Prince Stand(ing) in the joy as accolades pour in

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This article was published 09/04/2024 (566 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

William Prince believed Stand in the Joy was a special record when he released it last May.

The Peguis First Nation singer-songwriter is finding out just how special it is, not just to him but to fans and critics.

Prince was the big winner at the Canadian Folk Music Awards held over the weekend in St. John’s, N.L., earning three of the two-day ceremony’s biggest trophies.

He was named solo artist of the year, Stand in the Joy won for contemporary album of the year and single of the year went to When You Miss Someone.

The folk awards’ accolades come only two weeks after Prince and Stand in the Joy won a Juno Award for contemporary roots album of the year, the second time he’s picked up the honour; he performed during the awards’ televised gala.

He also earned a nomination for 2023 breakthrough artist of the year from the Americana Music Awards, and sang during the livestreamed ceremony, held in Nashville.

He’s also just completed a cross-country tour of concerts, including a sold-out performance at the Centennial Concert Hall in March.

Meanwhile, Prince continues his work on social media so he can stand in the joy for as long as possible.

Last September, he teamed up with OurVinyl Sessions, an East Nashville company, to record three songs from the album — Goldie Hawn, Take a Look Around and Only Thing We Need, as well as the track Bloom, from his 2015 debut Earthly Days — for a video series and a new EP.

“It was a pleasure to commit a version of these songs to tape — a version of how they all began, just with voice and guitar,” Prince posted on X (formerly Twitter) shortly after their release.

They are solo performances, just Prince and his Martin acoustic guitar, and except for a whistling solo during Goldie Hawn, are faithful to the original recordings.

OurVinyl has recorded many artists in the same minimalist fashion for its sessions, including Texas country singer Charley Crockett, Kentucky artist Tyler Childers and Washington state country-soul singer Allen Stone.

Manitoba picked up a fourth award among the 21 CFSAs handed out when Winnipeg’s Jacob Brodovsky won English songwriter of the year for his latest album, I Love You and I’m Sorry.

Alan.Small@winnipegfreepress.com

X: @AlanDSmall