A Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to Joni Mitchell (pictured), the widely acclaimed Canadian-American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who is known for such songs as “Big Yellow Taxi,” “Both Sides, Now,” “Chelsea Morning,” “Help Me,” and “River.”

In the running for Contemporary Roots Album of the Year are Strange Trip Ahead (Mariel Buckley), The Hammer & The Rose (Matt Andersen), Purple Gas (Noeline Hofmann) These Dark Canyons (The Young Novelists), and Further From The Country (William Prince). Traditional Roots Music Album of the Year nominees include I Lost My Heart on Friday (Aerialists), Gold And Coal (Cassie and Maggie), The Moon’s Daughter (Heather MacIsaac), Heal The Divide (Morgan Toney), and Folk Signals (The Southern Residents).

Also of potential interest to AcousticMusicScene.com readers are the nominees for Blues Album of the Year. These include Sing Pretty Blues (Crystal Shawanda), Ooh Yeah! (Kenny “Blues Boss” Wayne), The Medicine (Miss Emily), Answer The Call (Secondhand Dreamcar), and Hear My Heart (Steve Mariner).

In addition to her Contemporary Album of the Year nomination for Purple Gas, Noeline Hofmann is among the 10 nominees for Breakthrough Artist of the Year. . Among the five nominees for Adult Contemporary Album of the Year are Conditions of Love Vol. 1 (Rose Cousins) and Better Broken (Sarah McLachlan, while Children’s Album of the Year nominees include Little Leaf (Chris McKhool).

In total, there are 248 nominees in the running across 47 categories for Canada’s top music awards. Eight-time JUNO Award-winner Justin Bieber and Tate McRae lead the pack with six nominations each.

More information on Prince may be found online at williamprincemusic.com. Here’s a link for the official video for “When You Miss Someone,” one of the songs on William Prince’s Stand in the Joy album:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TxVzg0F4fcU.

Mia Kelly, a singer-songwriter from Gatineau, Quebec who writes and performs in both French and English, was the recipient of two Canadian Folk Music Awards. Kelly, who released her debut album, Garden Through the War, in August 2022, was honored as both New/Emerging Artist of the Year and Young Performer of the Year. She was previously named Emerging Artist of the Year by Culture Outaouais and represented Canada as a finalist at the 2023 Jeux De La Francophonie. Visit her website (miakellymusic.com) to learn more about this young artist and to view a few videos.

The Canadian Folk Music Awards were established in 2005 to bring greater exposure to the breadth and depth of Canadian folk music, celebrating and promoting it in all its forms. The annual awards presentation caps a few days of artist showcases. More than 100 jurors — located across Canada and representing all of its official provinces, territories and languages — determine the recipients in each category.

A complete list of winners in the 2024 Canadian Folk Music Awards follows, while
more information may be found online at folkawards.ca.

Children’s Album of the Year:
Ginalina for Going Back: Remembered and Remixed Family Folk Songs

Contemporary Album of the Year:
William Prince for Stand in the Joy

Contemporary Singer of the Year:
Suzie Vinnick for Fall Back Home

English Songwriter of the Year:
Jacob Brodovsky for I Love You and I’m Sorry

Ensemble of the Year:
Genticorum for Au Couer de l’aube

French Songwriter of the Year:
Aleksi Campagne & Michelle Campagne (of Aleksi Campagne) for For The Giving/ Sans rien donner

Global Roots Album of the Year:
Sophie Lukacs for Bamako

Indigenous Songwriter of the Year:
Kaeley Jade Wiebe (of Kaeley Jade) for Turpentine

Instrumental Composer of the Year:
Vinta for Beacons

Instrumental Group of the Year:
Queen Kong for Fray

Instrumental Solo Artist of the Year:
Aaron Colis for Before Daylight in the Morning

New/Emerging Artist of the Year:
Mia Kelly for Garden Through the War

Oliver Schroer Pushing the Boundaries Award:
Kune for Universal Echos

Producer(s) of the Year: (Tie)
Drew Jurecka and Dan Rosenberg for Silent Tears: The Last Yiddish Tango (Payadora Tango Ensemble)

Jill Barber and Erik P.H. Nielsen for Homemaker (Jill Barber)

Single of the Year:
“When You Miss Someone” (William Prince)

Solo Artist of the Year:
William Prince for Stand in the Joy

Traditional Album of the Year:
Jocelyn Pettit & Ellen Gira for All It Brings

Traditional Singer of the Year:
Mary Beth Carty for Crossing the Causeway

Unsung Hero:
John Clarke

Vocal Group of the Year:
The Bombadills for Dear Friend

Young Performer of the Year:
Mia Kelly for Garden Through the War

To mark its 20th anniversary, the Canadian Folk Music Awards return next year to Ottawa, Ontario — where it all began in 2005.

