Manitoba makes Polaris long list

Four Manitoban artists — Begonia, Boy Golden, JayWood and Propagandhi — have a shot at becoming the first local musicians to win the prestigious Polaris Music Prize after earning a spot on the award’s official long list of 40 notable albums released last year.

With a 10 per cent chance at netting the $30,000 award, Manitoba is well-represented, trailing only Ontario (13 nominees) and Quebec (12). Of the 40 records that made the long list, 10 will be selected for the prize’s short list, which will be announced July 9.

The long list for the prize — presented annually to the Canadian album of the year, based solely on artistic merit — was announced Thursday in Toronto during the NXNE music festival.

In total, 202 albums were submitted for consideration by the 205-member national jury of critics and broadcasters.

Among the 40 long-listed artists are three past winners: Montreal DJ Kaytranada (2016), Inuk throat-singer Tanya Tagaq (2014) and electronic artist Dan Snaith of Daphni, who won the award in 2008 for his record Andorra, released as Caribou. (Before shifting species, the Ontarian Snaith released records as Manitoba.)

Thirteen of the nominated records come from first-time Polaris honourees, including Toronto songwriter Charlotte Cornfield for Hurts Like Hell, Saskatoon crooner Katie Tupper for Greyhound and Regina’s Foxwarren for its second record, 2.

The initial long-list selection is the latest feather in Liam Duncan’s Boy Golden stetson. Backed by one of the sharpest bands in the country, the Brandon-raised, Winnipeg-based Canadiana star has swiftly become one of the country’s most dynamic live performers with the accolades to boot.

Nominated last year for a roots Juno for For Eden, now, with Best of Our Possible Lives, Boy Golden is in contention for not only the Polaris, but two Western Canadian Music Awards and the Americana Music Association’s emerging act of the year award.

For Winnipeg’s Propagandhi — Chris Hannah, Jord Samolesky, Todd Kowalski and Sulynn Hago — the group’s second Polaris nod comes nearly four decades into a historic run as one of the country’s most politically engaged punk bands.

At Peace, the group’s eighth full-length release, was recorded and produced in Winnipeg amid threats from southern neighbours, with its cover recontextualizing a famed depiction of General Custer’s last stand.

This spring, the third time was the charm for Winnipeg’s Alexa Dirks, a.k.a. Begonia, at the Juno Awards.

After narrowly missing out on the adult alternative album of the year award for her first two records — 2019’s Fear and 2023’s Powder Blue — the iconic local performer split the hard-earned honour in 2026 with Afie Jurvanen of Bahamas in a rare awards show tie. The recording artist, who made the Polaris 40 for Fear and the short list for Powder Blue, is hoping three is the magic number for her latest record, Fantasy Life.

An ex-Winnipegger is a forever Winnipegger, and even from sunny Montreal, Jeremy Haywood-Smith of JayWood shouts out his hometown from the rooftops.

Last long-listed for the Polaris in 2023 for his sophomore record, Slingshot, the songwriter finds himself once again in rarefied air for his 2025 record Leo Negro, a hooky, comic and billowy vision of narrative-driven alt-soul indie.

Other notable artists whose work was chosen for the long list include five-time Polaris honouree Shad, four-time nominees PUP; three-time nominees Dominique Fils-Aime, Men I Trust and TOBi; and Peaches and Beverly Glenn-Copeland, who have both won the adjacent Polaris Heritage Prize for albums released prior to the establishment in 2006 of the Polaris Music Prize.

While the Polaris has been presented annually for 20 years, this year will mark the second time organizers hand out the SOCAN Polaris Song Prize, an award accompanied by $10,000, furnished by the country’s largest member-based rights management organization. Last year’s inaugural winner was Toronto poet and vocalist Mustafa for his track Gaza Is Calling.

Prize winners will be feted on Sept. 22 in Toronto at an awards ceremony and concert.

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