ST. JOHN’S, NL – College of the North Atlantic (CNA) has always been well-represented in the Music Newfoundland and Labrador (MusicNL) awards, and this year is no exception. With 13 nominations, the CNA contenders will be vying for 11 of the 24 coveted MusicNL Awards next month.
Those in the running include alumni, a current student, as well as faculty.
Two CNA alumni will go head-to-head in the Group of the Year category - Town House and Kubasonics. Town House, which includes Sound Recording & Production graduate Michael Dray, has two other nominations - Alternative Artist of the Year and Rising Star of the Year; as does Kubasonics, which includes second-year Music: Performance, Business & Technology student Jacob Cherwick. Kubasonics is up for Fan’s Choice Entertainer of the Year and Folk/Roots Artist of the Year.
Waterfront Fire, which includes current Sound Recording & Production student Jordan Coaker, is on the list again this year - this time it’s for Entertainer of the Year. Meanwhile, Weight of the World, which includes Recording Arts Graduate Peter Green, is jockeying for Folk/Roots Artist of the Year.
Kellie Loder’s Boxes has been nominated for Music Video of the Year. The CNA Music: Performance, Business & Technology graduate will go up against a video directed by Graphic Design graduate John Pike.
Graphic Design alumni have four other nominations this year: Krista Power, Aaron Bishop and Tara Thompson make up three of the four nominees for Graphic Artist of the Year, and Don-E Coady has once again been nominated for Volunteer of the Year.
It isn’t just the students and alumni who are being recognized for their artistry. CNA’s instructors are also no strangers to the nomination list. The college’s own Michelle Robertson is up for two awards - first for Industry Professional of the Year, and again as part of Kilbride Music, which has been nominated for Outstanding Company of the Year. Robertson is a graduate of both the Music: Performance, Business & Technology and Sound Recording & Production programs, and is a current instructor of both programs.
Instructor Wade Pinhorn’s musical talent can be found on the recording for Loder’s Boxes as a bass player, and on Earle and Coffin’s recording as a keyboardist. Sound Recording & Production instructor Scott Hammond’s company, The Blue Room, has five clients on the nomination list for 13 awards this year.
Brenda Tobin, Dean of Academics, Applied Arts & Tourism, says the entertainment industry is littered with exceptional talent who have been associated with CNA programs, and she is proud to see the college well represented again this year.
“Congratulations to our students, alumni and faculty from our Applied Arts programs who have been nominated for MusicNL awards this year,” Tobin said.
“It is definitely a great accomplishment and honour to be nominated in the exciting award categories, and it is even extra special this year as MusicNL celebrates its 25th anniversary. They are extraordinary individuals who give so much of themselves and their creative talents to enrich our province with music at its finest. They are to be commended for their excellence, and I extend my very best wishes to them for every success in their award nominations, as well as all future endeavours.”
The MusicNL awards will be presented during the Annual Conference and Gala Awards Oct. 15 at the St. John’s Convention Centre. For more information visit www.musicnl.ca.
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Media Contact:
Glenda McCarthy
Public Relations Specialist
College of the North Atlantic
709.643.6408
glenda.mccarthy@cna.nl.ca