Dozens of Manitoba artists and industry professionals have been nominated for the 2020 Western Canadian Music Awards, which were announced Tuesday.
The awards are part of the annual four-day BreakOut West conference, scheduled for Sept. 30 to Oct. 4 in Winnipeg. Event organizers have said the conference and awards will go ahead as planned, dependent on the situation with the COVID-19 pandemic at that time.
Leading the way for local artists is folk/roots singer-songwriter William Prince of Peguis First Nation, with three nominations. Prince won the WCMA for Aboriginal Artist of the Year in 2016, as well as a Juno Award for his debut album, Earthly Days.
Prince’s latest record, Reliever, has received similar praise, including a spot on the long list for the prestigious Polaris Music Prize.
Other multiple WCMA nominees from Manitoba include folk duo The Small Glories, singer-songwriter Del Barber, producer John Paul Peters and The Mariachi Ghost, who combine traditional Mexican music with progressive rock.
The full list of 2020 Manitoba nominees:
- Big Dave McLean (Blues Artist of the Year)
- Ariel Posen (BreakOut Artist of the Year)
- Begonia (BreakOut Artist of the Year)
- The Small Glories (BreakOut Artist of the Year, Roots Artist of the Year)
- The Pianimals (Children’s Artist of the Year)
- Manitoba Chamber Orchestra (Classical Artist or Ensemble of the Year)
- Margaret Carey (Classical Artist or Ensemble of the Year)
- Don Amero (Country Artist of the Year)
- Beausejour (Francophone Artist of the Year)
- Kelly Bado (Francophone Artist of the Year
- Casimiro Nhussi (Global Artist of the Year)
- The Mariachi Ghost (Global Artist of the Year, Visual Media Composer of the Year)
- Burnstick (Indigenous Artist of the Year)
- Apollo Suns (Instrumental Artist of the Year)
- Dizzy Mystics (Metal & Hard Music Artist of the Year)
- Deadmen (Producer of the Year)
- John Paul Peters (Producer of the Year, Audio Engineering Award)
- Sebastian Gaskin (R&B Artist of the Year)
- Super Duty Tough Work (Rap & Hip-hop Artist of the Year)
- Royal Canoe (Recording of the Year)
- William Prince (Recording of the Year, Roots Artist of the Year, Songwriter of the Year)
- Joey Landreth (Rock Artist of the Year)
- Mise en Scene (Rock Artist of the Year)
- Mobina Galore (Rock Artist of the Year)
- Del Barber (Roots Artist of the Year, Songwriter of the Year)
- Leaf Rapids (Roots Artist of the Year)
- Danielle Savard (Spiritual Artist of the Year)
- Fresh IE (Spiritual Artist of the Year)
- Katrina Van Humbeck (Spiritual Artist of the Year)
- Jorge Requena (Video Director of the Year)
The West End Cultural Centre, Red Tent, Winnipeg Music Project, the Village Idiots and the Winnipeg Folk Festival are all up for industry awards as well.
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