Class of 2018: Writing bestsellers and making breakthroughs

As we bid farewell to 2018, it seemed like the perfect time to look back and listen to those who won awards and accolades, became bestsellers and made breakthroughs. This week on Unreserved, meet the class of 2018. 

Maliseet​​ musician Jeremy Dutcher's debut album blends traditional Wolastoqiyik melodies with classical compositions and electronic music. His album was received with rave reviews, and he won the 2018 Polaris Prize.  

Last year author Terese Marie Mailhot published her debut memoir, Heart Berries, but she couldn't have predicted its overwhelming success. She quickly became a New York Times bestseller, and her book was nominated for several awards including the 2018 Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Nonfiction, the Governor General's Literary Awards, and it was longlisted for the 2019 RBC Taylor Prize. 

Billy-Ray Belcourt is an academic, a PhD student at the University of Alberta, and a 2016 Rhodes Scholar who holds a masters in women's studies from Oxford. But this year it was Belcourt's poetry that had people talking. His poetry collection, This Wound is a World, took home Canada's most illustrious poetry honour - the $65,000 Griffin Poetry Prize. 

Tantoo Cardinal has almost 100 movies and television credits on her reel, and she is not slowing down. This year, the actor was was one of 928 new members from diverse backgrounds who were invited by the Film Academy to join its ranks, which means she'll help decide who wins Academy Awards. 

This week's playlist: 

Jeremy Dutcher - Mehcinut

Elisapie - Don't Make Me Blue 

Emily Wurramara - Black Smoke