The third installment of The Black Academy’s award show, The Legacy Awards, returns CBC and CBC Gem.
Watch The Legacy Awards live on CBC TV, stream free on CBC Gem and CBC’s YouTube channel on Sunday, September 29 at 8 p.m. (9 p.m. AT/9:30 p.m. NT)
What are The Legacy Awards?
The show features performances, award presentations and tributes honouring both established and emerging Black Canadian talent.
Where are The Legacy Awards?
The award show will be broadcast live from Live Nation Canada’s HISTORY located in Toronto, the Official Venue of The 2024 Legacy Awards.
Who is hosting this year?
Award-winning actor Adrian Holmes (Bel-Air) is set to host the show this year. “I’m excited to host the Legacy Awards for so many reasons,” said Holmes. “I get to give back to the country where all my dreams began. This show, where we highlight and celebrate Black excellence in Canada, is a milestone. It’s a privilege to be at the helm of such an important moment.”
Holmes, who grew up in Vancouver, British Columbia, has more than 100 film and television credits to his name including Bel-Air, 19-2, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, V-Wars, Sacred Lies, The Boys, and Arrow, among many others. In 2017, he received the Canadian Screen Award for Best Lead Male in a Dramatic Series for his performance on 19-2.
Who will be winning awards?
Recipients of this year’s awards include Soulpepper Threatre Artistic director Weyni Mengesha, international rap music legend Kardinal Offishall and TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey.
The Legacy Awards Fan Choice Digital Content Creator Award allows fans to choose their favourite Black-identifying Canadian digital content creators. This year’s nominees are: Access By Tay (Toronto); Citron Rose (Montréal); OT The OG (Toronto); Queeny Kuffour (Toronto); Ryan Holtz (Edmonton); and Toni Olaoye (Toronto). The winner will be announced during The Legacy Awards. Visit vote.blackacademy.ca to vote until Friday September 27 at 6 p.m. ET.
Weyni Mengesha – 2024 Trailblazer Award
Weyni Mengesha is a stage and screen director who currently serves as the Artistic Director of Soulpepper Theatre and has directed critically acclaimed productions that have toured nationally and internationally including Da kink in my hair, Kim’s Convenience, and Treemonisha.
Mengesha’s parents emigrated from Ethiopia; she was born in Vancouver and grew up in Scarborough. She is a committed educator, mentor and producer of youth arts initiatives and has taught at the National Theatre School of Canada and the Canadian Film Centre.
Kardinal Offishall – 2024 Icon Award
The multi-award-winning global Jamaican-Canadian hip-hop icon Offishall is Canada’s undisputed hip-hop ambassador to the world. He was the first rapper from Canada to reach the top of the Billboard Hot 100 and has collaborated with the giants of the industry, including Rihanna, Drake, Pharrell Williams, Vybz Kartel, and so many more.
Offishall has a star on Canada’s Walk of Fame and recently received an honorary doctorate from York University for his legacy of groundbreaking achievements. Offishall is Global A&R at Def Jam Recordings, hip hop’s most influential record label where he continues to shape the careers of several new artists.
Cameron Bailey – 2024 Visionary Award
Born in London and raised in Barbados, Cameron Bailey emigrated to Canada where he began his career as a film critic. Now, he is the Chief Executive Officer of TIFF and the Toronto International Film Festival where he directs the vision, strategy and overall management of one of Canada’s premier cultural brands and is responsible for presenting the world’s largest public film festival each September.
For 12 years (2012–2023), Toronto Life magazine has named him one of Toronto’s 50 Most Influential People. He’s worked as both programmer and critic, contributing to Toronto’s NOW Magazine, CBC Radio One, TVO and CTV’s Canada AM and been published in The Globe and Mail, The Village Voice and the UK’s Screen, as well as in several books.
Bailey has organized film series for festivals and institutions and has hosted filmmaker conversations at industry events, including in Cannes, Goa, Dubai and Doha.
What is The Black Academy?
The Black Academy is a national Canadian organization that celebrates, empowers, and showcases Black Canadian talent and inspires future generations.
Co-founded by actors, producers, and Scarborough-born brothers Shamier Anderson (John Wick: Chapter 4) and Stephan James, The Black Academy is born out of a longstanding commitment to their community and is dedicated to dismantling systemic racism in Canada.
Established in 2020, The Black Academy is based in Toronto and is a division of the not-for-profit B.L.A.C.K. Canada.
How do I watch The Legacy Awards?
Watch The Legacy Awards live on CBC TV, stream free on CBC Gem and CBC’s YouTube channel on Sunday, September 29 at 8 p.m. (9 p.m. AT/9:30 p.m. NT)
For more stories about the experiences of Black Canadians — from anti-Black racism to success stories within the Black community — check out Being Black in Canada, a CBC project Black Canadians can be proud of. You can read more stories here.
