2011 NCI Jam contestants announced

The 25th annual NCI Jam is set for September 24 at the Pantages Playhouse in downtown Winnipeg and 17 amateur Aboriginal singers have been selected for the completion. The majority of the contestants come from First Nations and Métis communities in Manitoba with the exception of four singers making their way to Winnipeg from Ontario and Saskatchewan.

Each contestant will get a chance to sing one song with a full band for the radio and in-house audience.

The prizes are:
First Place: $2,500 
Second Place: $1,500 
Third Place: $750 
The Sydney Castel Honourable Mention Award: $100

The first place winner’s song will also receive 50 plays on NCI FM.

The contestants are:
Tanita Cruly --Dauphin River First Nation, MB
Greg Personius --Opaskwayak Cree Nation
Liza -Jane Brown --Fish Lake First Nation, SK
Angus Munroe --Garden Hill First Nation, MB
Jade Willowby --Whitesand First Nation, ON
Horace Cook --Sapatoyak Cree Nation, MB
Kathleen Jensen --Misipawistik Cree Nation, MB
AJ Choken --Lake Manitoba First Nation, MB
Chicky Chartrand --Camperville, MB
Steven Leveque --Pinaymootang First Nation, MB
Tracy Parenteau --Wabigoon Lake First Nation, ON
Gator Beaulieu --Ebb & Flow First Nation, MB
Kerri McGillivary --Opaskwayak Cree Nation, MB
Albert Audy --Sapatoyak Cree Nation, MB
Akina Dayle Shirt --Carry the Kettle First Nation, SK
Malcolm Campbell --Kinosota, MB
Ila Barker --Berens River First Nation, MB

The show will also feature performances by Jerry Sereda and Desiree Dorion, a ceremony to induct Billy Simard into the Manitoba Aboriginal Music Hall of Fame, and a special Guitar Hero performance by Billy Joe Green, Jimmy Flett, Gerry McIvor, and Lionel Desjarlais.

Tickets are $21.75 and available at Ticketmaster.

Please visit www.ncifm.com for more information.