A Winnipeg, Manitoba-based country-folk singer-songwriter from Peguis First Nation, William Prince previously received a Juno Award for Contemporary Roots Album of the Year in 2017 for his debut release, Earthly Days, which was also a finalist for Indigenous Music Album of the Year. His album Reliever was among the nominees for Contemporary Roots Album of the Year in the Juno Awards of 2021, while he won awards for Contemporary Album of the Year and English Songwriter of the Year during that year’s Canadian Folk Music Awards. Prince was also among the nominees for Songwriter of the Year, a coveted award that went to Aysanabee, an indigenous artist who, along with previous Juno Award winner Allison Russell, also paid tribute to the late notable artists Gordon Lightfoot and Robbie Robertson during the awards ceremonies.

Here’s a link for the official video for “When You Miss Someone,” one of the songs on William Prince’s Stand in the Joy album:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TxVzg0F4fcU

Also In the running for Contemporary Roots Album of the Year were The Returner (Allison Russell), We Will Never Be The Same ((Good Lovelies), Beyond the Reservoir (Julian Taylor), and A Light in the Attic (Logan Staats).

David Francey is an expressive and revered Scotland-born and southern Ontario-based singer-songwriter and storyteller. Besides his Juno for The Breath Between, Francey is the recipient of three previous Juno Awards for Roots and Traditional Album – Solo: Right of Passage (2008), Skating Rink (2004), and Far End of Summer (2002). He’s also won several Canaian Folk Music Awards, while Penguin Eggs magazine named Skating Rink and Far End of Summer as Album of the Year in 2003 and 2002, respectively. . Francey, who launched his career as a folksinger-songwriter at age 45 – after working as a carpenter and in rail yards for 20 years, is also the winner of the International Acoustic Music Awards (2010), and a recipient of the prestigious SOCAN Folk Music Award and the grand prize in the folk category for the John Lennon Songwriting Awards. Francey has also had his songs covered by such notable artists as Tracy Grammer, James Keelaghan, the Del McCoury Band, and The Rankin Family.

Here’s a link to enjoy a live performance by David Francey of the title track of his album, The Breath Between, a poignant, introspective reminder of the passage of time:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LM6Sa-A8r8

Traditional Roots Album of the Year nominees also included Paint Horse (Benjamin Dakota Rogers), Roses (Jackson Hollow), Second Hand (James Keelaghan), and Resilience (Morgan Toney).

A complete list of JUNO Awards winners can be found, along with additional information, online at junoawards.ca.

Alberta-based singer-songwriter John Wort Hannam picked up two awards (Contemporary Album of the Year and Solo Artist of the Year for his album Long Haul). So too did Allison de Groot & Tatiana Hargreaves (Traditional Album of the Year and Instrumental Group of the Year for Hurricane Clarice) and Toronto-based, genre bending global roots music instrumental group Sultans of String (Global Roots Album of the Year for Sanctuary and Producers of the Year – Chris McKhool and John “Beetle” Bailey). A number of other artists received awards as well.

John Wort Hannan, who previously received a Canadian Folk Music Award for Contemporary Folk Album of the Year, is an acclaimed folk and roots artist who has also been a winner in the prestigious Kerrville New Folk Competition, a three-time grand-prize winner in the Calgary Folk Festival Songwriting Competition (2004, 2007, 2009), the Gold (top) winner in the Folk/Acoustic Category in the 34th Annual Mid-Atlantic Song Contest (2018), and a CBC Galaxie Rising Star Award recipient. The troubadour, whose songs often focus on life in Western Canada and the human experience as seen through the eyes of working people has performed throughout North America and beyond – including during the 2012 Olympic Summer Games in London, UK. Long Haul is Wort Hannam’s eighth studio album.

Here’s a link to the official video for the title track of John Wort Hannam’s album, Long Haul:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zj9cpSFdIJs.

Allison de Groot & Tatiana Hargreaves are a banjo and fiddle duo and are leading players in today’s young generation of roots musicians. Although they have been performing together for several years, de Groot is also known for her intricate clawhammer banjo work with Bruce Molsky, while Hargreaves has accompanied Laurie Lewis and David Rawlings with her powerhouse fiddling and teaches bluegrass fiddle at UNC-Chapel Hill. Hurricane Clarice is the duo’s second album. Blending old and new, its musical repertoire comes from field recordings, old hymns and LPs, as well as modern literary sources and their own original compositions.

Here’s a link to view a video of Allison DeGroot & Tatiana Hargreaves performing tunes from Hurricane Clarice: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QzPI7Q5h04.

