UWC Alumni Report: Justin Holness (Class of 2007), Award-winning Rapper and Entrepreneur

Tue. Mar. 1, 2022

Justin Holness, also known by his artist name Jah’kota, is an award-winning rapper and entrepreneur. He made history in 2016 for being the first Indigenous hip-hop artist to drop a verse in the Senate of Canada. Justin was recently nominated in the “Social Voice” category at the 2021 Summer Solstice Indigenous Music Awards for raising awareness about Indigenous issues through music and social media. His track “Welcome to the Matriarch” is a 2022 Native American Music Awards nominee for the Best Rap Hip Hop Video and Best Live Performance Video. He is also the founder of TR1BE, a profit-sharing streaming platform featuring Black and Indigenous musicians that earned him a CBC Trailblazer Award. Justin has also worked for Futurpreneur Canada as a business development manager for young Indigenous entrepreneurs.

“During the pandemic, I moved back home to Treaty 4 (Saskatchewan) where my First Nation community of Ocean Man First Nation is, to go back to school to increase my value so I can continue to support Indigenous peoples in business and economic development towards the mission to achieve self-determination. I am currently enrolled at the First Nation University studying Indigenous business majoring in entrepreneurship and aiming to get my financial advising certification to help Black and Indigenous People increase their financial literacy.”