Kardinal Offishall

The son of immigrants from Jamaica, Jason Harrow was born in the Canadian city of Toronto and started rapping at the age of 8 - probably this hobby was actively encouraged in a Jamaican family. By the age of 12, Jason had already won rap battles and competitions, and moreover, during Nelson Mandela's visit to Toronto, Jason performed on stage for the first time (Mandela was one of the audience). In 1993, at the age of 17, Jason adopted the pseudonym Kardinal Offishall, after Cardinal Richelieu, whose political activities he admired. In 1996, Jason signed with Warner / Chapell Music Canada and released his first single, "Naughty Dread", for which he won a JUNO Award nomination. A year later, the first album "Eye & I" was released. In 2001, already on the MCA Records label, the following record was released with the pretentious title "Quest for Fire: Firestarter". However, when MCA ceased to exist in 2003, Jason was left without a label. Meanwhile, the next album was already ready, on which the then super-fashionable producers Timbaland and The Neptunes were working. After several years of searching, Jason signed with Virgin Records and in 2005 released another album called "Fire and Glory". Jason continues to change labels - in 2007 he signed to Kon Live / Geffen, which released his albums "Not 4 Sale" and "Mr. International".