Sultans of String’s wide-ranging musical palette features elements of Spanish flamenco, Celtic reels, Django-inspired jazz, Arabic, Cuban, and South Asian rhythms, and more. Like Wort Hannam, Sultans of String also was honored for its eighth album during the Canadian Folk Music Awards. Released in November 2021, Sanctuary is the second installment in the band’s Refugee Project, which violinist and bandleader Chris McKhool says is “centered around the positive contributions of refugees and new immigrants to Canada” and tells the story of how to communicate with others through the global language of music. McKhool received a 2021 CFMA as Producer of the Year for its predecessor, Refugee. According to McKhool, Sanctuary’s 11 songs speak to the challenges facing the world’s displaced people – their stories, their songs, their persistence, and their humanity.

Here’s a link to view the official trailer for a film about The Refugee Project that screened during the Canadian Folk Music Awards weekend: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvVe90RJwb4.

The Canadian Folk Music Awards were established in 2005 to bring greater exposure to the breadth and depth of Canadian folk music, celebrating and promoting it in all its forms. This year’s 104 nominees spanned the country from Leader, Saskatchewan to Papineauville, Quebec, and from Salt Spring Island, British Columbia to Fredericton, New Brunswick. They were chosen for each category via two-stage jury process. More than 100 jurors, located across Canada and representing all of its official provinces, territories and languages determine the recipients in each category.

A complete list of winners in the 2023 Canadian Folk Music Awards nominees follows, while
more information may be found online at folkawards.ca.

Children’s Album of the Year / Album jeunesse de l’année
Folk For Little Folk Volume 1 (Gordie Crazylegs MacKeeman)

Contemporary Album of the Year / Album contemporain de l’année
Long Haul (John Wort Hannam)

Contemporary Singer of the Year / Chanteur contemporain de l’année
Kyle McKearney (Down-Home)

English Songwriter(s) / Auteur compositeur(s) anglophone
Abigail Lapell (Stolen Time)

Ensemble of the Year / Groupe de l’année
The Slocan Ramblers (Up the Hill and Through the Fog)

French Songwriter(s) of the Year / Auteur-compositeur(s) francophone de l’année
Geneviève Roberge-Bouchard & Alain Barbeau (J’attends encore)

Global Roots Album of the Year / Album traditions du monde de l’année
Sanctuary (Sultans of String)

Indigenous Songwriter(s) of the Year / Auteur compositeur(s) autochtone de l’année
Amanda Rheaume (The Spaces In Between)

Instrumental Group of the Year / Groupe instrumental de l’année
Allison de Groot & Tatiana Hargreaves (Hurricane Clarice)

Instrumental Solo Artist of the Year / Instrumentiste solo de l’année
Waymzy (Inchoate)

New/Emerging Artist(s) of the Year / Artiste(s) de la relève de l’année
RedFox (Stranger Love)

Oliver Schroer Pushing the Boundaries Award / Prix Innovation musicale Oliver Schroer
Transcestral (Oktoécho)

Producer(s) of the Year / Réalisateur(s) de l’année
Chris McKhool & John ‘Beetle’ Bailey (Sanctuary – Sultans of String)

Single of the Year / Monoplage de l’année
“Sing Me A Song” (William Prince and Serena Ryder)

Solo Artist of the Year / Artiste solo de l’année
John Wort Hannam (Long Haul)

Traditional Album of the Year/ Album traditionnel de l’année
Hurricane Clarice (Allison de Groot & Tatiana Hargreaves)

Traditional Singer of the Year / Chanteur traditionnel de l’année
Lizzy Hoyt (The Parting Glass)

Vocal Group of the Year / Groupe vocal de l’année
The McDades (The Empress)

Young Performer(s) of the Year / Jeune artiste(s) de l’année
Fiddelium (Fiddelium)

Russell was named English Songwriter of the Year and New/Emerging Artist of the Year in recognition of her debut solo album, Outside Child, which was chosen as Contemporary Album of the Year. A soulful Nashville-based, Montreal-born Scottish Grenadian Canadian singer-songwriter, poet, multi-instrumentalist, producer, and activist, she is also a co-founder of Our Native Daughters and Birds of Chicago and was part of Po’ Girl.

Wrought with emotion, Outside Child features 11 original songs “about resilience and survival, transcendence and the redemptive power of art, community, connection, and chosen family,” says Russell, who faced abuse and trauma during her youth that music has helped her to overcome. She showcased her talents and also served as the weekend closing curator at the 63rd annual Newport Folk Festival.

Here’s a link to view Russell’s short 2021 highlights video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QzDTi2GWjI and one to view the official video for her song “Nightflyer,” the first single off Outside Child.

Dind-Lavoie is a Quebecois multi-instrumentalist, composer and producer. As its name suggests, his album Archives is an anthology of archival recordings – in this case field recordings of French-Canadian traditional songs of the 1940s and 1950s, which he accompanies and embellishes with an array of acoustic instruments and sound effects. Recorded last April, Archives also received the 2021 aux prix GAMIQ for Traditional Album of the Year and du prix Aldor creation 2021 du Festival Trad de Montreal.

