Meet Edmonton's Roland Pemberton (professionally known as Cadence Weapon) - poet, musician, record producer and writer, and starting July 1, 2009, the City of Edmonton's next Poet Laureate. At 23, Roland Pemberton is an accomplished artist with an established international reputation as an innovative force in hip-hop. His debut album Breaking Kayfabe (2005) earned him nominations for the Canadian Indie Awards and "Best Rap Album of 2006" at the Plug Independent Music Awards, and won CBC Radio 3's Bucky Award. Both Breaking Kayfabe and his sophomore album Afterparty Babies (2008) have earned nominations for the coveted Polaris Music Prize.
Edmonton, and its characters, play a prominent role in Pemberton's work, and his roots to the city run deep. Roland's father, Teddy Pemberton, hosted The Black Experience in Sound on CJSR for 20 years and is often credited with bringing hip-hop to Edmonton. His grandfather, the great Rollie Miles, played for the Edmonton Eskimos from 1951 - 1961 and played in five CFL championship games. His uncle, Edmontonian Brett Miles, is a visual artist, accomplished saxophone player and songwriter who has performed with James Brown and recorded with Mick Jagger.
In His Words
"The position to me is an extension of my own personality. I represent the community in all of my pursuits and I'll continue doing so as Poet Laureate. Musically, I've tried to create a sense of trust in what I create, that if I'm involved with it, it then becomes acceptable to the arts and independent music communities. I want people to feel the same about my writing. I'm honoured that the City of Edmonton has selected me to be their poet laureate, a worthy chronicler of events and a representative of the diversity and cultural breadth of Edmontonians.
What is poetry anyway? What makes a song pop? Or rap? Why are humans obsessed with naming things? Why do people do the things they do? These questions are what draw me to create and are what I hope to explore as the city poet. Through this appointment, I hope to garner a deeper understanding of life in Edmonton, the human experience and the world around me. To quote Mayo Thompson, I'm 'a student of human nature.'"
