Maisa One

Festival Participant

Masia One was born in Singapore, grew up in Vancouver BC and moved to Toronto, where she completed an Honors BA in Architecture at the University of Toronto. She discovered hip hop culture as a young girl in Singapore after stumbling upon a bootleg version of a Public Enemy tape in a marketplace. In her formative years, she dabbled in all elements of hip hop culture including visual arts and break dancing but her accomplishments lie as an emcee. In 2003, she started her own record label, The M1 Group and debuted her first album, Mississauga. In a short time span, the M1 Group released three videos that gained national airplay to correspond with the album including the Much Music Video Award nominated Split Second Time. This marked the first time a female (as well as an Asian) had been nominated for this award in the category of hip hop. In 2004 she wrote and performed a commercial for the CBC, which later aired both on TV and as a trailer at Famous Players Theatres nationwide. In the same year, she received the CCNC Youth Pioneer award in recognition of breaking new ground for Chinese Canadians in mainstream media. Her other pursuits include spearheading The M1 Academy, a monthly showcase that opened a stage for visual and spoken talent in Toronto and acting as a Cultural Liaison for Aritzia, a Canadian company retailing womens fashion and culture. As well, she continues to work closely with young females in marginalized GTA communities through organizations such as METRAC and the YWCA.