With Archives, Dind-Lavoie sought to “highlight [and pay tribute to] the quality of these performers, as well as the work of the folklorists who, in a time when there was almost nothing archived, went out into the field to collect these songs, which had to represent a colossal amount of work. In a Facebook post, he referred to his wins as “pretty surreal” and noted that the Oliver Schroer Award recognizing musical innovation especially warms his heart. “What a great idea of a category and a great tribute to this great musician, wrote Dind-Lavoie who, himself, expressed thanks to Corne de brume, Louis Morneau and Marie Pierre Lecault “and to all those shadow singers/musicians who find themselves unknowingly on this album and have to wonder what’s going on from the stars: Benoit Benoit, Joseph Larade, Alphonse Morneau, the Brideau family, Jeanne Savoie, Madeleine Lemieux, Azade Benoit, Eddy Arsenault, Edouard Sanschagran, Henry Poitras.”

Here’s a video link to see Dind-Lavoie accompany a 1957 archival recording of singer Joseph Larade on piano.

The Canadian Folk Music Awards were established in 2005 to bring greater exposure to the breadth and depth of Canadian folk music, celebrating and promoting it in all its forms. More than 100 jurors, located across Canada and representing all of its official provinces, territories and languages determine the recipients in each category. While the awards were presented virtually in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Canada’s leading folk music event – including awards concerts and nominee showcases – adopted a hybrid model this year featuring both live and pre-recorded performances that were presented both to an audience at The Guild, a 160-seat venue in Charlottetown, PEI, and via livestream. Chelsey June of the husband-and-wife duo Twin Flames and Benoit Bourque co-hosted the event. While some honorees accepted their awards in-person, others did so via video.

A complete list of 2022 Canadian Folk Music Awards winners follows, while more information may be found online at folkawards.ca.

Children’s Album of the Year / Album jeunesse de l’année

• Heart Parade by/par Splash ‘N Boots (Ontario)

Contemporary Album of the Year / Album contemporain de l’année

• Outside Child by/par Allison Russell (Quebec)

Contemporary Singer of the Year / Chanteur contemporain de l’année

• Rob Lutes for/pour Come Around (Quebec)

English Songwriter(s) / Auteur compositeur(s) Anglophone

• Allison Russell for/pour Outside Child (Quebec)

Ensemble of the Year / Groupe de l’année

• Elliott Brood for/pour Keeper (Ontario)

French Songwriter(s) of the Year / Auteur-compositeur(s) francophone de l’année

• Reney Ray for/pour À l’ouest du réel (Quebec)

Global Roots Album of the year/ Album traditions du monde de l’année
(Note: This replaces the World Album of the Year.)

• Wutiko by/par Elage Diouf (Quebec)

Indigenous Songwriter(s) of the Year / Auteur compositeur(s) autochtone de l’année

• Chelsey June & Jaaji for/pour Omen (Quebec)

Instrumental Group of the Year / Groupe instrumental de l’année

• Frank Evans & Ben Plotnick for/pour Madison Archives (Ontario)

Instrumental Solo artist of the Year / Instrumentiste solo de l’année

• Cédric Dind-Lavoie for/pour Archives (Quebec)

New/Emerging Artist(s) of the Year / Artiste(s) de la relève de l’année

• Allison Russell for/pour Outside Child (Quebec)

Oliver Schroer Pushing the Boundaries Award / Prix Innovation musicale Oliver Schroer

• Cédric Dind-Lavoie for/pour Archives (Quebec)

Producer(s) of the Year / Réalisateur(s) de l’année

• Cédric Dind-Lavoie, Corne de brume for/pour Archives (Quebec)

Single of the Year / Monoplage de l’année

• “Gospel First Nation” by/par William Prince (Manitoba)

Solo Artist of the Year / Artiste solo de l’année

• Alicia Toner for/pour Joan (Prince Edward Island)

Traditional Album of the Year / Album traditionnel de l’année

• Kitchen Days by/par Braden Gates (Alberta)

Traditional Singer of the Year / Chanteur traditionnel de l’année

• Ewelina Ferenc (of Polky) for/pour Songs From Home (Ontario)

Vocal Group of the Year / Groupe vocal de l’année

• Twin Flames for/pour Omen (Quebec)

Young Performer(s) of the Year / Jeune artiste(s) de l’année

• Isabella Samson for/pour If It’s Not Forever (Nova Scotia)

As previously reported on AcousticMusicScene.com, the Slaight Music Unsung Hero Award was presented to Genevieve Nadeau. A leading figure in Quebec’s trad music and song scene, Nadeau manages the Quebecois folk group Le Vent du Nord, co-founded and runs La Compagnie due Nord – producing hundreds of concerts annually around the world, and produces CDs and music videos, helped launch the Festival Chants de Vielles, serves on the board of Folquebec, and has been a cultural ambassador for Quebecois music.

The Canadian Folk Music Awards also paid tribute to Grit and Judith Laskin, stalwarts of the Canadian folk music scene and founding board members of the CFMAs.

