FKA twigs Earns Libera Awards Nomination for Video of the Year

FKA twigs is celebrating a Sad recognition…

The nominees for the 10th annual A2IM Libera Awards, presented by Merlin, have been revealed, with the 33-year-old part-Spanish singer earning a nod in one of the top categories.

FKA-twigs

FKA twigs is up for Video of the Year for her “Sad Day” clip. The song appears on her chart-topping album Magdalene.

Lido Pimienta has picked up a nod in the Best Alternative Rock Record category.

The 35-year-old Colombian Canadian musician, singer, and songwriter earned the nod for her acclaimed Miss Colombia album.

Raul Midon is nominated in the Best Jazz Record category.

The 55-year-old half-Argentine American singer-songwriter and guitarist earned the nod for his The Mirror album.

Bebel Gilberto has earned a nod in the Best World Record category.

The 54-year-old Brazilian American singer picked up the nod for her album Agora.

The Best Latin Record category features a competitive group of nominees, including Bad Bunny (El Último Tour Del Mundo), Gabriel Garzón-Montano (Agüita) and The Mavericks (En Español).

A2IM is the New York-based trade organization that works to strengthen the independent recorded music sector.

This marks the second year that the Libera Awards will be held as a livestreaming ceremony, open to the public. Produced by The Control Room, the June 17 show will feature performances from nominees as well as the presentation of this year’s Independent Icon Awards. This is the second year that Sweet Relief will serve as A2IM’s official charity partner for the Libera Awards. All proceeds raised during the show will be donated to career musicians and music industry professionals in need.

The Libera Awards are the culmination of Indie Week, the world’s largest independent music conference, taking place from June 14 to 17. Sponsored by SoundExchange, Indie Week features keynotes, panels, networking sessions and more. Indie Week 2021 will mark the second year A2IM will hold the event virtually.

“As we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the A2IM Libera Awards, it is extremely satisfying to see the remarkable growth of the independent sector,” said Richard James Burgess, A2IM CEO. “The A2IM Libera Awards is an acknowledgement, celebration and representation of everything independents work so hard to accomplish.”

The 2021 Libera Awards are presented by Merlin, the independent’s digital music licensing partner.

Voting is open to A2IM members until 11:59 p.m. ET on April 5. Follow A2IM on Instagram and Twitter for programming updates. RSVP to the Libera Awards by visiting A2IM’s YouTube page or liberaawards.com.To learn more about Indie Week 2021, visit a2im.org/indieweek.

Here’s a full list of 2021 Libera Award nominees:

Record of the Year
Phoebe Bridgers – Punisher (Dead Oceans)
Run the Jewels – RTJ4 (Jewel Runners, Inc.)
Perfume Genius – Set My Heart On Fire Immediately (Matador Records)
Yves Tumor – Heaven To A Tortured Mind (Warp Records)
Thundercat – It Is What It Is (Brainfeeder)
Waxahatchee – Saint Cloud (Merge Records)

Video of the Year
FKA twigs – “Sad Day” (Young Turks)
Perfume Genius – “Describe” (Matador Records)
Phoebe Bridgers – “Savior Complex” (Dead Oceans)
Run the Jewels – “Ooh La La” (Jewel Runners, Inc.)
Christine and the Queens – “La vita nuova” (Because Music)
ford. – “Fruit&Sun” (Foreign Family Collective)

Best Live/Livestream Act
Run the Jewels (Jewel Runners, LLC.)
Phoebe Bridgers (Dead Oceans)
Fontaines D.C. (Partisan Records)
Perfume Genius (Matador Records)
Arca (XL Recordings)

Breakthrough Artist/Release (Presented by Ingrooves)
Arlo Parks (Transgressive/[PIAS])
Bonny Light Horseman (37d03d)
Overcoats (Loma Vista Recordings)
Arlo McKinley (Oh Boy Records)
Orion Sun (Mom + Pop Music)

