Checkmate is a Canadian rapper from

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

,"Checkmate: Welcome to the Game". ''

Saskatoon Star-Phoenix ''The StarPhoenix'' is a daily newspaper that serves Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, and is a part of Postmedia Network. It has been referred to as a "sister newspaper" to the ''Regina Leader-Post, Leader-Post''. The ''StarPhoenix'' puts out si ...

'', December 20, 2001. best known as one of the collaborating artists on

Rascalz Rascalz are a Canadian hip-hop group from Vancouver, British Columbia. The group played a crucial role in the artistic and commercial development of Canadian hip hop as well as specifically for the Westcoast scene in Vancouver popularizing the te ...

' influential 1998 single " Northern Touch". He is also a

Juno Award The Juno Awards (stylized as JUNOS), or simply known as the Junos, are awards presented by Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize outstanding achievements in Canada's mu ...

nominee for Rap Recording of the Year for his single "R.A.W." at the

Juno Awards of 2003 The Juno Awards of 2003 were presented in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada on 6 April 2003. The primary awards ceremony was hosted that evening by Shania Twain at the Corel Centre (now Canadian Tire Centre) and televised on CTV. The 2003 Juno Awards wer ...

History

Checkmate recorded over 200 underground tracks including the singles "Signs of War", "The Longshot" and "Bait & Switch (Money & Music)" before appearing on "Northern Touch." He then compiled some of the songs for the 2001 album ''Welcome to the Game'', which was released on Double Up Records. "R.A.W." was released as a standalone non-album single the following year and garnered Checkmate his Juno Award nomination in 2003. He has released several solo recordings after "R.A.W.", and was a featured collaborator on other artists' singles. Checkmate produced the compilation "Game Related" and released it through Natural Game Records in 2005. In 2008, Checkmate released the "African Kings" album in collaboration with Concise The Black Knight as the Defenders of the Faith. Both projects were re-released on

Spotify Spotify (; ) is a List of companies of Sweden, Swedish Music streaming service, audio streaming and media service provider founded on 23 April 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon. , it is one of the largest providers of music streaming services ...

. In 2011, the Defenders released the mixtape, 'The G'z Next Door 2' hosted by DJ Dow Jones exclusively on

Datpiff DatPiff was an online audio distribution platform that was launched in 2005. It is headquartered in Pennsylvania. It specializes in hip-hop, rap, and urban music. The site was founded in the spring of 2005 by Marcus Frasier. It is owned by Me ...

. His 2019 album entitled "Hustle Game 101," featured guest appearances by Jay Worthy, JD Era and it was hosted by Vago. Checkmate continues to release singles on Spotify. In 2021, Checkmate released his fourth solo album, 'Aviator Game', on all platforms through Natural Game Records and Vanguards Music. The project included guest appearances from Concise, Snak the Ripper, Bishop Brigante, Moka Only, Tre Nyce and Tiago Vasquez. The album was executively produced by DJ Kemo of the

. He participated in the Northern Touch All-Stars' set at the CBC Music Festival in 2018, performing his solo singles "R.A.W." and "These Days & Times" and in the group's performance of "Northern Touch". He also appeared with the Northern Touch All-Stars when the group presented the Rap Recording of the Year award at the

Juno Awards of 2018 The Juno Awards of 2018, honouring Canadian music achievements, were presented in Vancouver, British Columbia during the weekend of 24–25 March 2018. The primary telecast ceremonies were held at Rogers Arena. Vancouver previously hosted the Juno ...

and performed a rendition of "Northern Touch" in lieu of the acceptance speech by absent winner

Tory Lanez Daystar Shemuel Shua Peterson (born July 27, 1992), known professionally as Tory Lanez, is a Canadian singer-songwriter and record producer. First discovered by Sean Kingston, he received initial recognition for his mixtape ''Conflicts of My S ...

Discography

Solo * Welcome To The Game (2000) * Checkmate Presents... Game Related (2005) * Hustle Game 101 (2009) * Aviator Game (2021) * Advanced Game (2021) Defenders of The Faith * African Kings (2008) * Pandemic (2008) * Power and Glory (2009) * The G'z Next Door (2010) * The G'z Next Door 2 (2011)

References

{{reflist Canadian male rappers 20th-century Black Canadian musicians Musicians from Vancouver Living people Year of birth missing (living people) 20th-century Canadian rappers 21st-century Canadian rappers 20th-century Canadian male musicians 21st-century Canadian male musicians 21st-century Black Canadian musicians