British Columbia-based folk duo Pharis & Jason Romero, who had topped the list of nominees with six nominations for their album, Bet On Love, won both Ensemble and Vocal Group of the Year, while Pharis was named Traditional Singer of the Year. William Prince, a storytelling country-folk singer-songwriter from Peguis First Nation, who had received five nods for Reliever, won Contemporary Album of the Year and was named English Songwriter of the Year. Beòlach– a band known for both its original compositions and innovative arrangements of traditional Cape Breton, Scottish and Irish tunes — was named the winner in both the categories for which it was nominated – Instrumental Group and Traditional Album of the Year. They were among 100 nominees from throughout Canada who vied for awards in 19 categories, plus the Unsung Hero Award.

[Here’s a link to view a CBC Music video of concert featuring the songs from William Prince’s Reliever album: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7rkKq6FoRw.]

Like last year, the awards celebration was to have taken place in-person in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, but was streamed online instead due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Observing social distancing protocols, Benoit Bourque and Jean Hewson co-hosted the bilingual event from 1,600 miles apart. Each of the award recipients shared short recorded acceptance remarks, while the awards extravaganza was punctuated by pre-recorded performances by some of the nominees.

A two-stage jury process featuring 100 jurors based across Canada and representing all official provinces, territories and languages determined the official recipients in each of 19 categories.

The Canadian Folk Music Awards were established in 2005 to bring greater exposure to the breadth and depth of Canadian folk music, celebrating and promoting it in all its forms. The annual presentation of awards caps a few days of artist showcases.

A complete list of 2021 CFMA nominees follows, while more information may be found online at https://folkawards.ca.

Contemporary Album of the Year: Reliever by William Prince

Contemporary Singer of the Year: Coco Love Alcorn for Rebirth

Traditional Album of the Year: All Hands by Beòlach

Traditional Singer of the Year: Pharis Romero for Bet On Love

Solo Artist of the Year: Julian Taylor for The Ridge

Single of the Year: “Some Kind of Hell” by Burnstick (Producers: Jason & Nadia Burnstick)

English Songwriter(s) of the Year: William Prince for Reliever

French Songwriter(s) of the Year: Marie-Ève Lapierre-Lemoyne for Onze

Indigenous Songwriter(s) of the Year: Leela Gilday for North Star Calling

Ensemble of the Year: Pharis & Jason Romero for Bet On Love

Instrumental Group of the Year: Beòlach for All Hands

Instrumental Solo Artist of the Year: Marc Atkinson for Solo

Vocal Group of the Year: Pharis & Jason Romero for Bet On Love

New/Emerging Artist(s) of the Year: Noah Derksen for America, Dreaming

Young Performer(s) of the Year: The Gilberts for The Gilberts: One

Children’s Album of the Year: Broccoli Farm by Claire Ness

World Album of the Year: Kora flamenca by Zal Sissokho

Producer(s) of the Year: Chris McKhool & John ‘Beetle’ Bailey for Refuge (Sultans of String)

Oliver Schroer Pushing the Boundaries Award:Aerialists for Dear Sienna

Now in its 16h year, the Canadian Folk Music Awards were established to bring greater exposure to the breadth and depth of Canadian folk music, celebrating and promoting it in all its forms. Like last year, the awards celebration — which was to have taken place in-person in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island — will, instead, be streamed online due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. More information on them will be shared early next year.

two-stage jury process featuring 100 jurors based across Canada and representing all official provinces, territories and languages determine the official recipients in each category. Two new award categories have been established for 2021: Single of the Year (recognizing an artist or group and their producer(s) for a single release recording or an album track that was released as a single) and World Music Album of the Year (which replaces the former awards for World Solo Artist and World Group of the Year).

A complete list of 2021 Canadian Folk Music Awards nominees follows, while more information may be found online at www.folkawards.ca. You can stream a selection of songs by 2021 CFMA nominees on Spotify here:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2aOsbji9MfCjnVJ6Y3EeI5 and “like” the CFMA Facebook page here for easier access to the livestream when it happens.

Children’s Album of the Year / Album jeunesse de l’année

Broccoli Farm by/par Claire Ness
Goodnight To You All by/par Charlie Hope
Small But Mighty by/par Ginalina
The Mountain Man by/par Spencer Burton
Tous musiciens by/par Henri Godon

Contemporary Album of the Year / Album contemporain de l’année

Are You in Love? by/par Basia Bulat
At the Edge of the World by/par Mike McKenna Jr.
Coyote by/par Catherine MacLellan
Drifters by/par Joe Nolan
Reliever by/par William Prince
Sugar & Joy by/par The Dead South
The Unconquerable Past by/par Stephen Fearing
Yours To Break by/par The East Pointers

