Manitoba Artists Land 46 Nods for 2009 Aboriginal Peoples Choice Music Awards

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With a record 46 nominations in 20 categories, artists from Manitoba are poised to dominate the 2009 Aboriginal Peoples Choice Music Awards (APCMA). The nominees for the fourth annual awards gala were announced on August 20 by the Manito Ahbee Festival Inc. at Winnipeg’s McPhillips Street Casino.

The APCMAs features an online voting system, which gives Aboriginal music fans from around the world the chance to vote for their favorite act in each of the 22 categories. The winners will be announced at a nationally-televised award show on November 6 at the MTS Centre and on November 5 at McPhillips Street Casino. The awards are part of the Manito Ahbee festival, now in its fourth year. The final round of online voting for the APCMA is now underway and will come to an end on October 1.

Leading this year’s nominees with six nods each are Dauphin country band the Chris Barker Band, including Best Country CD, Best Rock CD, Best Group or Duo, Best New Artist, Aboriginal Songwriter of the Year, and Best Album Cover Design for Six String Highway. Winnipeg rap outfit

Da Skelpa Squad

is up for five awards, this year for Best Rap or Hip-Hop CD, Best Group or Duo, Best Producer or Engineer, and Best Album Cover Design for its latest effort, Born To Do It, and Single of the Year for the album’s title track.

Rock act Eagle & Hawk landed four nods this year, including Entertainer of the Year, Best Group or Duo, Best Producer or Engineer, and Best Rock CD for Sirensong. The Juno-winning band took home four awards for Red Road Stories at the 2008 APCMAs.

Juno nominated country pop chanteuse Tracy Bone is up for three awards this year, including Entertainer of the Year, Aboriginal Songwriter of the Year, and Best Pop CD for No Lies. Acclaimed fiddler Sierra Noble is also up for three awards for her singer/songwriter debut, Possibilities and its track “Possibility,” which received nominations for Best Country CD, Best Pop CD, and Best Music Video. Jon-C and his release, Blood, Sweat & Tears, are up for Best New Artist, Best Rap or Hip-Hop CD, and Best Album Cover Design.

Double nominees include rapper Wab Kinew for Best Rap or Hip-Hop CD and Best Music Video, singer/songwriter Don Amero for Entertainer of the Year and Best Folk or Acoustic, Juno-nominated blues man Billy Joe Green for Best Blues CD and Best Rock CD, and flute player Ashock for Best Flute CD and Best Instrumental CD.
Other Manitoba nominees include hip-hop acts Brooklyn, Team Rezofficial, Fresh I.E., and Sadie, country acts Howard Nepinak, Ray St. Germain, and J.C. Campbell, singer/songwriter Jaylene Johnson, instrumentalist Ivan Spence, rockers Lost Priority, and blues act The Dusty Roads Band.

Rounding out this year’s impressive list of nominees are three locally-produced radio and television shows. NCI’s Métis Hour Times Two is up for Best Aboriginal Music Radio Station Program while APTN’s Aboriginal Day LIVE 09 and Arbor LIVE are up for Best Television Program Promotion of Aboriginal Music.

Manitoba-based labels racked up a number of nominations at this year’s APCMAs. Arbor Records, which has offices in Winnipeg and Ontario, released albums by Ashok, Team Rezofficial, and Tracy Bone, and is behind Arbor LIVE. Albums by Billy Joe Green, J.C. Campbell, Lost Priority, and Wab Kinew were released by StrongFront Records. Hip-hop label Heatbag Records released albums by Jon-C and Brooklyn.

2009 ABORIGINAL PEOPLES CHOICE MUSIC AWARDS - MANITOBA NOMINEES

ABORIGINAL ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR
Don Amero
Eagle & Hawk
Tracy Bone

BEST INSTRUMENTAL CD
Ashock - Being of Enlightenment
Ivan Spence - Buffalo Gals

BEST FOLK/ACOUSTIC CD
Don Amero - Deepening

BEST BLUES CD
Billy Joe Green - First Law Of The Land – If Broken, Return to Maker
The Dusty Roads Band - Searchin' for a River

BEST RAP OR HIP-HOP CD
Da Skelpa Squad - Born To Do It
Jon-C - Blood, Sweat & Tears
Wab Kinew - Live By The Drum

BEST ALBUM COVER DESIGN
Chris Barker Band - Six String Highway
Da Skelpa Squad - Born To Do It
Jon-C - Blood, Sweat & Tears

BEST GROUP OR DUO
Chris Barker Band
Da Skelpa Squad
Eagle and Hawk
Team Rezofficial

BEST ROCK CD
Billy Joe Green - First Law Of The Land - If Broken, Return to Maker
Eagle & Hawk - Sirensong
Lost Priority - All That We Are

BEST PRODUCER OR ENGINEER
Da Skelpa Squad - Born To Do It
Eagle and Hawk - Sirensong

BEST NEW ARTIST
Chris Barker Band
Jon-C

BEST COUNTRY CD
Chris Barker Band - Six String Highway
Howard Nepinak - Second Chance
J.C. Campbell - Lazy James
Ray St. Germain - Life Ain’t Hard
Sierra Noble – Possibilities

BEST FLUTE CD
Ashock - Being of Enlightenment

BEST GOSPEL CD
Sadie - BoomBoxx Sounds

BEST INTERNATIONAL ARTIST
Jaylene Johnson

BEST POP CD
Sierra Noble – Possibilities
Tracy Bone - No Lies

ABORIGINAL SONGWRITER OF THE YEAR
Chris Barker Band - Six String Highway
Tracy Bone - No Lies

SINGLE OF THE YEAR
Brooklyn - "Badass Shorty"
Da Skelpa Squad - "Born To Do It"

BEST MUSIC VIDEO
Fresh I.E. - "Crystal"
Sierra Noble - "Possibility"
Wab Kinew - "Last Word"

BEST ABORIGINAL MUSIC RADIO STATION/PROGRAM
Métis Hour Times Two (NCI FM)

BEST TELEVISION PROGRAM PROMOTION OF ABORIGINAL MUSIC
Aboriginal Day LIVE 09 (APTN)
Arbor LIVE (APTN)

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