By SaskMusic

SaskMusic Opens 2022 Saskatchewan Music Award Nominations

Sep 27, 2022 | 10:04 AM

​SaskMusic is pleased to announce the nomination intake for the 2022 Saskatchewan Music Awards. The fifth annual awards will honour excellence in the Saskatchewan music industry and celebrate the achievements of our music industry members over the past year.

A live and livestreamed awards ceremony is being planned to take place in conjunction with the Very Prairie: Saskatchewan Music Summit, taking place December 8-11/2022.​

​SaskMusic explains, “There is a wealth of exciting music being created in Saskatchewan deserves much broader attention. The awards will help us to celebrate and share this wide variety of music with music lovers both here at home and beyond our borders.

We invite Sask. artists and industry members to make their submissions. We’re really looking forward to once again sharing and celebrating the hard work of our talented artists and industry folks.”

​Submissions for the Artistic and Industry categories of the SMAs are open until 11:59pm CST, October 3, 2022.

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Continue on to full rules and eligibility criteria
or
download them in PDF form.

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Categories at a glance

​ARTISTIC: Artist of the Year Categories

Please note these are broad genre categories. Artists should select the closest/most appropriate genre for their work.

​Nominees and winners in these categories will be determined by a combination of artistic merit and career achievements. 3 tracks which have been commercially released during the period of April 15, 2021-October 3, 2022 must be included in a submission. There are no sales qualifications for these categories.

• Alternative Artist of the Year: including but not limited to progressive new music such as alt rock, alt pop, punk, and sub-genres/hybrids outside of the Metal/Loud or Rock/Pop categories.
• Country Artist of the Year: including but not limited to mainstream and traditional country.
• Electronic Artist of the Year: including but not limited to dance and instrumental electronic.
• Experimental or Contemporary Artist of the Year: This category recognizes an innovative, non-mainstream, instrumental, or eclectic album without genre limit, based on artistic vision and creative merit. It also aims to recognize artists working in a genre that produces a limited number of releases per year. Genres which may be suitable for this category include but are not limited to spoken word, noise, jazz, classical, children’s, witch house, comedy, and original soundtrack.
• Hip Hop Artist of the Year: including but not limited to hip hop, rap, urban R&B, and neo soul.
• Instrumental Artist of the Year: ncluding but not limited to acoustic instrumental, classical, jazz, trip hop, chillout, original score, and others. (New for 2022.)
• Metal/Loud Artist of the Year: including but not limited to hard rock, metal, punk, heavy alternative, and heavy instrumental.
• R&B Artist of the Year: including but not limited to soul, funk, and rhythm & blues.
• Rock/Pop Artist of the Year: including but not limited to those considered to be mainstream, such as rock, pop, blues, and adult contemporary.
• Roots/Folk Artist of the Year: including but not limited to roots, folk, singer/songwriter, traditional blues, and Americana.
• Indigenous Artist of The Year: This category will recognize self-identifying Indigenous artists making music in any genre. Submissions may include any contemporary genres such as those categories above, as well as traditional music and fusions that incorporate traditional instrumentation/rhythm, and/or reflect the Indigenous experience through their lyrics. For this category, submissions will include at least 2 songs for the jury to consider which have been released to the public during the period.
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​Artistic: Single of the Year

This category recognizes the top commercial Saskatchewan song of the year released during the period of April 15, 2021-October 3, 2022, determined solel by a numerical calculation of industry data.​

​Artistic: Music Video of the Year

This category recognizes an exceptional music video made available to the public during the period of April 15, 2021-October 3, 2022.​

​Artistic: Album of the Year

This category is based on a full-length album, as a whole, released during the period of October 15, 2021-October 3, 2022. All genres of music are included in consideration. An industry jury determines a long list of finalists, which then goes to the general public as the “Best Saskatchewan Albums of 2022” online poll which will determine the Top Ten and the winner.​

Industry Categories

​Nominees and winners in these categories will refer to activities during the period April 15, 2021-October 3, 2022.​

• ​Industry Achievement Award: will recognize excellence in the provision of skills and/or services and by those helping to build the community and music industry of Saskatchewan. Final nominees will be determined by an industry jury, with the winner to be determined by a combination of industry jury and public vote.
• Music Company of the Year: will recognize a music business/organization that has demonstrated excellence in services, sales, or craftsmanship in their offerings to the public and/or music industry. Final nominees will be determined by an industry jury, with the winner to be determined by a combination of industry jury and public vote. (New for 2022)
• Music Professional of the Year: will recognize an individual who provided excellent sales, service, skills, craftsmanship, or volunteerism. (New for 2022)
• Venue or Festival of the Year: will recognize live music venues and music festivals that strove to celebrate and present live music, including in-person shows/events and alternate programming initiatives, as well as excellence in programming and community engagement. Final nominees will be determined by an industry jury, with the winner to be determined by a combination of industry jury and public vote.
• Producer of the Year: will recognize excellence in music production by a producer residing in Saskatchewan, who was primarily responsible for the recording and/or mixing process for a submitted project(s) released within the eligibility period.
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SPECIAL HONOURS: Indigenous Music Achievement Award

This award will recognize excellence in an individual demonstrating musical impact, leadership, innovation and/or community-building which has created a positive and lasting impact on the Indigenous music community. This award is intended to honour a long-term commitment to integrity and involvement in music which has inspired and uplifted others, and will consider the individual’s work over their career.

​Artistic Awards SubmissionsIndustry Awards Submissions

For updates, visit this page, and make sure you’re subscribed to the SaskMusic E-Release.

​Questions? Contact SaskMusic at 1-800-347-0676 (toll free within Sask) or 306-347-0676.

See who was nominated for 2021 Saskatchewan Music Awards

The Best Saskatchewan Albums of 2021: Top Ten

​Check out previous years’ SMA nominees and winners