The 2021 Polaris Music Prize Short List has been revealed. Mustafa, The Weather Station, Cadence Weapon, the OBGMs, DijahSB, and TOBi are among the artists nominated for the award, which annually honors the best Canadian album of the year, as determined by a panel of journalists, broadcasters, bloggers and programmers. Other nominees include Leanne Betasamosake Simpson, Dominique Fils-Aimé, Klô Pelgag, and Zoon. Find the full list below.
Daniel Lanois, Yu Su, Helena Deland, CFCF, and Rochelle Jordan were featured on the Long List, but didn’t make this year’s Short List. Last year’s Polaris Prize was won by Backxwash; previous winners include Haviah Mighty, Arcade Fire, Tanya Tagaq, Kaytranada, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Fucked Up, Feist, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Lido Pimienta, and Caribou.
Read Pitchfork’s feature, “The Weather Station Battles Climate-Change Anxiety, One Song at a Time.”
Polaris Music Prize 2021 Short List:
Leanne Betasamosake Simpson – Theory of Ice
Cadence Weapon – Parallel World
DijahSB – Head Above The Waters
Dominique Fils-Aimé – Three Little Words
Mustafa – When Smoke Rises
The OBGMs – The Ends
Klô Pelgag – Notre-Dame-des-Sept-Douleurs
TOBi – Elements Vol. 1
The Weather Station – Ignorance
Zoon – Bleached Wavves