Lido Pimienta’s “La Papessa” Wins Polaris Music Prize’s Canadian Album of the Year Title

Lido Pimienta has a massive reason to celebrate…

The Colombian Canadian musician’s La Papessa has been declared Canadian album of the year by the Polaris Music Prize grand jury.

Lido Pimienta

The award comes with a check for C$50,000 ($41,000) and was presented by last year’s winner, Kaytranada.

As the 11-member grand jury — selected from the larger jury pool of music media — debated about and voted on the 10-title shortlist behind closed doors at the venue, those artists were honored onstage with a thoughtful essay about their work and a custom-designed poster.

Some of the nominees also performed: Pimienta, Feist, Tanya Tagaq, Lisa LeBlanc, Leif Vollebekk and Weaves.

The audience of 900 was mostly comprised of industry, artists, sponsors and jurors with a small quantity of tickets sold to the public.

Lido Pimienta

The other nine albums on the 2017 short list were A Tribe Called Red‘s We Are The Halluci Nation; BadBadNotGood’s IV; Leonard Cohen‘s You Want It Darker; Gord Downie’s Secret Path; Feist’s Pleasure; Lisa LeBlanc’s Why You Wanna Leave, Runaway Queen?; Tanya Tagaq’s Retribution; Leif Vollebekk’s Twin Solitude; and  the eponymously-titled release by Weaves.

The albums are judged solely on artistic merit, without consideration of genre, sales or professional affiliation, according to the Polaris mandate. The eligibility period for the titles is June 1, 2016 to May 31, 2017.

The nominated albums had been selected by a two-part calculation process. This year’s 201-member jury — made up of music journalists, broadcasters and music bloggers from across Canada — selected 188 titles on the first online ballot, which asked for their top 5 picks ranked in order. The 40-title long list was then determined and the same jurors picked their top 5 from those 40 to determine the short-list.

Slaight Music again donated the prize money, C$50,000 for the winner and C$3,000 ($2,275) for each of nine short-listed acts.

Artists who have previous won the Polaris Music Prize are Kaytranada (2016), Buffy Sainte-Marie (2015), Tanya Tagaq (2014), Godspeed You! Black Emperor (2013), Feist (2012), Arcade Fire (2011), Karkwa (2010), Fucked Up (2009), Caribou (2008), Patrick Watson (2007), and Final Fantasy / Owen Pallett (2006).

Pentatonix Among 50 Acts to Be Honored at the 2015 YouTube Music Awards

There’s no doubt Kirstie Maldonado is YouTube sensation… After all, the video for PentatonixGrammy-winningDaft Punk” single has garnered more than 122-million views alone.

And now the 22-year-old half-Mexican/part-Spanish singer and her Pentatonix band mates are being recognized for their online success.

Pentatonix

Pentatonix, which had the best-selling album by a group last year, is one of 50 acts that will be feted during this year’s YouTube Music Awards.

The platform noted that the winners were “chosen by the fans” as they “showed the biggest growth in views, subscribers and engagement over the last six months on YouTube.”

Collectively, the winners – which include Fifth Harmony, Beyonce, Ariana Grande, Kendrick Lamar, Lady Gaga, Sam Smith, Sia, Pharrell Williams, Brad Paisley, Tori Kelly and Katy Perry — have over 146 million subscribers and 44 billion lifetime views.

To celebrate the winners, the ceremony on March 23 will comprise of premiering a slew of new Vice-produced music videos by Charli XCX, Ed Sheeran, Martin Garrix, Cahoots, Max Schneider, Migos, Megan Nicole, Nicky Jam and Shamir, among others.

The move follows the platform’s first-ever YouTube Music Awards in 2013, which streamed live from New York City’s Pier 36. Jason Schwartzman and comedian Reggie Watts co-hosted, while Spike Jonze oversaw the creative direction of the ceremony, which also featured the production of live music videos by Lindsay Sterling, Avicii and Arcade Fire.

Iglesias to Perform at This Year’s MTV European Music Awards

Great Scot! Enrique Iglesias is heading to Scotland…

The 38-year-old Spanish singing sensation has joined the lineup of performers at the MTV European Music Awards in Glasgow next month, according to show organizers.

Enrique Iglesias

Following his awards show performance, Iglesias will embark on the European leg of his Sex and Love world tour.

At this year’s EMAs, Iglesias is nominated in the Best World Stage category. After being named Best Spanish Act, he also has the opportunity to be voted into the Best Worldwide Act award category.