A2IM Humanitarian Award
Rev. Moose (Marauder/NIVA)
Killer Mike & El-P of Run the Jewels (Jewel Runners, Inc.)
Megan Thee Stallion (300 Entertainment)
Paul Redding (Beggars Group)
Kevin Liles (300 Entertainment)

Best Alternative Rock Record
Phoebe Bridgers – Punisher (Dead Oceans)
Soccer Mommy – Color Theory (Loma Vista Recordings)
Car Seat Headrest – Making A Door Less Open (Matador Records)
Lido Pimienta – Miss Colombia (Anti- Records)
Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever – Sideways to New Italy (Sub Pop Records)

Best Americana Record
Bonny Light Horseman – Bonny Light Horseman (37d03d)
Kevin Morby – Sundowner (Dead Oceans)
Calexico – Seasonal Shift (Anti- Records)
Courtney Marie Andrews – Old Flowers (Fat Possum Records)
Lucinda Williams – Good Souls Better Angels (Highway 20/Thirty Tigers)

Best Blues Record
Bobby Rush – Rawer Than Raw (Deep Rush Records/Thirty Tigers)
Don Bryant – You Make Me Feel (Fat Possum Records)
Robert Cray Band – That’s What I Heard (Nozzle Records/Thirty Tigers)
Fantastic Negrito – Have You Lost Your Mind Yet? (Cooking Vinyl Ltd.)
Sonny Landreth – Blacktop Run (Provogue Records)

Best Classical Record
Erik Hall – Music for 18 Musicians (Steve Reich) (Western Vinyl)
Paul Moravec – Sanctuary Road (Naxos American Classics)
Echo Collective – The See Within (7K!)
Niklas Paschburg – Svalbard (7K!)
Vitamin String Quartet – Vitamin String Quartet Performs Lana Del Rey (CMH Label Group/Vitamin Records)

Best Country Record
Margo Price – That’s How Rumors Get Started (Loma Vista Recordings)
Waxahatchee – Saint Cloud (Merge Records)
Colter Wall – Western Swing & Waltzes And Other Punchy Songs (La Honda Records/Thirty Tigers)
Various Artists – Willie Nelson American Outlaw (Live At Bridgestone Arena/2019) (Blackbird Productions)
Jaime Wyatt – Neon Cross (New West Records)

Best Dance/Electronic Record
Caribou – Suddenly (Merge Records)
Arca – KiCk i (XL Recordings)
Ela Minus – acts of rebellion (Domino Recording Co.)
Yaeji – What We Drew (XL Recordings)
Actress – Karma & Desire (Ninja Tune)

Best Folk/Bluegrass Record
Ben Harper – Winter Is For Lovers (Anti- Records)
Angel Olsen- Whole New Mess (Jagjaguwar)
Gillian Welch – Boots No. 2: The Lost Songs (Acony Records)
Jason Molina – Eight Gates (Secretly Canadian)
Laura Marling – Song For Our Daughter (Partisan Records)

Best Hip-Hop/Rap Record (Presented by Virgin Music)
Run the Jewels – RTJ4 (Jewel Runners, Inc.)
clipping. – Visions of Bodies Being Burned (Sub Pop Records)
Little Simz – Drop 6 (AGE101/AWAL)
The Koreatown Oddity – Little Dominiques Nosebleed (Stones Throw Records)
Naeem – Startisha (37d03d)

Best Jazz Record (Presented by Qobuz)
Gil-Scott Heron & Makaya McCraven – We’re New Again – A Reimagining by Makaya McCraven (XL Recordings)
Jeff Parker – Suite for Max Brown (International Anthem)
Ali Shaheed Muhammad and Adrian Younge – Azymuth JID004 (Jazz Is Dead)
Christian McBride – The Movement Revisited: A Musical Portrait of Four Icons (Mack Avenue Music Group)
John Carroll Kirby – My Garden (Stones Throw Records)
Raul Midon – The Mirror (Artistry Music)
Jyoti – Mama, You Can Bet! (SomeOthaShip/eOne)