Contemporary Singer of the Year / Chanteur contemporain de l’année

Coco Love Alcorn for/pour Rebirth
Basia Bulat for/pour Are You in Love?
Tim Chaisson for/pour Yours To Break
Catherine MacLellan for/pour Coyote
William Prince for/pour Reliever

English Songwriter(s) of the Year / Auteur compositeur(s) anglophone de l’année

Colo Love Alcorn for/pour Rebirth
Basia Bulat for/pour Are You in Love?
William Prince for/pour Reliever
Pharis & Jason Romero for/pour Bet On Love
Sarah Jane Scouten for/pour Confessions
Julian Taylor for/pour The Ridge

Ensemble of the Year / Groupe de l’année

OKAN for/pour Sombras
Pharis & Jason Romero for/pour Bet On Love
Sultans of String for/pour Refuge
Sussex for/pourThe Ocean Wide
The Dead South for/pour Sugar & Joy

French Songwriter(s) of the Year / Auteur-compositeur(s) francophone de l’année

Guillaume Arsenault pour/for La partie de moi qui tremble
Raphaël Delahaye pour/for Le sens de la dérive
Marie-Ève Lapierre-Lemoyne pour/for Onze
Flavie Léger-Roy pour/for Ce chapeau est trop grand pour moi
Alexandre Poulin pour/for Nature humaine

Indigenous Songwriter(s) of the Year / Auteur compositeur(s) autochtone de l’année

Jason & Nadia Burnstick for/pour Kîyânaw
A.W. Cardinal for/pour Bare Knuckles & Brawn
Leela Gilday for/pour North Star Calling
Riit for/pour ataataga
Crystal Shawanda for/pour Church House Blues

Instrumental Group of the Year / Groupe instrumental de l’année

Beòlach for/pour All Hands
Emilyn Stam & John David Williams for/pour Honeywood
Gordon Grdina’s The Marrow for/pour Safar-E-Daroon
Jessica Deutsch & Ozere for/pour Traces
Rhizome for/pour Double capture

Instrumental Solo Artist of the Year / Instrumentiste solo de l’année

Marc Atkinson for/pour Solo
Benjamin Barrile for/pour Esperando el Alba
Gordon Grdina for/pour Prior Street
Nick Hornbuckle for/pour 13 or So
Natalie MacMaster for/pour Sketches

New/Emerging Artist(s) of the Year / Artiste(s) de la relève de l’année

Noah Derksen for/pour America, Dreaming
Marie-Ève Laure for/pour Onze
Maya Rae for/pour Can You See Me?
Emily Rockarts for/pour Little Flower
Rum Ragged for/pour The Thing About Fish
Emily Triggs for/pour Middletown

Producer(s) of the Year / Réalisateur(s) de l’année

Dave Clarke & Bill Garrett for/pour Coming Home (Steel Rail)
Roy Forbes for/pour Edge of Blue (Roy Forbes)
Marc Jenkins for/pour Bet On Love (Pharis & Jason Romero)
Dayna Manning for/pour Morning Light (Dayna Manning)
Chris McKhool & John ‘Beetle’ Bailey for/pour Refuge (Sultans of String)

Oliver Schroer Pushing the Boundaries Award / Prix Innovation musicale Oliver Schroer

Aerialists for/pour Dear Sienna
Mélisande [Électrotrad] for/pour Les myriades
Riit for/pour ataataga
The East Pointers for/pour Yours To Break
The Henrys for/pour Paydirt

Single of the Year / Monoplage de l’année

“K’eintah Natse Ju” by/par Leela Gilday (Producer / Réalisateur: Hill Kourkoutis)
“Some Kind of Hell” by/par Burnstick (Producers / Réalisateurs: Jason & Nadia Burnstick)
“The Spark” by/par William Prince (Producers / Réalisateurs: Scott Nolan, Dave Cobb)
“Wintergreen” by/par The East Pointers (Producer / Réalisateur: Gordie Sampson)
“Yellowknife” by/par Craig Cardiff (Producer / Réalisateur: Craig Cardiff)

Solo Artist of the Year / Artiste solo de l’année

Catherine MacLellan for/pour Coyote
Lynn Miles for/pour We’ll Look For Stars
William Prince for/pour Reliever
Riit for/pour ataataga
Julian Taylor for/pour The Ridge

Traditional Album of the Year / Album traditionnel de l’année

All Hands by/par Beòlach
Bet On Love by/par Pharis & Jason Romero
Crowing Ignites by/par Bruce Cockburn
Debout! by/par Le Diable à Cinq
The Lost Tapes by/par Ian & Sylvia

Traditional Singer of the Year / Chanteur traditionnel de l’année

Mike Bravener for/pour Depends Upon The Pay
Kevin Harvey for/pour Hand me Down Blues
Mark Manning for/pour The Thing About Fish
Lou Natale for/pour Workin’ the Mystery
Pharis Romero for/pour Bet On Love

