop artists throughout Canada. U ...

in 2003. Containing collaborations with up-and-coming Canadian artists like

Eternia ''Masters of the Universe'' (sometimes referred to as the ''He-Man'' or ''She-Ra'' series) is a sword and planet-themed media franchise created by Mattel. The main premise revolves around the conflict between He-Man (the alter ego of Prince Ad ...

and

DL Incognito Oliver Nestor, better known as DL Incognito, is a Canadian hip hop rapper and producer from Ottawa, Ontario. He is currently signed to URBNET Records but also operates his independent label Nine Planets Hip Hop along with his brother. In 2007 a ...

, as well as Canadian rap veteran

Maestro Maestro (; from the Italian '' maestro'' , meaning "master" or "teacher") is an honorific title of respect (plural: maestros or maestri). The term is most commonly used in the context of Western classical music and opera, in line with the ubiqu ...

, the album was one of the highest-selling independent rap albums in Canada in 2004. With the support of Canadian grant foundation VideoFACT, Boyd was able to release two

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devic ...

s for the singles "Just the Way It Is" and "Unexpected". Boyd continued to develop his production skills and worked alongside prominent MCs in Canada including

Choclair Kareem Blake (born March 27, 1975), better known by his stage name Choclair, is a Canadian rapper. He was one of the most successful Canadian rappers in Canada in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Choclair has been nominated for six Juno Awards, winn ...

and

Maestro Fresh Wes Wesley "Wes" Williams (born March 31, 1968) is a Canadian rapper, record producer, actor, and author. He is known professionally by his stage names Maestro Fresh Wes (formerly Maestro Fresh-Wes) or Maestro as a musician, and is credited by his ...

.Bliss, Karen (July–August 2005). "Classified", ''Canadian Musician'', 27 (4): 78. He also collaborated with

Shady Records Shady Records is an American record label founded by rapper Eminem and his manager Paul Rosenberg, after the highly successful release of Eminem's ''The Slim Shady LP'' (1999). Shady has seen negative times when being part of the unsuccessful ...

recording artist

Royce da 5'9" Ryan Daniel Montgomery, known professionally as Royce da 5'9" (or simply Royce 5'9"), is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. Montgomery is currently one half of the rap duo Bad Meets Evil with fellow Detroit rapper Eminem, a ...

and opened for

Ludacris Christopher Brian Bridges (born September 11, 1977), known professionally as Ludacris (, homophonous with 'ludicrous' in American English), is an American rapper, actor, record producer and record executive. Born in Champaign, Illinois, Ludac ...

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg and briefly Snoop Lion), is an American rapper. His fame dates back to 1992 when he featured on Dr. Dre's debut solo single, " ...

Busta Rhymes Trevor George Smith Jr. (born May 20, 1972), known professionally as Busta Rhymes, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the moniker Busta Rhymes, after NFL and CFL wide receiver ...

, The Game,

Nelly Cornell Iral Haynes Jr. (born November 2, 1974), better known by his stage name Nelly, is an American rapper, singer, actor and entrepreneur. He embarked on his music career with the hip hop group St. Lunatics in 1993 and signed to Universal ...

, MC Grizzly, Captain Capota, Nas,

The Black Eyed Peas Black Eyed Peas (also known as The Black Eyed Peas) is an American musical group consisting of rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap, Taboo (rapper), Taboo. The group's line-up during the height of their popularity in the 2000s featured Fergie (singer ...

and

Black Moon Black Moon may refer to: * Black moon, one of four astronomical events involving new or dark moons * Black Moon (person) (c. 1821–1893), Lakota (American Indian) headman * Black Moon or Lilith (hypothetical moon), a hypothetical natural satelli ...

2005–2007: Nationwide buzz and recognition

Boyd's tenth album, '' Boy-Cott-In the Industry'', marked a significant turning point is his career. The 2005 album includes guest appearances by Trent James, Royce Da 5'9", Jay Bizzy, J-Bru, A-Wall, Spesh K, and Mike Boyd (Boyd's younger brother and fellow MC). He has said he enjoys doing music with other people: "It keeps things exciting and there are tons of talented people in Halifax so you make connections 'cause it's not a huge scene." The album reached #46 on

SoundScan Luminate (formerly Nielsen SoundScan, Nielsen Music Products, and MRC Data) is a provider of music sales data. Established by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett in 1991, data is collected weekly and made available every Sunday (for albums sales) and eve ...

