Daniel Bennett (a.k.a. Transit)

Alberta is in his veins, which is a bit surprising since Daniel Bennett, or Transit as he’s know to the hip-hop world, only moved to Calgary from BC in 2007. Yet his lyrics communicate an Alberta far richer than cowboys and pump jacks. His music has featured Jann Arden singing back-up and a music video cameo appearance by Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi.

In the words of Transit’s Alberta Anthem, winner of the 2014 ATB All Albertan Song contest, he has “rocked up in Germany, done shows in Spain, hit crowds in Scandinavia,” but Calgary is “the place I chose to raise my baby up.”

He’s toured eight European countries, appearing with artists such as Mac Miller, Swollen

Members, Shad, and Hilltop Hoods, and sold tens of thousands of singles from his four albums, most notably, STALE, which reached number four on the iTunes hip-hop charts.

Transit has been featured on Much Music, in Maclean’s Magazine, on Q with Jian Ghomeshi, and enjoys more than a million hits on his YouTube channel. In 2012, Transit made the short-list for Calgary’s first Poet Laureate competition.

Transit is also growing a vibrant Alberta hip-hop culture in Calgary. He launched and runs a hip-hop recording studio program with the Calgary Boys and Girls Club, helping to ensure the next generation develops its own artistic voice.