Tegan and Sara and Jackie Mittoo are the two most recent artists to receive the Slaight Family Polaris Heritage Prize, the yearly award that celebrates Canadian albums that were created before the Polaris Music Prize was founded in 2006.
Tegan and Sara's beloved 2004 album So Jealous received this year's public vote winner, while Jackie Mittoo's 1970 record Macka Fat is taking home the Heritage Prize jury's designation. Macka Fat was awarded in part due to its status as an important part of the Jamaica-to-Toronto musical pipeline that developed in the 1960s–70s.
In a statement, Tegan and Sara said:
Thank you to the Polaris Prize for recognizing one of our favourite albums and for honouring us with this prize. So Jealous isn't just beloved by our fans; it's an album that changed our lives forever. With the unwavering support of co-producers John Collins, David Carswell and Howard Redekopp, along with musicians Matt Sharp, Rob Chursinoff and Chris Carlson, we pushed our songwriting and musical instincts to the edge.
We are grateful to our former managers, Nick Blasko and Piers Henwood, who encouraged our experimentation and stood by us as we faced sexism and homophobia in the press in the months and years following the release of So Jealous. This album inspired us to demand more equitable treatment for women and LGBTQ+ individuals in the music industry.
Thank you to Emy Storey, our art director, who created the beautiful album cover, and Dustin Rabin for the photographs included in the album artwork. We appreciate Vapor Records for trusting us to make the albums we envisioned, and we are thankful to the countless agents, publicists, label partners, crew members, touring band, friends and family who supported us — then and now — through the highs and lows of that era.
To the fans who discovered us when we were so desperate to be found, thank you.
Forty-one albums have received Heritage Prize since its introduction in 2015. Past winning albums include Glenn Gould's Bach: The Goldberg Variations, Kid Koala's Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, Main Source's Breaking Atoms and Blue Rodeo's Five Days in July, as well as last year's recipients: Maestro Fresh Wes's Symphony in Effect and Skinny Puppy's Bites.