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MacLeans
Magazine
December
12, 2006
Nova
Scotians dominate nominations for 2007 East Coast Music Awards
DANIEL
SQUIZZATO
HALIFAX
(CP) - A pair of past winners from Nova Scotia lead the pack,
but there's also plenty of new blood among the nominees for
the 2007 East Coast Music Awards.
Country
singer George Canyon of Hopewell and roots
artist J. P. Cormier of Cheticamp each picked up five nominations
for the ECMAs, to be handed out Feb. 18 in Halifax.
Canyon is up for best recording, male solo recording, entertainer,
video and country recording.
Despite
winning four ECMAs and a Juno in the past, Canyon said he was
shocked at the news.
"My
wife and I are extremely humbled by these nominations,"
he said in a telephone interview.
"The
nominations sort of give me that little pat on the back that
says, 'hey, you're still a part of our community,' which means
the world to me."
Canyon,
who shot to fame in 2004 after competing on the American talent-search
show Nashville Star, said he holds the ECMAs dear to his heart.
"Born
a Maritimer, always a Maritimer," he said. "No matter
where I live in Canada, saltwater runs through my blood."
Up-and-coming
Halifax-based rockers In-Flight Safety collected four nods,
including best video and best group recording.
The
band, formed in Sackville, N.B., also performed at the nomination
announcement ceremony Tuesday.
Band
frontman John Mullane said the nominations represent a "wonderful"
end to a year that's included heavy rotation on MuchMusic for
their videos, and inclusion of their song "Surround"
in an ad campaign for Dell Computers.
"It's
been a really great year," he said.
Mullane
hopes the band will win at least one award, but doesn't want
to set expectations.
"We're
really excited just to go to the show. A lot of our friends
are nominated as well, so it's just exciting."
Halifax
singer Jill Barber and Newfoundland's Ron Hynes also picked
up four nominations apiece.
In
all, 97 artists and groups from the four Atlantic provinces
- the majority of them based in Nova Scotia - are competing
in 28 categories.
Blues
artist Charlie A'Court of Truro, N.S., said he was "just
thrilled" to learn he's nominated in three categories,
including best recording.
"It
would be nice to walk away with any one of those awards,"
he said.
"The
whole cliche is, it's just an honour to be nominated, but it
really is humbling to be in the category with some of these
artists who I've looked up to for years."
Hip
hop artist Classified was nominated for best video and best
rap/hip hop single.
While
happy to be nominated, he said making music is his No. 1 priority.
"All
this stuff, it's kind of not even really my thing, but it's
good exposure," said Classified, whose real name is Luke
Boyd and is from Enfield, N.S.
"Hip
hop is not covered that much in Canada at all, really, so any
kind of avenue we can have where we can get our music out and
let people know what we're doing, we'll take it."
The
ECMA weekend will feature performances by over 30 acts at various
venues in Halifax, and will culminate with a nationally televised
awards show.
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