Vocal Group of the Year / Groupe vocal de l’année

Beauséjour for/pour Beauséjour
Big Little Lions for/pour Inside Voice
Kennedy Road for/pour A Little Fight Left Yet
Pharis & Jason Romero for/pour Bet On Love
The Barrel Boys for/pour Mainline

World Album of the Year / Album de musiques du monde de l’année

Africa Without Borders by/par Okavango African Orchestra
Kora flamenca by/par Zal Sissokho
La Serena by/par Aviva Chernick
Patria by/par Mazacote
Sombras by/par OKAN

Young Performer(s) of the Year / Jeune artiste(s) de l’année

Maya Rae for/pour Can You See Me?
Moscow Apartment for/pour Better Daughter
Paige Penney for/pour Watch Out For Your Step
Quin With One N for/pour Out of the Blue
The Gilberts for/pour The Gilberts: One

Besides its nomination for Best American Roots Music Performance for “Colors,” Black Pumas is also is nominated for two of the top Grammy Awards. The deluxe edition of the Austin, Texas-based psychedelic soul band’s eponymous debut album is among the nominees for Album of the Year, while “Colors” is up for Record of the Year. In addition to her nomination for Best American Roots Music Performance for “Short And Sweet,” singer-songwriter Brittany Howard, who formerly fronted Alabama Shakes, was nominated for Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song (“Stay High”), Best Alternative Music Album (for her solo debut, Jaime) and Best R & B Performance (“Goat Head”).

Here’s a list of the nominees in the American Roots Music Field that were announced Nov. 24 during a first-ever livestream on Grammy.com:

Best American Roots Performance

• Colors (Black Pumas)
• Deep In Love (Bonny Light Horseman)
• Short And Sweet (Brittany Howard)
• I’ll Be Gone (Norah Jones & Mavis Staples)
• I Remember Everything (John Prine)

Best American Roots Song – a songwriter(s) award

• “Cabin” – Laura Rogers & Lydia Rogers, songwriters (The Secret Sisters)
• “Ceiling to the Floor” – Sierra Hull & Kai Welch, songwriters (Sierra Hull)
• ”Hometown” – Sarah Jarosz, songwriter (Sarah Jarosz)
• “I Remember Everything” – Pat McLaughlin & John Prine, songwriters (John Prine)
• “Man Without A Soul” – Tom Overby & Lucinda Williams, songwriters (Lucinda Williams)

Best Americana Album

• Old Flowers (Courtney Marie Andrews)
• Terms Of Surrender (Hiss Golden Messenger)
• World On The Ground (Sarah Jarosz)
• El Dorado (Marcus King)
• Good Souls Better Angels (Lucinda Williams)

Best Bluegrass Album

• Man On Fire (Danny Barnes)
• To Live In Two Worlds, Vol. 1 (Thomas Jutz)
• North Carolina Songbook (Steep Canyon Rangers)
• Home (Billy Strings)
• The John Hartford Fiddle Tune Project, Vol. 1 (Various Artists)

Best Traditional Blues Album

• All My Dues Are Paid (Frank Bey)
• You Make Me Feel (Don Bryant)
• That’s What I Heard (Robert Cray Band)
• Cypress Grove (Jimmy “Duck” Holmes)
• Rawer Than Raw (Bobby Rush)

Best Contemporary Blues Album

• Have You Lost Your Mind Yet? (Fantastic Negrito)
• Live At The Paramount (Ruthie Foster Big Band)
• The Juice (G. Love)
• Blackbirds (Bettye LaVette)
• Up And Rolling (North Mississippi Allstars)

Best Folk Album

• Bonny Light Horseman (Bonny Light Horseman)
• Thanks For The Dance (Leonard Cohen)
• Song For Our Daughter (Laura Marling)
• Saturn Return (The Secret Sisters)
• All The Good Times (Gillian Welch & David Rawlings)

52. Best Regional Roots Music Album

• My Relatives: Nikso’Kowaiks Pow-Wow Songs Recorded Live at Fort Collins (Black Lodge Singers)
• Cameron Dupuy And The Cajun Troubadours (Cameron Dupuy And The Cajun Troubadours)
• Lovely Sunrise (Nā Wai ʽEhā)
• Atmosphere (New Orleans Nightcrawlers)
• A Tribute To Al Berard (Sweet Cecilia)