's Canadian R&B/ Hip-Hop albums chart. The singles "The Maritimes", "5th Element", "No Mistakes", and "Find Out", which is the lead single of his 11th studio album, ''Hitch Hikin' Music'', were all Top 20 hits on

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, ...

and

MTV Canada MTV is a Canadian English-language specialty channel owned by Bell Media with the name and branding used under a licensing agreement with Paramount Global. The channel is devoted to talk, lifestyle and documentary programming, and also airs so ...

that year. The music video for "No Mistakes" won him an MMVA for MuchVibe Best Rap Video. ''Boy-Cott-In the Industry'' also earned a

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 o ...

nomination for Rap Recording of the Year in 2006. Following ''Boy-Cott-In the Industry'', Boyd released his eleventh album '' Hitch Hikin' Music''. Like previous works, the album was self-produced. On "Fall From Paradise", Boyd reflects on the difficulty of staying fresh and on top. In the song "All About U", featuring singer Chad Hatcher, Classified shows the extent of his growth from his early releases. In "Hip Hop Star", he eschews the bling-bling culture of popular hip hop to remind people that life is not about trying to impress others. The rest of the album includes guest appearances by Jay Bizzy, Mic Boyd, Jordan Croucher, Preacher K, White Mic and more. Four singles have been released off the album: "Find Out" (which won the 2007

East Coast Music Award The East Coast Music Association is a non-profit association that hosts an annual awards ceremony based in Atlantic Canada for music appreciation on the East Coast of Canada. Its mission is to develop, advance and celebrate East Coast Canadian mus ...

for Best Rap/Hip-Hop Single), "Feelin' Fine Remix", "All About U", and "Hard to Be Hip Hop". ''Hitch Hikin' Music'' also received a

nomination for Rap Recording of the Year in 2007.

2008–2017: Mainstream breakthrough and national success

In 2008, Boyd signed his first major label deal with Sony Music and released his twelfth studio album, '' Self Explanatory'', in 2009, which received highly positive reviews from critics, debuting on the

Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Oce ...

at #25 making it Boyd's first album on that chart. The hit single "Anybody Listening" brought Boyd to mainstream success as it peaked at #52 on the

Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music industry record chart in Canada for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine. The Canadian Hot 100 was launched on the issue dated March 31, 2007, and is currently the standard record ...

. The accompanying music video also received heavy rotation on

. At the

2009 MuchMusic Video Awards The 2009 MuchMusic Video Awards were held in Toronto, Ontario at MuchMusic's headquarters on June 21, 2009. Along with the MuchMusic VJ's, on April 16, 2009, it was confirmed on the MuchMusic website that the Jonas Brothers would co-host the show. ...

on May 21, 2009, Boyd won the MuchVibe "Best Hip-Hop Video of the Year" award for "Anybody Listening" directed by Harv Glazer and produced by Robert Wilson of TwoThreeFiveFilms. He would also receive three Juno Award nominations in 2010, for Rap Recording of the Year, Single of the Year, and Video of the Year respectively. Boyd would enjoy more mainstream success with another hit single, "Oh...Canada". which peaked at #14 on the Canadian Hot 100 and was certified platinum in digital downloads by

Music Canada Music Canada (formerly Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA)) is a non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, manufacture, produce, and distribute music in Canada. It ...

. In early 2011, "Oh...Canada" received a Juno nomination for "Single of the Year". On March 22, 2011, Boyd released his thirteenth album and second major studio album, '' Handshakes and Middle Fingers''. The album debuted at #7 on the Canadian Albums Chart. The first single from the album, "That Ain't Classy", reached #45 on the Canadian Hot 100. "That Ain't Classy" also featured in the EA Sports football game Madden 12. Another song featured on the album, "Run With Me", was included in the soundtrack for

NHL 13 ''NHL 13'' is an ice hockey video game developed by EA Canada published by EA Sports. It is the 22nd installment of the ''NHL'' series. The game was released on the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360, featuring Philadelphia Flyers forward Claude Gir ...

, another EA Sports title. In 2012, Boyd signed with Universal Music. In 2013, Boyd would reach the height of his music career with the release of his fourteenth album, eponymously titled ''

Classified Classified may refer to: General *Classified information, material that a government body deems to be sensitive *Classified advertising or "classifieds" Music *Classified (rapper) (born 1977), Canadian rapper * The Classified, a 1980s American ro ...

'', which debuted at #1 on the Canadian Albums Chart, earning him his first chart-topping album that would eventually be certified Platinum by Music Canada. The first single from the album, "Inner Ninja", reached #5 on the Canadian Hot 100, earning Boyd his first top-ten hit and highest-charting song. The song has been certified 5× Platinum in digital downloads by Music Canada. In March 2013, it was announced that Boyd signed a deal with

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most im ...

. Boyd won an award at the 2013 Juno Awards for "Rap Recording of the Year" for his song "Inner Ninja". A remix of the song featuring guest vocals from

Olly Murs Oliver Stanley Murs (born 14 May 1984) is an English singer, songwriter, and television presenter. He was runner-up on the sixth series of '' The X Factor'' in 2009 and was subsequently signed to RCA Records and Sony Music in the United Kingdom ...

was released on November 10, 2013. In March 2014, Boyd co-hosted the 2014 Juno Awards along with

Serena Ryder Serena most commonly refers to: * Serena Williams (born 1981), professional tennis player Serena may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Serena (genre), 13th-century Occitan poetic genre * ''Serena'' (1962 film), a British crime t ...

and

Johnny Reid John Kirkland Reid (born August 21, 1974) is a Scottish-Canadian country music artist. Reid moved to Canada in July 1988 when he was 13. His father, a diesel mechanic, wanted to give Reid and his brother opportunities he did not think they would ...

