Charlotte Cardin, Allison Russell, eight others compete for Polaris Music Prize

Canadian singer and songwriter Charlotte Cardin is seen in Montreal on Monday, March 14, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson

Albums from 10 acclaimed Canadian acts — including Charlotte Cardin, the Beaches and Allison Russell — will compete for the Polaris Music Prize tonight.

The prestigious $50,000 award, presented at Toronto's Massey Hall, anoints the best Canadian album of the year as decided by a jury of music critics based on its artistic merit.

Other contenders include rapper Tobi, Inuk musician Elisapie and previous Polaris winner Jeremy Dutcher.

The Polaris short list spotlights rising Canadian acts to a wider national audience, but in a rare instance, seven of this year’s contenders have already won Junos, the country’s top music award.

Among them is DJ and producer Bambii, who picked up her first Juno in Halifax earlier this year, while Toronto rapper DijahSB, Calgary drag queen rock project Cindy Lee and Montreal punk band Nobro round out the list.

The Polaris will feature performances by most of this year's nominees and is hosted by last year's winner Debby Friday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.