Best Latin Record
Bad Bunny – El Último Tour Del Mundo (Rimas Entertainment)
Gabriel Garzón-Montano – Agüita (Jagjaguwar in partnership with Stones Throw Records)
The Mavericks – En Español (Mono Mundo Recordings/Thirty Tigers)
Buscabulla – Regresa (Ribbon Music)
Jungle Fire – Jungle Fire (Nacional Records)

Best Metal Record
Architects – “Animals” (Epitaph Records)
HUM – Inlet (Earth Analog Records)
Ghostemane – Anti-Icon (Blackmage)
Ingested – Where Only Gods May Tread (Unique Leader Records)
Pyrrhon – Abscess Time (Willowtip Records)

Best Outlier Record (Presented by The Orchard)
Khruangbin – Mordechai (Dead Oceans)
Oneohtrix Point Never – Magic Oneohtrix Point Never (Warp Records)
Yves Tumor – Heaven To A Tortured Mind (Warp Records)
Beverly Glenn-Copeland – Transmissions (Transgressive/[PIAS])
Mary Lattimore – Silver Ladders (Ghostly International)
Moses Sumney – Græ (Jagjaguwar)

Best Punk Record
IDLES – Ultra Mono (Partisan Records)
Protomartyr – Ultimate Success Today (Domino Recording Co.)
METZ – Atlas Vending (Sub Pop Records)
Viagra Boys – Common Sense (YEAR0001/AWAL)
Porridge Radio – Every Bad (Secretly Canadian)

Best R&B Record
Thundercat – It Is What It Is (Brainfeeder)
Khruangbin & Leon Bridges – Texas Sun (Dead Oceans)
Robert Glasper – “Better Than I Imagined” (feat. H.E.R. & Meshell Ndegeocello) (Loma Vista Recordings)
Son Little – aloha (Anti- Records)
Orion Sun – Hold Space For Me (Mom + Pop Music)
Steve Arrington – Down To The Lowest Terms (Stones Throw Records)

Best Rock Record (Presented by Mitchell; Silberberg & Knupp LLP)
Fontaines D.C. – A Hero’s Death (Partisan Records)
King Krule – Man Alive! (True Panther Sounds/Matador)
Bartees Strange – Mustang (Single Memory Music)
Bob Mould – Blue Hearts (Merge Records)
Caroline Rose – Superstar (New West Records)

Best Spiritual Record
Sun Ra Arkestra – Swirling (STRUT)
Lecrae – Restoration (Reach Records)
Jon Hopkins – “Singing Bowl (Ascension)” (Domino Recording Co.)
Thad Cockrell – If In Case You Feel The Same (ATO Records)
Wande – EXIT (Reach Records)

Best World Record (Presented by Redeye Worldwide)
Antibalas – Fu Chronicles (Daptone Records)
Bebel Gilberto – Agora ([PIAS])
Altin Gün – “Ordunun Dereleri” (ATO Records)
Songhoy Blues – Optimisme (Fat Possum Records)
Emel – The Tunis Diaries (Partisan Records)

Best Re-Issue
J Dilla – Donuts (Jelly Edition) (Stones Throw Records)
Pylon – Pylon Box (New West Records)
Hiroshi Yoshimura – GREEN (Light In The Attic)
Pixies – Bossanova 30th Anniversary Reissue (4AD)
Motorhead – Ace of Spades 40th Anniversary (Sanctuary Records)
Elliott Smith – Expanded 25th Anniversary Edition (Kill Rock Stars)
Grandaddy – The Sophtware Slump 20th Anniversary Collection (Dangerbird Records)

Best Sync Usage
Run the Jewels (Jewel Runners, Inc.) – “Ooh LA LA” – Season three of Netflix’s Ozark
Black Pumas (ATO Records) “Colors” – Samsung Galaxy S20
Brittany Howard (ATO Records) “You’ll Never Walk Alone” – Johnnie Walker’s #KeepWalking Campaign
Blood Orange (Domino Recording Co.) “Tuesday Feeling (Choose to Stay)” – Season four of HBO’s Insecure
IDLES (Partisan Records) “Grounds” – Watch Dogs: Legion

Creative Packaging
Soccer Mommy – Color Theory limited edition back to school binder (Loma Vista Recordings)
Black Pumas – Black Pumas (Deluxe Edition) – ATO Records
Perfume Genius – Set My Heart On Fire Immediately vinyl (Matador Records)
Pylon – Pylon Box [CD Box Set](New West Records)
IDLES – Ultra Mono (Partisan Records)

Independent Champion (Presented by Merlin)
Bandcamp
SoundExchange
Secretly Distribution
TuneCore
The Orchard

Marketing Genius
Jewel Runners, LLC – Run the Jewels x Cyberpunk2077 “No Save Point”
Beggars Group – Supporting Indie Retail #loverecordstores Campaign
Phoebe Bridgers – Punisher (Dead Oceans)
Light In The Attic – Social Media & Digital Marketing
Perfume Genius – Set My Heart On Fire Immediately Campaign (Matador Records)

Label of the Year (Big) (Presented by ADA)
Partisan Records
Sub Pop Records
Warp Records
Stones Throw Records
Ninja Tune

Label of the Year (Medium)
Light In The Attic
Sacred Bones Records
Matador Records
Ghostly International
Rough Trade Records

Label of the Year (Small) (Presented by Spotify)
Daptone Records
Innovative Leisure
Fire Talk Records
International Anthem
Hardly Art
Oh Boy Records

Bad Bunny Wins First Career Grammy for His Acclaimed Album “YHLQMDLG”

It’s a major first for Bad Bunny

The 27-year-old Puerto Rican reggaeton and Latin trap singer/songwriter has won his first Grammy.

Bad Bunny

Bad Bunny, a five-time nominee since 2019, won the Best Latin Pop or Urban Album gramophone for his history-making album YHLQMDLG during the 63rd annual Grammy Awards.

But Bad Bunny isn’t the only first-time Grammy winner…

Kali Uchis picked up the Grammy for Best Dance Recording for the 26-year-old Colombian-American singer/songwriter’s collaborative single with Kaytranada, “10%.”

Fito Paez is also a first time winner…

The 58-year-old Argentine rock and roll pianist, lyricist, singer-songwriter and film director, a multiple Latin Grammy winner, took home Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album for La Conquista Del Espacio, beating out Bajofondo’s Aura and Lido Pimienta’s Miss Colombia .

Colombia’s most emblematic and symbolic salsa band Group Niche couldn’t miss out on the first-Grammy-win fun…

The group, which has been making music for decades, took home its first Grammy, winning in the best tropical album category for 40, an album that pays homage both to its anniversary and to its late founder, Jairo Varela, who died in 2012.

In the highly contested best regional Mexican music album category, the winner was Natalia Lafourcade for Un canto por México, Vol. 1, an homage to Mexican traditional sounds. Lafourcade had previously won a Grammy in the best Latin rock, urban or alternative category for Hasta la raíz in 2016.

There’s no question Arturo O’Farrill is a Grammy darling…

The 60-year-old Mexican jazz musician picked up his career fifth Grammy for Four Questions, his album with his The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra.

Giancarlo Guerrero is celebrating another big win…

The 52-year-old Costa Rican, Nicaraguan-born music director of the Nashville Symphony and his musicians took home the award for Best Contemporary Classical Composition for Rouse: Symphony No. 5. It’s the sixth Grammy of his career.

Gustavo Dudamel has his second Grammy…

The 40-year-old Venezuelan conductor, who’d previously won a gramophone in 2012, won in the Best Orchestral Performance category for Ives: Complete Symphonies.

Make that 11 wins for Linda Ronstadt.

The 74-year-old retired half-Mexican American singer picked up the 11th Grammy of her career for Best Music Film for her acclaimed documentary The Sound of My Voice.

Here’s the list of all the winners:

Record of the Year: Billie Eilish, “Everything I Wanted”
Album of the Year: Taylor Swift, Folklore
Best R&B Performance: Beyoncé, “Black Parade”
Best Pop Vocal Album: Dua Lipa, Future Nostalgia
Best Rap Song: Megan Thee Stallion featuring Beyoncé, “Savage”
Song of the Year: H.E.R., “I Can’t Breathe”
Best Latin Pop or Urban Album: Bad Bunny, YHLQMDLG
Best Melodic Rap Performance: Anderson .Paak, “Lockdown”
Best Pop Solo Performance: Harry Styles, “Watermelon Sugar”
Best Country Album: Miranda Lambert, Wildcard
Best New Artist: Megan Thee Stallion
Producer of the Year, Non-Classical: Andrew Watt
Best Country Song: The Highwomen, “Crowded Table”
Best Country Duo/Group Performance: Dan + Shay & Justin Bieber, “10,000 Hours”
Best Country Solo Performance: Vince Gill, When My Amy Prays
Best Rock Album: The Strokes, The New Abnormal
Best Rock Song: Brittany Howard, “Stay High”
Best Metal Performance: Body Count, “Bum-Rush”
Best Rock Performance: Fiona Apple, “Shameika”
Best Rap Album: Nas, King’s Disease
Best Rap Performance: Megan Thee Stallion featuring Beyoncé, “Savage”
Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album: James Taylor, American Standard
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance: Lady Gaga with Ariana Grande, “Rain on Me”
Best R&B Album: John Legend, Bigger Love
Best Progressive R&B Album: Thundercat, It Is What It Is
Best R&B Song: Robert Glasper featuring H.E.R. & Meshell Ndegeocello, “Better Than I Imagined”
Best Traditional R&B Performance: Ledisi, “Anything for You”
Best Latin Jazz Album: Arturo O’Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, Four Questions
Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album: Maria Schneider Orchestra, Data Lords
Best Jazz Instrumental Album:  Chick Corea, Christian McBride and Brian Blade, Trilogy 2
Best Jazz Vocal Album: Kurt Elling Featuring Danilo Pérez, Secrets Are the Best Stories
Best improvised Jazz Solo: Chick Corea’s “All Blues”
Best Alternative Music Album: Fiona Apple, Fetch the Bolt Cutters
Best Musical Theatre Album: Original Broadway Cast, Jagged Little Pill
Best Comedy Album Winner: Tiffany Haddish, Black Mitzvah
Best Spoken Word Album (Includes Poetry, Audio Books and Storytelling: Rachel Maddow, Blowout: Corrupted Democracy, Rogue State Russia, And The Richest, Most Destructive Industry On Earth
Best Children’s Music Album: Joanie Leeds, All the Ladies
Best Global Music Album: Burna Boy, Twice as Tall
Best Reggae Album: Toots and the Maytals, Got to Be Tough
Best Regional Roots Music Album: New Orleans Nightcrawlers, Atmosphere
Best Folk Album: Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, All the Good Times
Best Contemporary Blues Album: Fantastic Negrito, Have You Lost Your Mind Yet?
Best Traditional Blues Album: Bobby Rush, Rawer Than Raw
Best Bluegrass Album: Billy Strings, Home
Best Americana Album: Sarah Jarosz, World on the Ground
Best American Roots Song: John Prine, “I Remember Everything”
Best American Roots Performance: John Prine, I Remember Everything
Best Song Written for Visual Media: Billie Eilish, “No Time to Die” (From No Time to Die)
Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media: Hildur Guðnadóttir, Joker
Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media: Various Artists, Jojo Rabbit
Best Contemporary Classical Composition: Giancarlo Guerrero & Nashville Symphony, Rouse: Symphony No. 5
Best Classical Compendium: Michael Tilson Thomas, Thomas, M.T.: From The Diary Of Anne Frank & Meditations On Rilke
Best Classical Solo Vocal Album: Sarah Brailey & Dashon Burton, Smyth: The Prison
Best Classical Instrumental Solo: Richard O’Neill, Theofanidis: Concerto For Viola And Chamber Orchestra
Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance: Pacifica Quartet, Contemporary Voices
Best Choral Performance: JoAnn Falletta, James K. Bass & Adam Luebke, Danielpour: The Passion Of Yeshua
Best Opera Recording: David Robertson, Eric Owens & Angel Blue, Gershwin: Porgy And Bess
Best Orchestral Performance: Gustavo Dudamel, Ives: Complete Symphonies
Best Tropical Latin Album: Grupo Niche, 40
Best Regional Mexican Album (Including Tejano): Natalia Lafourcade, Un Canto Por México, Vol. 1
Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album: Fito Paez, La Conquista Del Espacio
Producer of the Year, Classical: David Frost
Best Engineered Album, Classical: Riccardo Muti & Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Shostakovich: Symphony No. 13, ‘Babi Yar’
Best Remixed Recording: SAINt JHN, “Roses” (Imanbek Remix)
Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical: Beck, Hyperspace
Best Historical Album: Mister Rogers, It’s Such A Good Feeling: The Best Of Mister Rogers
Best Album Notes: The Replacements, Dead Man’s Pop
Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package: Wilco, Ode to Joy
Best Recording PackageVols. 11 & 12 Desert Sessions
Best Roots Gospel Album: Fisk Jubilee Singers, Celebrating Fisk! (The 150th Anniversary)
Best Gospel Album: PJ Morton, Gospel According To PJ
Best Contemporary Christian Music Album: Kanye West, Jesus Is King
Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song: Zach Williams & Dolly Parton, “There Was Jesus”
Best Gospel Performance/Song: Jonathan McReynolds & Mali Music, “Movin’ On”
Best New Age Album: Jim “Kimo” West, More Guitar Stories
Best Music Video: Beyoncé with Blue Ivy, and WizKiD, “Brown Skin Girl”
Best Arrangement, Instrumental and Vocals: Jacob Collier with Rapsody, “He Won’t Hold You”
Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella: John Beasley, “Donna Lee”
Best Instrumental Composition: Maria Schneider, Sputnik
Best Contemporary Instrumental Album: Snarky Puppy, Live at the Royal Albert Hall
Best Dance/Electronic Album: Kaytranada, Bubba
Best Dance Recording: Kaytranada, “10%” featuring Kali Uchis

Jhené Aiko to Host the Grammy Awards’ Premiere Ceremony

Jhené Aiko is makin’ a little Grammy history…

The 32-year-old part-Spanish and part-Dominican American singer will host the Grammy AwardsPremiere Ceremony, taking place at noon PT on March 14, where the vast majority of the Grammys are awarded.

Jhené Aiko

At 5:00 pm, Aiko will shift her attention to the 63rd annual Grammy Awards, where her Chilombo is nominated for album of the year.

This is the first time the host of the Premiere Ceremony has been an album of the year nominee.

Chilombo is also nominated for best progressive R&B album. Aiko has a third nomination this year, best R&B performance for “Lightning & Thunder.”

Aiko will be compensated for her efforts, as will all seven performers at the Premiere Ceremony, who are all current Grammy nominees.

The performers (and the categories in which they are nominated) are Burna Boy (best global music album for Twice As Tall), Terri Lyne Carrington + Social Science (best jazz instrumental album for The Waiting Game), Jimmy “Duck” Holmes (best traditional blues album for Cypress Grove), pianist Igor Levit (best classical instrumental solo for Beethoven: Complete Piano Sonatas), Lido Pimienta (best Latin rock or alternative album for Miss Colombia), Poppy (best metal performance for “Bloodmoney”) and Rufus Wainwright (best traditional pop vocal album for Unfollow the Rules).

Kicking off the event will be a performance celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Marvin Gaye classic “Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology).”

The artists who will perform the song are Grammy nominees], including Afro-Peruvian Jazz Orchestra, Thana Alexa, John Beasley, Camilo, Regina Carter, Alexandre Desplat, Bebel Gilberto, Lupita Infante, Sarah Jarosz, Mykal Kilgore, Ledisi, Mariachi Sol de Mexico de Jose Hernandez, PJ Morton, Gregory Porter, Grace Potter, säje, Gustavo Santaolalla (Bajofondo), Anoushka Shankar, and Kamasi Washington.

“Mercy Mercy Me” was one of the standout tracks on Gaye’s landmark album, What’s Going On. The album was severely under-recognized at the Grammys for 1971. Gaye’s only nomination that year was for another track on the album, “Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler),” which was nominated for best R&B vocal performance, male.

Bill Burr, Chika, Infante and Jimmy Jam, former Recording Academy chair, will present the first Grammy Awards of the day.

Imogen Heap hosted last year’s Premiere Ceremony. Shaggy hosted the event two years ago.

The Premiere Ceremony will stream live internationally on Grammy.com. The Grammy telecast will be broadcast live on CBS and Paramount+ from 8:00–11:30 p.m. ET and 5:00–8:30 p.m. PT.

Jessie Reyez’s “Before Love Came to Kill Us” Makes Polaris Music Prize Short List

Jessie Reyez is on the short list…

The 2020 Polaris Music Prize short list has been announced, with the 29-year-old Colombian-Canadian singer/songwriter’s latest studio effort among the artists nominated for the award celebrating the best Canadian album.

Jessie Reyez

Reyez’s debut album Before Love Came to Kill Uswhich was released this past March, is among the 10 finalists.

This is the second year in a row Reyez has made the short list.

Jessie Reyez Before Love Came to Kill Us

Last year, her EP Being Human in Public lost out to Haviah Mighty’s debut album 13th Floor for the Polaris Music Prize. 

But Reyez isn’t the only Latina in the running this year…

Lido Pimienta’s Miss Colombia has earned a spot on the short list.

The 34-year-old Afro-Colombian singer’s previous album La Papessa won the Polaris prize in 2017.

In addition to Reyez and Pimienta’s albums, others making the short list include DJ/Producer Kaytranada (Bubba), Caribou (Suddenly), rapper Backxwash (God Has Nothing to do With This Leave Him Out of It), Toronto rapper Junia-T (Studio Monk), bands nêhiyawak (nipiy), Pantayo (Pantayo), Witch Prophet (DNA Activation) and three-time Polaris short-listers U.S. Girls (Heavy Light).

The Polaris Music Prize awards $50,000 to the artist who creates the Canadian Album of the Year, which is judged on artistic merit, without consideration of genre or sales. 

The nine other nominated acts on the short list get $3,000. Eligible albums were released between May 1, 2019 and May 31, 2020.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the annual show will not be held in person, but the winner will be announced during a “cinematic tribute” on October 19.

Jessie Reyez’s New Album Makes the Long List for the 2020 Polaris Music Prize

Jessie Reyezis making the list… And, it’s a prestigious one at that!

The 40-album list for the 2020 Polaris Music Prize— an annual award that celebrates the best Canadian albums released over the past year – has been released, with 29-year-old Colombian singer-songwriter earning a place.

Jessie Reyez

Reyez was recognized for her acclaimed debut Before Love Came To Kill Us, which was released in March. It debuted at No. 13 on the Billboard 200.

Reyez’s album includes collaborations with Eminem and 6LACK, with the deluxe edition including additional features from Rico NastyMelii, JID, and A Boogie Wit da Hoodie

But Reyez isn’t the only Latina honoree…

Lido Pimienta has made the list for her album Miss Colombia, which was released earlier this year.

The 34-year-old Colombian singer rose to prominence after her 2016 album, La Papessa, won the Polaris Music Prize in 2017.

To qualify for this year’s honor, albums must have been released between June 1, 2019, and May 31, 2020. A total of 223 albums were considered for the 2020 long list, as determined by a 201-member jury comprised of music journalists, broadcasters and bloggers.

The long list will eventually be culled down to a short list of 10 albums, set to be announced July 15 during a CBC Music radio special. Eleven members of the jury will then be selected to serve on a grand jury that will choose this year’s winner.

