album Cash Crop. Because of Canadian hip hop's lack of commercial visibility, the award was presented during the non-televised portion of the ceremony, along with the technical awards, rather than at the televised main gala. The band had not yet arrived at the ceremony when the award was announced—when they did arrive, they were simply pulled aside and told that they had won the award. Alleging that racism was a factor in the award's scheduling, the band refused to accept the award. Speaking to the press afterward, the group and their co-manager said that For several weeks cultural critics and hip hop musicians debated the issue in the press—some suggested, in fact, that the hip hop award's lack of visibility could be seen as not just a result of Canadian hip hop's poor commercial performance, but also a contributing factor. Soon afterward, Rascalz released "Northern Touch", a collaboration with emerging rappers Checkmate, Kardinal Offishall, Thrust and Choclair. Originally recorded in 1997 for a compilation album that fell through and was never released, the band opted to release it as a standalone single in 1998. It became a galvanizing statement of purpose for Canadian hip hop musicians and beat the odds to become the first Canadian hip hop hit since 1991. Although the song just barely missed the national Top 40 charts, peaking at number 41 in RPM, it reached the Top 10 in most major markets, and was the first Canadian hip hop song to reach the Top 100 at all, and the first to garner widespread radio airplay both in Canada and internationally, since 1991. Maestro Fresh-Wes, now known simply as Maestro, also broke his own hit jinx in 1998, with "Stick to Your Vision"—buoyed, in part, by a Guess Who sample—becoming his first Top 40 hit in seven years. Although he would not actually reach the Top 40 until 2001's "BaKardi Slang", Kardinal Offishall also made his first appearance as a solo artist in RPM'''s Top 100 in 1998, peaking at number 91 with "On wit da Show". Artists such as Choclair, Jelleestone and Saukrates were also beginning to make waves in the press, as the year's more dramatic events renewed attention on Canadian hip hop. As a result of the Rascalz controversy, the Junos moved the Rap award to the main ceremony the following year. It was won by "Northern Touch". The participating artists performed the song