Iglesias joins the high profile list of performers that includes Ariana Grande, Ed Sheeran, Calvin Harris and Nicki Minaj, who will host this year’s show .

British rock legend Ozzy Osbourne will be honored with the Global Icon Award.

Additionally, MTV has unveiled a new, socially focused award category for the MTV EMAs: Best Song with a Message. The honor is designed to recognize songs that are having “an empowering impact on young people, tackling important issues they care about and inspiring them to have a social conscience.”

The nominees in the category are “We Exist” from Arcade Fire, which addresses gender identity; Alicia Keys‘ “We Are Here,” a call for an end to violence around the world; “Take Me to Church” from Hozier, which tackles homophobia; Beyonce‘s “Pretty Hurts,” which examines obsession with appearance; and “All About That Bass” from Meghan Trainor, which talks about self-acceptance and inner beauty.

Zoé to Perform at Mexico City’s Vive Latino Festival in March

Zoé will march into Mexico City next year…

The Latin Grammy Award-winning Mexican alternative/psychedelic band, which consists of León Larregui (guitar and voice), Sergio Acosta (guitar), Alberto Cabrera (drums), Ángel Mosqueda (bass) and Jesus Báez (keyboards), has been added to the roster of bands set to perform at the massive Vive Latino Festival, taking place in Mexico City from March 27-30, 2014.

Zoé

Organizers revealed the line-up for the four-day music festival, which includes an additional day compared to last year’s event, on Monday via a video on the Vive Latino web site and, subsequently, a live webcast of a press conference from Mexico City.

In all, more than 150 bands have been confirmed for the festival, which takes place at the city’s Foro Sol.

The 2014 line up demonstrates the festival’s intention to remain faithful to Vive Latino’s origins as a devoted to Latin rock and alternative music.

Artists also include Arcade Fire, Nine Inch Nails, Los Bunkers, Los Tigres del Norte, Calle 13, La Maldita Vecindad  Placebo, Enanitos Verdes, Anita Tijoux, Fito Paez, Julieta Venegas, No Te Va Gustar, Emir Kusturica & The No Smoking Orchestra, La Santa Cecilia, La Vida Boheme, and recently formed Latin American metal supergroup De La Tierra.

A film festival and environmental event that will coincide with the music festival were also announced.

For the complete list, click here.

Kid Cudi Featured on The Hunger Games Soundtrack

Kid Cudi may soon experience the same movie soundtrack success as Bruno Mars, who performed the lead single from the Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 1 soundtrack.

The 28-year-old part-Mexican American rapper, singer-songwriter and actor appears on the just-released soundtrack for the highly anticipated The Hunger Games.

Kid Cudi

Cudi, whose real name is Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi, performs The Ruler And The Killer.” The original track finds the Grammy-winning singer still in WZRD mode, with heavy drums and buzz-saw guitars propping up his pained groans and lurching hooks.

“I could not have done it with out my producing partners on the project for the film, The legendary and Godly T Bone Burnett and Greg Wells!” Cudi wrote on his Twitter page about his experience working on “The Ruler And The Killer.”

Produced by T-Bone Burnett, The Hunger Games: Songs from District 12 is a collection of folk-leaning music from a hodgepodge of top-line artists. Along with Cudi, the 16-song soundtrack features Taylor Swift, The Civil Wars, Arcade Fire, Maroon 5, Miranda Lambert featuring Pistol Annies and Birdy.

Here’s a look at the full track list:

1. Arcade Fire, “Abraham’s Daughter”
2. The Secret Sisters, “Tomorrow Will Be Kinder”
3. Neko Case, “Nothing To Remember”
4. Taylor Swift featuring The Civil Wars, “Safe & Sound”
5. Kid Cudi, “The Ruler And The Killer”
6. Punch Brothers, “Dark Days”
7. The Decemberists, “One Engine”
8. The Carolina Chocolate Drops, “Daughter’s Lament”
9. The Civil Wars, “Kingdom Come”
10. Glen Hansard, “Take The Heartland”
11. Maroon 5 featuring Rozzi Crane, “Come Away To The Water”
12. Miranda Lambert featuring Pistol Annies, “Run Daddy Run”
13. Jayme Dee, “Rules”
14. Taylor Swift, “Eyes Open”
15. The Low Anthem, “Lover Is Childlike”
16. Birdy, “Just A Game”