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Aquakultre

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Aquakultre
A crowd at night on a public square during a concert
Aquakultre performing at Grand Parade for New Year's Eve
Background information
OriginHalifax, Nova Scotia
Genreship-hop, soul, R&B
Years active2015-
LabelForward Music Group
Websiteaquakultre.info

Aquakultre is a Canadian soul and R&B[1] musical project from Halifax, Nova Scotia, whose core member is singer and rapper Lance Sampson.[2]

Background

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Sampson's ancestors are from Africville, and he grew up in the Uniacke Square neighbourhood of Halifax.[3][4] He is the great-grandson of Daniel Perry Sampson, a Halifax resident who was executed for murder after a disputed conviction in 1935, with new evidence having emerged in the 2020s, in part through Lance's own research, that Daniel likely did not write or sign the confession statement attributed to him.[5]

At 20, he was charged with robbing a taxi driver of his cell phone.[6] He was later found to be in possession of a loaded handgun, crack cocaine and the stolen property.[6] He received a five-year prison sentence, but was released after 19 months. He taught himself to play the guitar while incarcerated after being exposed to the music of Common and Erykah Badu.[7]

Career

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Sampson began performing as a rapper and singer in 2015, and in 2018 he won CBC Music's annual Searchlight competition with "Sure", a song he had written in prison.[8]

He recorded Legacy in just seven days at the National Music Centre in Calgary, Alberta, with a band that included Nathan Doucet, Jeremy Costello and Nick Dourado.[9] Following the release of preview singles "Pay It Forward", "I Doubt It" and "Wife Tonight",[10] the album was released in May 2020 on Black Buffalo Records.[11] It was a longlisted nominee for the 2020 Polaris Music Prize.[12]

In August 2020, he announced that his second album Bleeding Gums Murphy, a collaboration with DJ and producer Uncle Fester, would be released on October 9.[13]

His video for "Pay It Forward", directed by Sampson and Evan Elliot, won the Audience Award at the 2021 Prism Prize.[14]

Aquakultre performed on the 2021 FreeUp! The Emancipation Day Special.[15] He contributed vocals for "Summer Night Songs", the title song of the 2021 documentary The North Star: Finding Black Mecca.[16]

His third album, Don't Trip, was released in July 2022,[17] and was longlisted for the 2023 Polaris Music Prize.[18]

His latest album, 1783, draws on the history of Black Nova Scotians, and was released in February of 2026.[19] It explores both Black Nova Scotian history and Sampson's own family heritage, including "Gallows", a song written from the perspective of his great-grandfather in the final moments before his death.[20] The album was shortlisted for the 2026 Polaris Music Prize,[21] and the songs "Gallows" and "Holy" were longlisted for the SOCAN Polaris Song Prize.[22] On June 24, 2026, Complex Canada ranked 1783 4th in their 10 Best Canadian Albums of 2026 (So Far) list.[23]

References

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  1. ↑ Beedham, Tom (20 July 2022). "Aquakultre Is More Than Just Halifax's Hottest R&B Star — He's a Community". exclaim.com. Exclaim!. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
  2. ↑ Stephen Cooke, "Aquakultre’s Legacy spreads message of compassion, heritage". Halifax Chronicle-Herald, June 17, 2020.
  3. ↑ "Aquakultre". EVERYSEEKER. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
  4. ↑ Mullin, Morgan. "Aquakultre's feast of a lifetime". The Coast Halifax. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
  5. ↑ "Inside the push to exonerate a Black man executed 90 years ago in Halifax". CBC News Nova Scotia, October 15, 2025.
  6. 1 2 "Man Charged with Weapon Offences". www.halifax.ca. 13 June 2013.
  7. ↑ Lawrence, Grant. "Searchlight 2018 winner: aquakultre | CBC Music Events Searchlight". CBC. Retrieved 1 January 2026.
  8. ↑ Tara Thorne, "Aquakultre wins CBC Searchlight". The Coast, March 19, 2018.
  9. ↑ Morgan Mullin, " Aquakultre's feast of a lifetime: How the band's debut LP Legacy sets the table for excellence". The Coast, May 7, 2020.
  10. ↑ Calum Slingerland, "Aquakultre Detail New Album 'Legacy,' Share 'Wife Tonight'". Exclaim!, April 16, 2020.
  11. ↑ Oliver Crook, "Aquakultre Cement Their 'Legacy' as Canadian Neo-Soul Breakouts". Exclaim!, May 5, 2020.
  12. ↑ Tom Skinner, "The Weeknd and Caribou lead 2020 Polaris Music Prize longlist". NME, June 16, 2020.
  13. ↑ Matt Bobkin, "Aquakultre and Uncle Fester Announce New Album 'Bleeding Gums Murphy'". Exclaim!, August 12, 2020.
  14. ↑ "Haviah Mighty's Thirteen wins 2021 Prism Prize for top Canadian music video". CBC News, July 26, 2021.
  15. ↑ "FreeUp!: This Sunday, join artists across Canada to celebrate Emancipation Day 2021". CBC Arts, July 27, 2021.
  16. ↑ "Documentary about Chatham-Kent's Black communities available online". chathamthisweek. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  17. ↑ "Summer 2022 guide: 14 albums you need to hear". CBC Music, June 20, 2022.
  18. ↑ "2023 Polaris Music Prize long list: Feist, Jessie Reyez and more". CBC Music, June 13, 2023.
  19. ↑ Matt Horseman, "Aquakultre’s 1783 album delves into enduring ties in Black Nova Scotia". The Globe and Mail, February 4, 2026.
  20. ↑ Kyle Mullin, "Aquakultre Unearths Halifax History to Correct a 'Miscarriage of Justice'. Exclaim!, February 4, 2026.
  21. ↑ David Friend, "Charlotte Cornfield and indie icon Peaches among Toronto artists shortlisted for $30,000 Polaris Music Prize". Toronto Star, July 9, 2026.
  22. ↑ Natalie Harmsen, "2026 SOCAN Polaris Song Prize long list: Begonia, Cadence Weapon, Charlotte Day Wilson and more". CBC Music, June 24, 2026.
  23. ↑ Wavvy, Mr. (2026-06-24). "Best Canadian Music 2026: Top Albums Of The Year So Far". Complex. Retrieved 2026-06-25.
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