2023 Legacy Awards: First Four Recipients Announced Including Jully Black And Director X  

The first four recipients of the 2023 Legacy Awards have been revealed.

On Tuesday, the founders of The Black Academy – actors, producers and Scarborough-born brothers, Shamier Anderson and Stephan James – alongside Insight Productions and CBC, announced the first four Canadian stars set to receive their flowers at the second annual awards show: Canadian screen industry godmother Tonya Williams; legendary filmmaker Julien Christian Lutz, better known as Director X; platinum-selling artist Jully Black; and rising star Lu Kala.

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ET Canada’s Keshia Chanté To Host The 2023 Legacy Awards With Shamier Anderson And Stephan James

ET Canada’s multi-talented Keshia Chanté is set to host the live 90-minute event – featuring performances, award presentations and tributes honouring Black Canadian talent – from History in Toronto. A limited number of tickets will be available to the general public beginning tomorrow (Wednesday, August 30) by visiting Ticketmaster.

In the coming weeks, additional honourees, performers and presenters will be announced before the awards ceremony airs on CBC and CBC Gem on Sunday, September 24, 2023 at 8 p.m.

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“Honouring Jully, Tonya, X, and Lu is a no brainer for The Legacy Awards,” said Shamier Anderson , co-founder of The Black Academy — a Canadian organization that operates at the intersection of Black popular culture and social justice — and executive producer of The Legacy Awards. “This year’s recipients all perfectly embody what we stand for: they epitomize Black excellence and are at the top of their game in their respective fields.”

Anderson’s brother, fellow co-founder of The Black Academy and executive producer of The Legacy Awards, Stephan James added: “Our priority is to showcase Black talent and to share the remarkable achievements of our community with the entire country – especially young Canadians – so that they can be inspired by these exceptional role models.”

Recipients Of The 2023 Legacy Awards

Jully Black

The platinum-selling and JUNO award-winning recording artist will receive the 2023 Icon Award for all her music and unforgettable live performances, her stamina and lasting popularity, and for her allyship and the impact she has made internationally.

Black is also a motivational speaker, actress, entrepreneur and fitness leader whose philanthropic work has taken her across North America and to villages from Bangladesh to South Africa. The Canada Walk of Fame inductee has written songs for industry heavyweights including Nas and Destiny’s Child and performed alongside artists including Alicia Keys, Kanye West, Elton John and Jessie Reyez.

Lu Kala

Lu Kala is set to receive the 2023 Emerging Artist Award in recognition of her undeniable talent for creating upbeat, infectious songs of female empowerment and for all she will inevitably accomplish in the future.

Between her debut EP Worthy, “Pretty Girl Era”, and additional singles, the fiery-voiced songstress is redefining what a pop star sounds and looks like, while having amassed over 72 million streams. “Pretty Girl Era” spent 15 weeks in the top 15 of Top 40 radio in Canada, peaking at #10.

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Director X

Director X, born Julien Christian Lutz, is this year’s recipient of the Trailblazer Award. The honourable trophy praises the iconic music video director’s indelible work in pioneering a visual aesthetic that is both lauded and much-copied, and commends his enduring impact and mentorship.

While X is known for his work with Drake, Rihanna, Justin Bieber, and Kendrick Lamar, to name a few, he is also the creator, showrunner and EP of the highly anticipated “Robyn Hood” — his first original TV series coming to Global this fall. X has also directed cult-fave “Superfly” and has created art installations for Toronto’s Nuit Blanche and the Ontario Science Center. He uses his platform for social change and founded Operation Prefrontal Cortex — an initiative created to reduce Toronto’s gun violence through mindfulness and meditation.

Tonya Williams

Award-winning actress, activist and producer, Tonya Williams, is the recipient of the 2023 Visionary Award, honouring her exceptional leadership, contagious tenacity, innovation, activism and fierce dedication to uplifting communities of colour.

Williams, who has worked in the entertainment industry for the last 48 years, is best known for her 19 years starring on the daytime drama “The Young & The Restless” as Dr. Olivia Winters and for her 23 years as the founder and executive director of Reelworld Screen Institute, Reelworld Film Festival and Reelworld Foundation. She created Reelworld to increase opportunities, access, and inclusion for Black, Indigenous, Asian and People of Colour in the screen industries in Canada.

The final round of fan choice voting for digital content creators opens on Friday, September 1. The Fan Choice Digital Content Creator Award allows fans to choose their favourite Black-identifying Canadian digital content creators. The winner will be announced during The Legacy Awards on Sunday, September 24. Click here for more details.