Buffy Sainte-Marie will be honoured for her humanitarian efforts at this year's Juno Awards. The legendary folk singer and activist has been named the 2017 recipient of the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award, and it will be presented to her at a ceremony in Ottawa on April 1.
The annual award was established in 2006 and is given out to musicians that have made a significant humanitarian impact on Canada. Sainte-Marie is being lauded for her work protecting Indigenous communities and intellectual property.
In a statement, Sainte-Marie had this to say about the honours:
I've had some great partners in mobilizing my ideas in art, education and technology, especially the W.K. Kellogg Foundation who taught me that there's a difference between an administrator and a visionary. Both are important but visionaries are seldom pushy in that business way that administrators learn; and visionaries don't think in corporate pecking order terms so often get squashed out in normal business systems. I've been lucky enough to work in both worlds, and although my timing has sometimes been off and gotten my big mouth into trouble, other times, with the help of other people, I've been effective beyond my expectations. So I thank all my colleagues in and out of the music business for helping put my songs to work.
Previous recipients of the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award include Rush, Neil Young and Arcade Fire.
Last year, Sainte-Marie took home Junos for Aboriginal Album of the Year and Contemporary Roots Album of the Year for Power in the Blood. As recently reported, the Aboriginal Album of the Year Award has now been renamed the Indigenous Music Album of the Year Award.
This year's full Juno Awards ceremony and broadcast will take place live from Ottawa on April 2 from the Canadian Tire Centre.
The annual award was established in 2006 and is given out to musicians that have made a significant humanitarian impact on Canada. Sainte-Marie is being lauded for her work protecting Indigenous communities and intellectual property.
In a statement, Sainte-Marie had this to say about the honours:
I've had some great partners in mobilizing my ideas in art, education and technology, especially the W.K. Kellogg Foundation who taught me that there's a difference between an administrator and a visionary. Both are important but visionaries are seldom pushy in that business way that administrators learn; and visionaries don't think in corporate pecking order terms so often get squashed out in normal business systems. I've been lucky enough to work in both worlds, and although my timing has sometimes been off and gotten my big mouth into trouble, other times, with the help of other people, I've been effective beyond my expectations. So I thank all my colleagues in and out of the music business for helping put my songs to work.
Previous recipients of the Allan Waters Humanitarian Award include Rush, Neil Young and Arcade Fire.
Last year, Sainte-Marie took home Junos for Aboriginal Album of the Year and Contemporary Roots Album of the Year for Power in the Blood. As recently reported, the Aboriginal Album of the Year Award has now been renamed the Indigenous Music Album of the Year Award.
This year's full Juno Awards ceremony and broadcast will take place live from Ottawa on April 2 from the Canadian Tire Centre.