The 2021 Polaris Music Prize reveals shortlist
The Canadian Press | Posted: July 16, 2021 7:26 PM | Last Updated: July 19, 2021
The annual prize is awarded to the best Canadian album of the year
Albums from Quebec singer Dominique Fils-Aimé and Toronto rapper Tobi have been shortlisted for this year's Polaris Music Prize.
The selection of 10 albums will face off for the $50,000 award recognizing the best Canadian album of the year, as chosen by a team of journalists, broadcasters and bloggers.
A longlist of 40 albums was previously announced on Jun. 15. That list has been narrowed down to the following selection:
- Theory of Ice, Leanne Betasamosake Simpson
- Parallel World, Cadence Weapon
- Head Above the Waters, Dijah SB
- Three Little Words, Dominique Fils-Aimé
- When Smoke Rises, Mustafa
- The Ends, the OBGMs
- Notre-Dame-des-Sept-Douleurs, Klô Pelgag
- Elements Vol. 1, Tobi
- Ignorance, the Weather Station
- Bleached Wavves, Zoon
Canadian hip hop, rap celebrated across four albums
Fils-Aimé's Three Little Words completes a trilogy of albums celebrating the history of Black-American music, while Tobi's Elements Vol. 1 fuses hip hop, jazz, pop and R&B.
Other Polaris-nominated albums include two efforts from Toronto rappers — Cadence Weapon's Parallel World and DijahSB's Head Above the Waters, and the debut album of Mustafa, When Smoke Rises.
WATCH | A music video for Canadian artist Mustafa's song The Hearse:
Works from Indigenous artists are recognized
The Indigenous music scene is represented with Bleached Waves by Zoon, a project from Hamilton-based First Nations musician Daniel Monkman. There's also Theory of Ice, from Leanne Betasamosake Simpson, a member of Alderville First Nation.
WATCH | The title track from Zoon's Bleached Waves:
Winning album to be announced in the fall
Toronto folk act the Weather Station is up for their release Ignorance, while the city's punk outfit the O-B-G-Ms are being recognized for The Ends. Quebec singer-songwriter Klô Pelgag is shortlisted for her album Notre-Dame-des-Sept-Douleurs.
The winning album will be chosen by an 11-member grand jury and announced on Sept. 27.