Voted on by Canadian radio programmers and music directors, the award recognizes a deserving emerging Canadian artist or group who has charted in the Top 50 but has yet to break into the Top 40 in any format, between Oct. 31, 2020 and Oct. 1, 2021, based on Mediabase data.
This Year’s Winner: Mattmac
Blind music producer and recording artist Mattmac has harnessed his melodic pop-trap beats and inspiring story, quickly establishing himself as ‘one to watch’ on the national scene with his debut album, 20/20.
At 500,000+ streams across platforms, Mattmac’s premiere release features poppy vocals combined with hard-hitting trap beats, and thoughtfully honest lyrics that give listeners a glimpse into the mind of a blind creative as he paints vivid sonic pictures of struggle, healing, celebrating love, family and life on the rez.
The eight-track album’s lead single “Paradise” has risen to become a popular song in the Canadian music circuit; garnering more than 150,000+ streams on Spotify, it hit #1 on the NCI FM Indigenous Music Countdown hosted by SiriusXM, and Top 50 on the Mediabase radio charts. With heavy local support from Virgin Radio Winnipeg, the song has become both a national and local sensation — including features with CBC Indigenous, CTV National News, Winnipeg Sun, and more. He recently won Rap/Electronic Album of The Year at the Summer Solstice Indigenous Music Awards 2021.