Meet the winners of London's 4th annual Essence and Culture Awards
Gala celebrates contributions from members of London's many Black communities
Crowds of people packed into downtown London's Wolf Performance Hall on Sunday to recognize members of the city's Black communities for their contributions to arts, community service, sciences and more.
It was all for the 4th Essence and Culture Awards Show, an event staged by the London Afrocentric Arts Association (LACA) since 2022, previously at Aeolian Hall.
Nearly two dozen awards were handed out during the gala, which was emceed by Kerry King and Bronson Deagle.
The big winners of the night included Jelisa Wickham, Congress of Black Women London, Cameron James, DJ Wickham, Elli, King Cruff, Moses Latigo Odida, The London Kids Community Gospel Choir, and several others.
Two legacy awards were also handed out by the London Black Heritage Council (LBHC). A full list of award winners can be found below.
Colin Caleb, executive director of the London AfroCentric Arts Association, said the awards were born out of the COVID-19 pandemic as a way of uplifting local Black communities.
"The best way we thought we could do that was by recognizing people within our communities, and I say communities because there's at least 15 Black countries represented here in London," Caleb said.
"It was also a way for our communities to get together and share a moment in Black History Month." The gala was originally scheduled for Feb. 16, but was postponed by a strong winter storm.
Organizers put forward a record 110 nominees for members of the public to vote on, about double the number of nominees from last year.
More than 9,000 votes were cast, with voters allowed one ballot per category, said Michelle Brissette, LACA's director of operations.
Brissette highlighted several of the winners, including the Congress of Black Women London, which she says has been nominated every year for outstanding community service by a group or organization.
The award was presented to the group by London police, who also presented the individual award to Jelisa Wickham, owner of Crafted Crown, a local printing service company.
The youngest winner was Oforiwa Ofori, a young actor who recently played one of the von Trapp children in The Sound of Music at the Grand Theatre.
"She is our youngest recipient out of all the categories in all four years," Brissette said. "She's quite a talented young lady. I believe she's seven- or eight-years-old."
Ofori took home outstanding arts in performing, while the award for outstanding arts, literature or visual, was given to Moses Latigo Odida, a local filmmaker.
Latigo Odida traversed Canada to document the experiences of Black caregivers for an eight-part mini-series, Down: Canada's Black Caregivers.
Dr. Jedrin Ngungu, a psychiatrist with London Health Sciences Centre, received the award for medicine, health and sciences, which was presented by Cathy Wood, LHSC's senior director of Black health.
Last year, CBC London interviewed Ngungu about his role co-leading a medical support hub aimed at bridging gaps between Black patients and the health-care system as part of an initiative by Black Physicians Association of Ontario.
Nancy Komi, a local kindergarten teacher and hairstylist, received the outstanding educator award. Komi recently spoke with CBC London about her Textured Treasures hair workshop, where she teaches young Black girls how to style their natural hair.
Sunday's gala featured performances from hip hop artists King Deo and Cameron James, saxophonists Joshua Williams and Gianny Correa, R&B artist Tifanny Chantelle, and Deva Don, among others.
Several DJs from across southwestern Ontario also won awards, including London's The Bachelor's Entertainment, DJ 8 Ball from the Windsor area, and Dava Ranks from Cambridge.
Cameron James, Elli, The London Kids Community Gospel Choir, and Trizzy took home artist of the year awards for their respective genres, along with King Cruff, who was recently nominated for a Juno for reggae recording of the year.
Caleb says the awards further the community work done by LACA, for which it was recognized by the city with a diversity, race relations & inclusivity award last year.
He says any profit the awards bring in goes back into LACA's work.
"London is our home, and we also have to play that part in making it a great city. And I think London is a great city."
Below is a full list of award winners:
- Best Afro/Island/World Artiste of the Year: King Cruff
- Best Gospel/Contemporary Artiste of the Year: The London Kids Community Gospel Choir
- Best Hip Hop/Rap Artiste: Cameron James
- Best Rhythm & Soul Artiste of the Year: Elli
- Club/Event/Wedding DJ of the Year - East: Dava Ranks
- Club/Event/Wedding DJ of the Year - London/Middlesex: The Bachelor's Entertainment
- Club/Event/Wedding DJ of the Year - West: DJ 8 Ball
- Elementary Students Black History Month Poster Contest: Kleo Idoko (Grade 4); Natalie Phillips (Grade 5); Quentin Livits (Grade 6); Alia Jamal (Grade 7/8)
- Legacy Awards (LBHC): Joseph Chakabveyo and Achlaï Ernest Wallace
- New Horizon - Best New Artiste of the Year: Trizzy
- Outstanding Arts - Performing: Oforiwa Ofori (Theatre)
- Outstanding Arts - Literature/Visual: Moses Latigo Odida (Videographer)
- Outstanding Community Service - Individual: Jelisa Wickham
- Outstanding Community Service - Group/Organization: Congress of Black Women London
- Outstanding Contributions to Broadcasting and Entertainment: Dave Henry
- Outstanding Educator: Nancy Komi
- Outstanding Medicine/Health/Science: Jedrin Ngungu
- Online/Radio DJ of the Year: DJ Wickham (KingdomNubia Radio)
- Outstanding Youth Achievements - Secondary School: Griffith Turcott
- Outstanding Youth Achievements - Post-Secondary: Forbehn Fossungu
For more stories about the experiences of Black Canadians — from anti-Black racism to success stories within the Black community — check out Being Black in Canada, a CBC project Black Canadians can be proud of. You can read more stories here. You can read more stories here.
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