East Coast Music Awards Announce 2016 Nominees

The nominations behind this spring's East Coast Music Awards were announced this morning (January 26), with St. John's indie rock pack Hey Rosetta! leading the field of competitors with seven nods surrounding their Second Sight LP. The winners will be revealed at a televised ceremony in Sydney, NS, on April 14

Hey Rosetta! have the most nominations this year, which include nods for Album of the Year, Group Recording of the Year, Rock Recording of the Year, and Song of the Year for "Soft Offering (For the Oft Suffering)." The band's Tim Baker is also up for Songwriter of the Year, while the band have been nominated for Fans' Choice Entertainer of the Year and Fans' Choice Video of the Year as well.

Meanwhile, Jenn Grant has nabbed six nominations tied to her Compostela release, which is up for Album of the Year against Hey Rosetta!, Mo Kenney's In My Dreams, Ben Caplan's Bird with Broken Wings, and Fortunate Ones' The Bliss.

Grant is also running against familiar figures Old Man Luedecke, Amelia Curran, Ben Caplan, and Gabrielle Papillon in the Folk Recording of the Year Category.

Both Amelia Curran and Fortunate Ones have racked up five nominations for their respective work, while now Toronto-based electronic figure Ryan Hemsworth and Mo Kenney have come out with four East Coast Music Awards nominations.

You'll find a full breakdown of the nominations down below, and more info about the awards themselves over here.

The 2016 East Coast Music Awards are being held at Sydney, NS's Centre 200 venue with hosts Ashley MacIsaac and Heather Rankin. The televised gala will feature performances from including Hey Rosetta!, Jenn Grant, Fortunate Ones, City Natives, Heather Rankin, Ben Caplan, Christina Martin, Natalie MacMaster, The East Pointers, and Raphaël Butler.

The evening will also feature a tribute to late folk singer Ron Hynes.

Along with the announcement of the awards nominees, the initial batch of artists for the East Coast Music Week, which takes place from April 13 to 17, have been revealed. They include Jenn Grant, Heather Rankin, Old Man Luedecke, Tim Chaisson, SORREY, Alana Yorke, Quiet Parade, Glory Glory, Ben Caplan, Fortunate Ones, Coyote and the Motorleague, among many others.

Tickets and passes are on sale for ECMW now, and you can purchase them here. You can also vote for the fans' choice awards here.

2016 East Coast Music Awards Nominees: