Every year, the Polaris Music Prize seeks out the very best projects by Canadian artists. What makes the operation so special, is that it awards albums based on merit and not by other industry standards like sales or exposure. While homegrown megastars like Drake and The Weeknd often slip into the nominations, rising stars like Kaytranada and Inuk throat singers like Tanya Tagaq can take home the coveted trophy.
It’s an awesome tradition that has been running since 2006, and the Polaris group have done incredibly well in exposing the world to a myriad of amazing Canadian talent. This year, is of course no different, and today we were blessed with the long list of nominees. Along with the aforementioned six gods, Aubrey and Abel, some of our favourites have also been thrown into the mix. Some welcome additions to this year’s class are Weston emcee, Clarimont The Second, jazz titans, BADBADNOTGOOD, and soul star, Charlotte Day Wilson. You can check out the full list below.
A Tribe Called Red – We Are The Halluci Nation
Alaclair Ensemble – Les Frères Cueilleurs
Anciients – Voice of the Void
Arkells – Morning Report
Philippe B – La grande nuit vidéo
BADBADNOTGOOD – IV
Louise Burns – Young Mopes
Chocolat – Rencontrer Looloo
Clairmont The Second – Quest For Milk and Honey
Leonard Cohen – You Want It Darker
Antoine Corriveau – Cette chose qui cognait au creux de sa poitrine sans vouloir s’arrêter
Le Couleur – P.O.P.
Marie Davidson – Adieux Au Dancefloor
Mac Demarco – This Old Dog
Gord Downie – Secret Path
Drake – More Life
Feist – Pleasure
Figure Walking – The Big Other
Fiver – Audible Songs From Rockwood
Geoffroy – Coastline
Hannah Georgas – For Evelyn
Japandroids – Near To The Wild Heart Of Life
Carly Rae Jepsen – E.MO.TION Side B
B.A. Johnston – Gremlins III
Lisa LeBlanc – Why You Wanna Leave, Runaway Queen?
The New Pornographers – Whiteout Conditions
Klô Pelgag – L’Étoile thoracique
Peter Peter – Noir Éden
Lido Pimienta – La Papessa
Jessie Reyez – Kiddo
Daniel Romano – Modern Pressure
The Sadies – Northern Passages
John K. Samson – Winter Wheat
Tanya Tagaq – Retribution
The Tragically Hip – Man Machine Poem
TUNS – TUNS
Leif Vollebekk – Twin Solitude
Weaves – Weaves
The Weeknd – Starboy
Charlotte Day Wilson – CDW
The long list will soon be shortened to a mere ten nominees later next month, and will be announced on CBC Music’s Facebook page. The Polaris Music Prize will eventually be given out later in the year. The winner of best album will take home $50,000, while the other Short List artists will receive $3,000 courtesy of Slaight Music.
