juno-awardsCatherine MacLellan’s The Raven’s Sun and The Bros. Landreth’s Let It Lie were named Roots and Traditional Album of the Year – Solo and Group, respectively, in the 2015 JUNO Awards, the Canadian equivalent of the Grammys. They were recognized by the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (CARAS) prior to televised ceremonies from the FirstOntario Centre in Hamilton, Ontario on March 15.

MacLellan is an internationally touring folksinger-songwriter who — like last year’s winner, Rose Cousins — hails from Prince Edward Island. She was previously named English Songwriter of the Year in the 2012 Canadian Folk Music Awards and also has won a bevy of East Coast Music Awards and Music PEI Awards. Since releasing her solo debut album in 2004, MacLellan has perennially appeared on Canada’s Roots Music charts. She also was among the nominees for this year’s JUNO for Songwriter of the Year, an award that went to Bahamas.

The Bros. Landreth, a Winnipeg, Manitoba-based roots-rockin’ Canadiana quartet that includes two brothers, has been developing a reputation in the Canadian prairies and far beyond with its guitar-playing, vocal harmonies, heart-on-the-sleeve songwriting, love gone bad songs and cowboy lullabies.

Quique Escamilla’s 500 Years of Night was named World Music Album of the Year. Originally from Chiapas, Mexico, Escamilla is a Toronto-based Latin folk-rock troubadour and multi-instrumentalist whose socially conscious music also draws inspiration from reggae and various Mexican regional music styles. He was a featured performer during the closing party for the 2015 International Folk Alliance Conference in Kansas City, Missouri in late February.

Tanya Tagaq’s Animism received the JUNO Award for Aboriginal Album of the Year. The Inuit throat singer and Polaris Music Prize winner, was previously honored for Pushing The Boundaries in the 2014 Canadian Folk Music Awards and was a featured speaker at the annual Association of Performing Arts Presenters (APAP) Conference in New York City in January.

Leonard Cohen’s Popular Problems was named Album of the Year, while Sam Smith’s In The Lonely Hour captured International Album of the Year honors. A complete list of winners may be found at www.junoawards.ca.