How the Legacy Awards Affirms Black Canadian Talent
Courtesy of CBC; Photo: O'shane Howard and Andile Mthembu
In Canada, Black people have contributed greatly to the building of the nation. We have laboured endlessly—often sacrificing our bodies to demand accountability from policymakers across the country. For years, we have advocated for a more inclusive Canada and utilized our talents to confront and resist Black exclusion. We have hurdled to world championships (see Perdita Felicien), rapped about our hybrid identities (see Michie Mee) and produced prime time television shows that centre our experiences as Black people living in Canada (see Trey Anthony). It is undeniable that without our presence, this country would not exist as we know it currently.
Today, the work continues; however, it does not go unnoticed. On September 25th, 2022, the inaugural run of the Black Academy’s Legacy Awards will air live across the country on CBC and CBC Gem to honour Black Canadian achievements in acting, sport and entertainment. At its core, the awards show is a celebration of Black Canadian joy and resilience. It is an assembly of Black talent, Black innovation and Black brilliance. It is a practice of Black agency and Black self-determination. It is the embodiment of Black refusal—the reckoning that Black Canadians do not require permission to celebrate our achievements.
I got the opportunity to sit down with the hosts and creators of the awards show, brothers Shamier Anderson and Stephan James, who have both achieved incredibly successful acting careers. Shamier has starred alongside Halle Berry in the 2020 film Bruised as well as the 2021 film Stowaway and the film Bruiser which debuted at TIFF this year. Stephan played Jesse Owens in the 2016 film Race and also starred in Selma and the 2018 Barry Jenkins-directed film If Beale Street Could Talk.
Excerpts from my interview with Shamier and Stephan are below.
Andre Harriott: When you were growing up, what representation did you have in regard to Black Canadians in the media?
Shamier Anderson: There was always a token—that one person in the Canadian media landscape specifically. It was always Dwight Drummond.
Stephan James: I want to big up K.C. Collins and Clé Bennett. There weren't a whole lot of us, but the ones that garnered that significant level of success were people that Shamier and I looked up to. And then I would say for me, just even in my household, watching my brother in a musical theatre school changed the way I looked at art––because I never really had seen Black people on stage singing and dancing and playing characters. I think that that's all been very influential on all of us.
AH: The Black Academy is all about creating infrastructure for Black talent to thrive. What does that infrastructure look like?
Courtesy of CBC; Photo: O'shane Howard and Andile Mthembu
SA: I think spaces like the Black Academy, you know, spaces that we're building and being supported and empowered by. As much as I appreciate black squares and hashtags — there's importance there, obviously—but there really needs to be real infrastructure, real brick and mortar. For Black corporations, Black not-for-profits, Black academies—that's really, really important for sustainability and tangible change. This is why we have the skills development program that we're doing within the awards show, which, in short, is taking Black individuals and putting them in places of gaffers, lights, cinematographers, editors, supervising producers and giving them jobs for this awards show. We are paying them and throwing them into the beast of what it is to produce a show while giving them a tangible education. And this ain't a charity. We don't want any handouts. We want to earn it. I think it's really important that Black people aren’t charities. We need sustainability like other organizations and individuals. So when I think about infrastructure, it's a very loaded question for me, and those things come to mind.
SJ: I also think that the skills development program is not only allowing people to be a part of this show but also giving them the tools to continue on way past this show. Give a man a fish, feed him for a day. Teach him to fish, feed him for a lifetime. So, for us, it's about giving them a whole toolkit that they could use beyond this show.
AH: What supports did you have available growing up and now in your careers? Who were the people that either reached back to you or helped you achieve the success that you have today?
SA: I think us two, first. We've been iron sharpening iron. My brother and I, we've been in this from the beginning. I've always said it. From the sandbox, from 365 Bay Mills—that's number one. Our family, our mother, that's number two. And then obviously just kind of expanding that a bit into our representation, our managers that have been with us from day one. And with respect to the Legacy Awards, our producing partners, Inside Productions, Norbert Abrams, Daniel Abrams, our amazing publicist, too many names to name right now, but there is definitely a village that is working and believes in this vision. And it's tiresome. People get exhausted, but it's exhausting coming from 365 metro housing––that's exhausting. So, for us, it's just another chink in the armour that we're going to get through and push through. There's been a lot of support as we grow and as we keep building.
AH: What are some of the challenges that arise when taking on a project like this?
SJ: This whole Academy and this whole awards show started because my brother and I just love Black people and want to celebrate Black excellence in Canada. It's a really simple thing. No one told us what building an awards show would be like [laughs from Shamier]. I just want to put that out there, but just know the impetus of it was that.
Courtesy of CBC; Photo: O'shane Howard and Andile Mthembu
SA: Yeah, celebrating Black people, and what comes with that is many challenges, many hurdles. When we talk about the accolades and the achievements that we've garnered over the years, it's not about being self-aggrandizing; it’s about perspective and sharing perspective despite Golden Globe nominations, despite number one films on Netflix, despite being invited by the Obamas to The White House. You would think that people would get it at the time—two brothers from Scarborough came up with an idea, and you would think the floodgates would open. It's a lot of work, like anything you do in life, but we realized with tangible evidence that the same liberties, privileges and access that other organizations get for a similar thing is not something that we've been given the privilege to have. We have to show proof of concept; the idea isn't enough, so there are financial hurdles, of course. There are definitely infrastructure hurdles, of course, and then just being able to have the manpower, so to speak, to keep the machine going. I mean, believe it or not, Steph and I are actors––that's our day job––but we still have to be on calls to drive this engine forward. And it's not something we don't want to do; we just have to understand that we have to play the CEO, we have to do the emails, we have to be the starboys, we have to be on the stage, and we still have our own stuff. There are certain things we have to do in order for us to keep the machine moving because if we stop, this thing may not continue. I like to be very pragmatic. My brother and I are like, how do we get practical? How do we win? How do we get the ball in the basket? It’s really simple. To get the ball in the basket, we have to do a great job, really inspire and let individuals know that this is needed. And then, hopefully, one day, people will just get it.
AH: What is your biggest hope for the Legacy Awards’ inaugural show on September 25th?
SJ: Honestly, I think for us, this has always just been about inspiration. Greatness begets greatness. I think it's very powerful for Black people to see people who look like them step on stage and give testimony to their journeys, to the trials and tribulations and everything that they can attribute to their success. That stage provides a very powerful platform to breed inspiration for generations to come. And so I hope that we do that. I hope people enjoy themselves. I hope people are able to laugh. I hope people are able to dance, have fun, love and celebrate.
SA: Have a good time, as Stephan said. You know, tuning in, showing up and just celebrating that this is actually happening, that this is actually on the TV screen, that they are televising the revolution nationally. Just that, period. And then everything that comes with it. We have some surprises [laughing], to be honest. We're doing as much as we can. Listen, we’re just going to make people smile and cry and feel good. September 25th is going to be a day to remember.
The Legacy Awards airs on CBC and CBC Gem on Sunday, September 25, 2022 at 8 p.m. (9 p.m. AT/9:30 p.m. NT).