Due to the ongoing pandemic, the 2020 Polaris winner — normally revealed during a splashy awards ceremony — will be announced live on the CBC Gem streaming service and via the CBC Music website during a “special cinematic event” this fall. Like every year, the winner will receive $50,000 CAD, while shortlisted artists will receive $3,000 CAD each courtesy of Slaight Music.

The Polaris Music Prize is considered one of Canada’s most prestigious music awards; in addition to the cash prize, winners receive a level of attention and renown that is highly coveted in the Canadian music industry.

The 2020 Polaris Music Prize long list is: 
Allie X – Cape God Anachnid – Dreamweaver
Aquakultre – Legacy
Marie-Pierre Arthur – Des feux pour voir
Backxwash – God Has Nothing To Do With This Leave Him Out Of It
Badge Époque Ensemble – Badge Époque Ensemble
Begonia – Fear
Chocolat – Jazz engagé
Louis-Jean Cormier – Quand la nuit tombe
Corridor – Junior
dvsn – A Muse In Her Feelings
Jacques Greene – Dawn Chorus
Sarah Harmer – Are You Gone
Ice Cream – FED UP
Junia-T – Studio Monk
Kaytranada – Bubba
Flore Laurentienne – Volume 1
Cindy Lee – What’s Tonight To Eternity?
Men I Trust – Oncle Jazz
nêhiyawak – nipiy
OBUXUM – Re-Birth
Owen Pallett – Island
Pantayo – Pantayo
Lido Pimienta – Miss Colombia
Joel Plaskett – 44
William Prince – Reliever
Jessie Reyez – BEFORE LOVE CAME TO KILL US
Andy Shauf – The Neon Skyline
Riit – ataataga
Super Duty Tough Work – Studies in Grey
U.S. Girls – Heavy Light
Leif Vollebekk – New Ways
Wares – Survival
The Weeknd – After Hours
WHOOP-Szo – Warrior Down
Witch Prophet – DNA ActivationZen Bamboo – GLU

Vega, the Reigning Miss Colombia, Named Miss Universe

It’s a crowning achievement for Paulina Vega

The 22-year-old Colombian beauty queen representing her native land, has been crowned Miss Universe.

Miss Universe Paulina Vega

Vega, a relative pageant newcomer, beat out first runner-up Miss USA Nia Sanchez and contestants from more than 80 other countries at Sunday’s pageant in Miami.

Vega, a student of business administration from Barranquilla, Colombia, said she would wear the crown with “pride and excitement” as she heard the news that fans in Colombia had taken to the streets to celebrate.

Real estate mogul and reality television star Donald Trump, who owns the pageant, said many predicted Vega would take home the coveted crown a few weeks ago when contestants first arrived in Miami for the festivities.

“From the minute she walked in the building, people said, ‘She’s a star,'” Trump said.

Vega’s win keeps the title in the hands of another Latina — reigning Miss Universe Gabriela Isler is from Venezuela.

Pageants and performance run in Vega’s family. Her grandmother, Elvira Castillo, was Miss Atlántico 1953 (Colombia) and her grandfather is legendary tenor Gastón Vega.

But the contests leading up to Miss Universe were a first for Vega, who is one of eight children. She also said they would be her last, as she is eager to return to her business studies, saying: “It gives me independence. I want to have my own company.”

After Sanchez, the 24-year-old Miss USA from Las Vegas, Nevada, the second runner-up was Miss Ukraine Diana Harkusha. Miss Jamaica Kaci Fennell and Miss Netherlands Yasmin Verheijen were also among the top five, emerging from the field of 88 contestants.

As Miss Universe, Vega will receive an undisclosed salary, a luxury apartment in New York, a wardrobe and oodles of beauty products, and a one-year scholarship from the New York Film Academy.

“It will be a dream come true to represent the woman of today,” Vega said earlier in the week. “A woman that not only cares about being beautiful and being glamorous, but also cares about being a professional, intelligent, hard-working person.”