A ctor-activist-producer Tonya Williams, director Julien Christian Lutz (professionally known as Director X), recording artist Jully Black, and musician Lu Kala have been named as the first four recipients of the 2023 Legacy Awards by the Black Academy.

Williams will be honoured with the Visionary Award, Director X will receive the Trailblazer Award, Black will receive the Icon Award, and Kala will be feted as 2023’s Emerging Artist.

The Black Academy co-founders Shamier Anderson and Stephan James, alongside awards ceremony producer Insight Productions and broadcaster CBC, made the announcement Tuesday (Aug. 29), with additional honourees set to be revealed in the coming weeks, according to a news release.

Williams has worked in the entertainment industry for almost five decades. She played a starring role on the CBS soap opera The Young & The Restless for 19 years and has served as the founder and executive director of the Reelworld Screen Institute, Reelworld Film Festival, and Reelworld Foundation for 23 years.

Director X is known for his music videos for Drake, Rihanna, Justin Bieber, Kendrick Lamar, and other artists. He is the creator, showrunner, and executive producer of the upcoming Global TV series Robyn Hood, produced and distributed by Boat Rocker.

Black is a platinum-selling and Juno award-winning artist, and Canada’s Walk of Fame inductee, motivational speaker, actress, entrepreneur, and fitness leader “whose philanthropic work has taken her across North America and to villages from Bangladesh to South Africa,” said the release.

Kala is known for her debut EP Worthy and Pretty Girl Era, which spent 15 weeks in the top 15 of Top 40 radio in Canada, peaking at No. 10.

The Legacy Awards show, which celebrates Black Canadian talent, is produced by Jordan Rudder. Anderson and James of the Black Academy and Bay Mills Studios are executive producers, alongside John Brunton, Lindsay Cox, and Shannon Farr of Insight Productions (a Boat Rocker company), and Daniel Abrams. The awards, hosted by Keshia Chanté, will air on CBC and stream on CBC Gem on Sept. 24.

The 2023 edition of the awards marks the second of an exclusive three-year partnership with CBC.

Anderson said in a statement that “this year’s recipients all perfectly embody what we stand for: they epitomize Black excellence and are at the top of their game in their respective fields.”

James added: “Our priority is to showcase Black talent and to share the remarkable achievements of our community with the entire country – especially young Canadians – so that they can be inspired by these exceptional role models.”

The awards will take place at the Live Nation Canada’s History venue in Toronto.

Photos courtesy of Legacy Awards; (L-R) Tonya Williams, Director X, Jully Black, Lu Kala