Apply now for SOCAN Foundation’s inaugural $5,000 Her Music Awards

Story by Howard Druckman | Wednesday October 30th, 2019

Mid-career, female-identifying Canadian music creators are invited to apply now for the inaugural Her Music Awards, a new program that provides such songwriters/composers with recognition, and a $5,000 award. The SOCAN Foundation, part of the SOCAN Group of companies, recently launched the awards, in partnership with RE:SOUND.

“The SOCAN Foundation is thrilled to announce another initiative celebrating incredible Canadian talent,” said Charlie Wall-Andrews, Executive Director of SOCAN Foundation. “This program is designed to recognize artistic excellence demonstrated by female-identifying creators of music in Canada, with the expectation that the accolade will help to build momentum in their career trajectory.”

“RE:SOUND is committed to building a thriving, sustainable and diverse music industry in Canada. As an organization, we have a deep commitment to diversity – from our staff to our Board of Directors – so we are proud to support female-identifying creators by sponsoring the SOCAN Foundation’s inaugural Her Music Awards,” said Ian MacKay, President, RE:SOUND.

Applications to the Her Music Awards are being accepted until Nov. 28, 2019, at 11:59 p.m. EST. To apply, and for more information (including eligibility), click here.

Photo by Marie-Michèle Bouchard

ADISQ 2019: Fred Pellerin wins Folk Album of the Year

Story by Eric Parazelli | Wednesday October 30th, 2019

Fred Pellerin has a new Félix Award to place on his mantlepiece after winning Folk Album of the Year for Après at the ADISQ gala, held Sunday night, Oct. 27, 2019. The trophy, however, won’t sit there right away; Pellerin promised to share his victory with his entire village of Saint-Élie-de-Caxton, and hand-delivered the statue to his local post office on Monday morning so everyone could enjoy the victory. When we met with him in the Gala press room after his acceptance speech, the artist said he was grateful for his enduring career, and still being appreciated by the ADISQ voting members and the general public. He also explained why he asks collaborators, such as David Portelance, to help with his lyrics – despite being a renowned author and storyteller himself.

Photo by Marie-Michèle Bouchard

ADISQ 2019 : Florent Vollant wins inaugural Indigenous Artist of the Year

Story by Eric Parazelli | Tuesday October 29th, 2019

The Sunday night ADISQ Gala on Oct. 27, 2019, made Québec music history, when Florent Vollant earned the very first Indigenous Artist of the Year Félix award. Recently, during the 2019 SOCAN Awards Gala in Montréal, he also won the very first SOCAN Classic Award presented to an Indigenous artist, for the song “E Uassiuian,” by his former band Kashtin. Vollant believes the time is right to fully integrate Indigenous artists in these celebrations of music. He sees this display of openness as a challenge for the Indigenous community. We met with him in the Gala press room after he accepted his trophy, and he spoke with us about the making his latest album, Mishta Meshkenu and how blessed he feels that his music travels the world.