Our Story

Growing up, Arjun was a shy, introverted boy. He struggled to fit in at school as he hoped to find easier ways through which he could express himself. That is when he was introduced to theatre, a platform that gave him the stage to be whoever he wants to be without the fear of judgment. Arjun also found himself drawing inspiration from his favourite song back then : “I can” by Nas, which continues to be his “lift-me-up” even today! Soon he realized that he wanted to help others like him find their medium of liberation. Arjun has worked as a filmmaker and brand marketing expert for both non-profit and for-profit organizations for over a decade. His grounding in community media, advertising, and his experience of working with youth have always helped him come up with high-impact creative solutions that are aspirational, relatable, and memorable. When he is not working, he is either cooking for his partner or out on the streets clicking pictures, with his beloved dog Libby (short for Library) by his side.

For the last 20 years, Andel James has been an active contributor to the Hip-Hop community as a dancer, DJ, youth outreach worker, program coordinator and director at Unity Charity, Blueprintforlife and 2U4U. In 2007, he began his Unity journey as a Program Coordinator under Michael Prosserman and eventually became the Program Director to co-design Unity’s signature programming model for both artists and youth in the community. Andel has also been a leading staff member of Blueprintforlife under Stephen Leafloor and had the opportunity to work in remote indigenous communities, youth detention centres and urban high schools across Canada. Andel is also the curator for the 2U4U monthly events that provide a platform for street dancers and DJs to connect and build with other artists in the Hip-Hop community. Having worked with over 5000 youth and artists through various school and community-based programs, Andel is excited to join Unity Charity once again as their first Artist Manager.

Aaleem Mohammed is an alternative hip-hop artist and community animator. He started volunteering in 2010 as a Youth Tenant Representative for his home community. Through artistry and proposals, he has been awarded over $200,000 + toward his home neighborhood revitalization projects. He is an alumni of the Independent Music Production (IMP) program at Seneca @ York, and recipient of the Community Arts Practice scholarship @ York University. Since 2013, he has worked professionally in his arts field; creating music albums, videos, and mixtapes that express his soul, spirit, and lived experience. Aaleem’s capacity for resilience and transformation led him into crafting a workshop series called HEARt* (Healing Engagement Artivism for Recovery from trauma*) based on using arts, music and writing methodologies with spiritually-based pedagogy towards the positive release of stress in youth. In 2015, he created the first HEARt* festival; a space for youth and elders to perform music from their heart. With efforts to bridge the gaps between residents within the Humber Summit area, the festival would offer free food, activities, giveaways, and introduce access to services from organizations or small businesses in and around the community. Aaleem has been brought on to Unity Charity as their Artist Program Assistant and is loving the people and environment he works in. He continues to expand and create music in a professional capacity, and seeks to travel and share his message of authentic self-expression whilst diving deeper into his connection to spirit.

Rock “Grimrock” Mejia is a multi-disciplined Hip Hop artist educator with roots in dance and music and a portfolio that encompasses over 25 years of projects, performances and tours. Amplifying arts, music and Black culture in western Canada as a founding member of the multi-dimensional platform 10at10, supporting the Breaking community with his crew Grim Reminder and providing Hip Hop art programs for education and underprivileged communities in Western Canada, Rocky is in constant digging mode as he continues to discover multiple ways to facilitate and contribute to the community. As part of Unity Charity, Rocky utilizes his unique skill set to provide the diverse communities of Halifax area with high quality accessible programs and opportunity for growth. His passion and energy is fueled by the Hip Hop thought of “each One teach One” as he continues to learn and share his story for the next generation.

Jordan Farmer, known professionally as Tempo, is a multifaceted creative entrepreneur and audio engineer by trade. Starting as a dancer, Jordan worked with The Woods, Concrete Roots and Unity Charity, developing a strong sense of community. Equipped with a thorough understanding and connection to music, this fuelled the need to take control of the very language that influenced his movement, ultimately resulting in the transition to production. Making the jump to music, the 2019 HopScotch All Styles winner has since dedicated his craft to dissecting and internalizing the science of music to translate to a language that resonates through speakers.

Born in Port-Au-Prince, Haiti, and raised in West Palm Beach, Florida, David Delisca is a writer, poet, actor and humorist. A versatile artist, he uses stories about the immigrant and diasporic experience, as well as other various human realities, to bridge realms of communication. As an arts educator and facilitator, he has led hundreds of sessions throughout Canada, with various initiatives, using art to focus on such subjects as social justice, anti-bullying and hip-hop, among other topics.

Before working at Unity, Maddie was a writer and pop music critic based in Montreal and Toronto. Since 2017, they have been involved in the Toronto street dance community, organizing practice sessions and events and growing the local waacking/whacking scene. As someone who has found community and inspiration through art, they are proud to support other members of the arts community in their work, and to help nurture artistic discovery and self-expression in future generations.

Adrian Bernard A.K.A Switch B is one of Toronto’s Top B-Boys and Hip-Hop Arts Educators. Having started dance in 2002, Adrian has travelled to many countries and parts of Canada through Educational, as well as competitive ventures. Some of these countries include Korea, The United States, Italy, Germany, Holland and Belgium. Through Arts Education, Adrian has taught dance in First Nations Reserves such as Janvier, Fort Chip, Fort Vermilion, Fort McKay, Anzac, Lac Seul and Kuggaruk. Adrian’s dance expertise is not only limited to a dance studio setting. Since 2012 Adrian has taught in Community Centre’s, High school classrooms, Rehabilitation clinics, halfway houses and even at the Roy McMurtry Youth Centre a Youth Prison. Having a background is Social Work, Adrian is familiar with many different personalities and age groups. Adrian hopes to one day open up his own learning facility through the Arts. Outside of education Adrian Bernard, or as many know him in the competitive circuit Switch B has developed a reputation as a Battle B-Boy. In 2007 his dance crew The Floor Assassins Militia represented Canada in the B-Boy Unit World Finals in Seoul Korea. The F.A.M. has won The House of Paint Hip-Hop festival 3 times, and Switch B took first place at the Skillz-O-Meter 5 Championships in Montreal back in 2015. Later in 2015 Adrian was involved in a car accident that would temporarily put dance on hold. Through consistent training and rehabilitation throughout 2016, Adrian came back and placed first at The Shine one on one Breaking competition in Vancouver 2017. Recognized as a household name in Canada, Adrian continues to train and teach his craft. Now becoming an older generation B-Boy in the scene, Adrian has been taking his time to train and educate the next generation of dancers in Toronto.