Also of note: folk-rock and Americana singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile — who was the big winner in the American Roots Music Field during the 61st annual Grammy Awards in February 2019 with Grammy Awards for Best Americana Album, Best American Roots Performance and Best American Roots Song — is in the running for Grammys for Best Song Written for Visual Media (“Carried Me With You” for Onward, co-written with Phil and Tim Hanseroth) and Best Country Song (“Crowded Table” for The Highwomen), co-written with bandmates Natalie Hemby and Lori McKenna. Hemby is also nominated in that category with co-writers Luke Dick and Miranda Lambert for “Bluebird,” recorded by Lambert on Wildcard, which is among the nominees for Best Country Album. Other nominees that may be of particular interest to AcousticMusicScene.com readers include Bela Fleck, whose Throw Down Your Heart: The Complete Africa Sessions” is nominated for Best Historical Album; Alastair Moock and Friends, whose Be A Pain: An Album for Young (and Old) Leaders is vying for Best Children’s Music Album; Grace Potter, whose “Daylight” is in the running for Best Rock Performance; and James Taylor, whose American Standard is up for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album. Nominees for Producer of the Year include Dave Cobb, who produced albums for Lori McKenna (The Balladeer), The Highwomen (The Highwomen), John Prine (I Remember Everything), Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit (Reunion), and William Prince (The Spark), among others. Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice is nominated in the Best Music Film category.

Lawrence Azerrad and Jeff Tweedy, art directors for Wilco’s Ode To Joy, are in the running for Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package. Brittany Howard’s aforementioned album, Jaime, is among the nominees for Best Engineered Album – non-classical (Brian Everett, engineer and mastering engineer) as are Sierra Hull’s 25 Trips (Shani Gandhi and Gary Paczosa, engineers; Adam Grover, mastering engineer) and Katie Pruitt’s Expectations (Gary Paczosa and Mike Robinson, engineers, Paul Blakemore, mastering engineer).

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau hailed Leonard Cohen, a prolific poet and songwriter, who died last November at age 82, as “one of the greatest artists Canada has ever produced.” His last album, You Want It Darker, was released just three weeks prior to his death. During the televised portion of the JUNOs celebration of Canadian music, singer-songwriter Feist paid tribute to Cohen with her rendition of “Hey, That’s No Way to Say Goodbye.”

The East Pointers, a spirited Celtic folk trio from Prince Edward Island, was honored for its album Secret Victory. Featuring guitarist Jake Charron and cousins Tim Chiasson (fiddle) and Koady Chiasson (banjo), all of whom also sing, The East Pointers are helping to bring traditional music to a new generation of listeners through their lively and danceable approach to it.

The Fretless, a folk quartet whose music fuses classical arrangements and folk melodies, received a JUNO for Instrumental Album of the Year for Bird’s Nest. This is just the latest in a series of awards for the group, which previously was honored by both the Western Canadian Music Association and the Canadian Folk Music Awards for its 2012 debut Waterbound and its 2014 self-titled sophomore release.

Buffy Sainte-Marie, a singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and social activist, received the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award. Sainte Marie, whose musical career spans more than 50 years, and whose songs have also been covered by hundreds of other artists, is known for her thought-provoking lyrics and her passionate advocacy for Aboriginal people. Also an educator and philanthropist, Sainte-Marie has sought to protect indigenous intellectual property and championed indigenous artists and performers. Her latest release, Power in the Blood, won a JUNO Award last year for Contemporary Roots Album of the Year.

Sarah McLachlan, an 11-time JUNO and three-time Grammy Award-winning artist, was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, while her latest release, Wonderland, was named Adult Contemporary Album of the Year. Besides being a multi-platinum, award-winning singer-songwriter and a much-celebrated contemporary Canadian artist, McLachlan is credited with creating Lilith Fair 20 years ago – a festival dedicated to showcasing and supporting female artists. She was the recipient of the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2015 and of the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award in 2006.

A complete list of JUNO Awards winners can be found, along with additional information, on line at www.junoawards.ca.

In the running for Contemporary Roots Album of the Year are The Family Album (Matthew Barber & Jill Barber), Why You Wanna Leave, Runaway Queen? (Lisa LeBlanc), Hobo Jungle Fever Dreams (Corin Raymond), Strange Country (Kacy & Clayton), and Earthly Days (William Prince).

Traditional Roots Album of the Year nominees include Gathering (Maria Dunn), Someday the Heart (The High Bar Gang), The Original (Jenny Whiteley), Aupres du Poele (Ten Strings and a Goat Skin), and Secret Victory (The East Pointers).

Buffy Sainte-Marie, whose musical career spans more than 50 years, is a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose songs have also been covered by hundreds of other artists. She is known for her thought-provoking lyrics and her passionate advocacy for Aboriginal people. Also a social activist, educator and philanthropist, Sainte-Marie has sought to protect indigenous intellectual property and championed indigenous artists and performers. It is in recognition of the latter that she will receive the Alan Water Humanitarian Award.

Sarah McLachlan, a ten-time JUNO and three-time Grammy Award-winning artist, is one of Canada’s most celebrated artists. She created Lilith Fair 20 years ago – a festival dedicated to showcasing and supporting female artists. McLachlan was the recipient of the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2015 and of the Alan Waters Humanitarian Award in 2006.

A complete list of JUNO Awards nominees can be found, along with additional information, on line at www.junoawards.ca.