Nominations for Saskatchewan Music Awards announced

A couple of months after returning home from a tour of Australia, Saskatchewan country music artist Amy Nelson performed at the Artesian in Regina as the nominations were announced for the 2019 Saskatchewan Music Awards.

This is the second year for the awards, which honour excellence and celebrate the success of Saskatchewan artists of several genres.

While Nelson has received a Saskatchewan Country Music Award — which have been handed out for 30 years — she said the Saskatchewan Music Awards provide an opportunity to celebrate all kinds of music.

“There’s so much talent out there. I think it’s a chance where some of the artists from the other genres that weren’t getting recognized now have a chance to be noticed for all of their hard work,” Nelson said Wednesday.

The award ceremony is moving to Saskatoon for its second year. It’s to be held Nov. 28 at the Broadway Theatre after the inaugural event was held at The Exchange in Regina in 2018.

Executive director Michael Dawson said as the event grows, it might be taken to communities other than the two biggest cities.

“It’s our hope to use it as an opportunity to celebrate and showcase some of the amazing music venues that are happening across the province,” said Dawson.

While it’s still in its early days, Dawson said he loves the size of the awards ceremony.

“I love that it’s incredibly accessible and that the artists have a lot of time to spend with each other and chat and catch up and you see this cross-pollination of conversations between metal artists and hip hop artists and folk artists,” said Dawson. “I hope we never lose that. I think that’s part of what makes it special.”

Among the nominations announced on Wednesday is a new category, Music Video of the Year. The music video for the song Diamond Ring by The Dead South is one of the five nominated in the category.

The Regina-based group has also won awards at the national level, including a Juno and Canadian Independent Music Award.

Dawson believes there are more artists from Saskatchewan than ever on the world stage right now.

“Saskatchewan, certainly, has never had any lack of talent but I feel like it’s starting to get the recognition that it deserves nationally and internationally,” said Dawson.

Nelson has toured extensively in Australia, performing at festivals including the Broadbeach Country Music Festival, Central Coast Music Festival and Tamworth Country Music Festival.

“Sometimes I look out from the stage and go, ‘Really? This is awesome!’ ” said Nelson.

As music streaming grows in popularity and the sale of albums declines, Dawson said live performances have become the No. 1 revenue generator for artists.

As artists face more pressure to tour, he’s happy to see the success of Saskatchewan artists like Nelson.

“Having territories like Germany and Australia become major markets for Saskatchewan artists is such an exciting thing for us to see happen,” said Dawson.

The awards are being held to mark the start of the Very Prairie Music Summit, which runs from Nov. 29 to Dec. 1 in Saskatoon. It’s an event where artists can share some insider information on how the industry works and how to navigate it successfully.

“I think a lot of people sort of start out in the basement, learn how to play the guitar or start a band in the garage and you never really think about what are the steps to get from A to B to C to D,” said Dawson.

A full list of award nominees can be found here.