, and released a new single "Higher" featuring B.o.B. On January 15, 2016, Boyd released his fifteenth album ''

Greatful '' Greatful ''is the fourth major release studio album by Canadian rapper Classified released on January 15, 2016 on Halflife Records, distributed by Universal Music Canada, and serves as his fifteenth album overall. The first single released, "N ...

''. Three singles were released: "Filthy" which features DJ Premier, "No Pressure" which features Snoop Dogg (and which reached #65 on the Canadian Hot 100) and "Noah's Arch" which features Saukrates. The album debuted #6 on the Canadian Albums Chart. Boyd announced he would be touring across Canada from February to March in support of the album. Boyd co-wrote and produced Ria Mae's hit song ''Thoughts On Fire'' and raps on the ''Thoughts on Fire (feat. Classified)'' version which was on heavy rotation in early 2017 on the

CBC Radio 2 CBC Music (formerly known as CBC FM, CBC Stereo and CBC Radio 2) is a Canadian FM radio network operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It used to concentrate on classical and jazz. In 2007 and 2008, the network transitioned towards a ...

network.

2018–present: Longevity and latest projects

On February 9, 2018, Boyd filmed a music video for "Powerless" in Nova Scotia, featuring native dancers and musicians and bringing to light the issues surrounding missing and murdered indigenous women and girls. On May 8, 2018, Boyd released another new single called "Changes" featuring

Anjulie Anjulie Persaud (born May 21, 1983), known as Anjulie, is a Canadian singer and songwriter who has released one self-titled album, and has collaborated with Diplo, Zedd, Boombox Cartel, Kelly Clarkson, Nicki Minaj, TheFatRat, and Benny Benassi ...

. On May 25, 2018, Boyd released another single "She Ain't Gotta Do Much". Later that month, Boyd announced his new EP '' Tomorrow Could Be...''. The EP was released on June 29, 2018. On September 14, 2018, Boyd announced that his new album '' Tomorrow Could Be the Day Things Change'' would be released on October 12. The first single from the album, "Cold Love", featuring

Tory Lanez Daystar Shemuel Shua Peterson (born July 27, 1992), known professionally as Tory Lanez, is a Canadian rapper, singer, songwriter, and convicted felon. He received initial recognition from the mixtape ''Conflicts of My Soul: The 416 Story'', rel ...

, was released the same day. On September 20, 2020, Boyd released an EP called ''Time''. "Good News" which features Breagh Isabel was one of the singles off the EP, it was certified Gold in Canada, and appeared on John Krasinski's ‘

Some Good News ''Some Good News'' is a 2020 American web series created and hosted by American actor and filmmaker John Krasinski on YouTube, which premiered on March 29, 2020. Krasinski self-funded and co-produced the show with his production company, Sunday ...

’. On June 29, 2022, Boyd released ''Retrospected (Acoustic)'' which is an album consisting of acoustic versions of all his hit singles.

Personal life

Boyd is married to Kim Boyd and together they have three children. He has a song named "Having Kids Is Easy" on his 2016 album Greatful, dedicated to his daughters. He has two brothers, Mike and Jake Boyd, and one sister, Leah Boyd. Mike is a frequent collaborator with Classified and has produced multiple albums with him.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''Time's Up, Kid'' (1995) * ''One Shot'' (1996) * ''What Happened'' (1996) * ''Information'' (1997) * ''Now Whut!'' (1998) * ''Touch of Class'' (1999) * ''Unpredictable'' (2000) * ''Union Dues'' (2001) * '' Trial & Error'' (2003) * '' Boy-Cott-In the Industry'' (2005) * '' Hitch Hikin' Music'' (2006) * '' Self Explanatory'' (2009) * '' Handshakes and Middle Fingers'' (2011) * ''

'' (2013) * ''

'' (2016) * '' Tomorrow Could Be the Day Things Change'' (2018)

EPs

* ''iTunes Session'' (2013) * '' Tomorrow Could Be...'' (2018) * ''Time'' (2020)

Compilations

* '' While You Were Sleeping'' (2007)

Remix albums

* ''Retrospected (Acoustic)'' (2022)

Mixtapes

* ''The Joint Effort'' (2012)

Awards and nominations

Books

* ''Classified: Off the Beat 'N Path'' (2021) - #1 Best Seller on Amazon Pop Music Books

References

External links

Classified
Official website
Classified
Official HalfLife Records website {{DEFAULTSORT:Classified 1977 births 20th-century Canadian male musicians 20th-century Canadian rappers 21st-century Canadian male musicians 21st-century Canadian rappers Canadian hip hop record producers Canadian male rappers Canadian songwriters Juno Award for Rap Recording of the Year winners Living people Musicians from Halifax, Nova Scotia Writers from Halifax, Nova Scotia