I came across Shad's The Old Prince CD while in Canada. It was somewhat difficult finding a CD. I asked one of the workers at the store to recommend popular Canadian rappers and he kept referring me to US artists. After a little persistence, I finally found a Canadian rapper (I think this was before Drake hit it big) - Shad.
I don't know how Shad is viewed in Canada. I found his style and lyrics to be somewhat whimsical and not too serious, which at times is refreshing. His music on the CD was not "hardcore" by any means, I would call them light and easy on the ears, if not overly appealing to my sonic tastes. I can't say Shad is one my favorite finds from international rappers, but I enjoyed his CD, even if it is not on my "must listen to regularly list"
I have included a link to one my favorite songs off of his CD below.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shad_%28rapper%29
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExOCc_bHj6U&feature=related
http://rindgeleaphart.wordpress.com/
Rindge Leaphart