The UKBlues 2021 Awards ceremony will take place on May 9 and will be hosted, once again, by the legendary Manfred Mann frontman Paul Jones.
As for this year’s shortlisted talent: Newcomers to the scene, When Rivers Meet, have been nominated for 4 awards, while Catfish, Dom Martin, Elles Bailey, Connor Selby have been nominated for three each.
It’s also great to see more new names for these awards with Errol Linton picking up two award nominations for Artist of the Year and Album of the Year; Also, it’s great to see powerhouse soul & blues vocalist Alice Armstrong and “feelgood” musician Emma Wilson collecting nominations in the Emerging Artists Category.
In light of the changed music landscape over the past year, with very few concerts and festivals and much more content online, this year’s awards will reflect the changes:
Ashwyn Smyth (Founder & Chair of the UKBlues Federation) puts this year’s awards in context: “It does not need me to tell you that 2020 was a year like no other. However, as a Federation, we are determined that what people have done to support, promote and play the blues in this incredibly difficult time should not go unmarked.”
“We have had to make a few changes to some of the categories and, in particular recognition of the originality and creativity people have shown, we have introduced two new categories: Most Inspirational Online Performance of the Year and Most Innovative Use of Virtual Media of the Year.”
“We look forward to announcing the results of the 2021 UKBlues Awards at a dedicated event on Saturday 9th May 2021 — more details of which will be released soon…”
Voting for this year’s awards is now open. You can find links to all of the finalists’ websites — also, to video footage for all the musicians — at https://www.ukbluesawards.com/finalists. The Federation urges would-be voters to visit this page to get to know something about those finalists with whom they may not be familiar, or simply to refresh their memories, before casting their votes. The Federation also urge voters to acquaint themselves with the rules, which can be found at https://www.ukbluesawards.com/rules
Voting link:
https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/2021UKBLUESAWARDS-VOTING/
SHORT LIST 2021:
BLUES ARTIST OF THE YEAR
CONNOR SELBY
ELLES BAILEY
ERROL LINTON
KYLA BROX
MATT LONG
BLUES INSTRUMENTALIST OF THE YEAR
CHRIS CORCORAN
DOM MARTIN
GILES ROBSON
MATT LONG
STEVIE WATTS
EMERGING BLUES ARTIST OF THE YEAR
ALICE ARMSTRONG
CONNOR SELBY
DOM MARTIN
EMMA WILSON
WHEN RIVERS MEET
BLUES BAND OF THE YEAR
CATFISH
CHRIS BEVINGTON ORGANISATION
THE STEVIE WATTS ORGAN TRIO FEAT. ALICE ARMSTRONG
THE CINELLI BROTHERS
WHEN RIVERS MEET
ACOUSTIC BLUES ARTIST OF THE YEAR
DOM MARTIN
HALF DEAF CLATCH
MARK HARRISON
MARTIN HARLEY
TREVOR BABAJACK STEGER
JULES FOTHERGILL YOUNG BLUES ARTIST OF THE YEAR
ASHLEY SHERLOCK
CONNOR SELBY
JOE ANDERTON
MARCUS PRAESTGAARD-STEVENS
TOBY LEE
BLUES-BASED FESTIVAL OR EVENT OF THE YEAR – LIVE OR VIRTUAL
BROADSTAIRS BLUES BASH
GREAT BRITISH ROCK & BLUES FESTIVAL, SKEGNESS
ISOLATION FESTIVAL – NICK GARNER
LOCKDOWN MUSIC FESTIVAL – JASON ELLIOTT & PADDY MAGUIRE
SWANAGE BLUES FESTIVAL
DAVE RAVEN UK BLUES-BASED BROADCASTER OF THE YEAR
ASHWYN SMYTH
GARY GRAINGER
PAUL LONG
PETE FEENSTRA
RICHARD DUNNING
BLUES ALBUM OF THE YEAR
AIN’T NOTHIN’ BUT – ELLES BAILEY
EXILE LIVE IN LOCKDOWN – CATFISH
NO ENTRY – ERROL LINTON
SAND & STONE – CHRIS BEVINGTON ORGANISATION
WE FLY FREE – WHEN RIVERS MEET
MOST INSPIRATIONAL ONLINE PERFORMANCE OF THE YEAR
CATFISH – EXILE – LIVE IN LOCKDOWN
ELLES BAILEY – AIN’T NOTHIN’ BUT LIVESTREAM SERIES
KYLA BROX – LIVE AT THE ROYAL EXCHANGE THEATRE
SOUL SHINE JAM BAND
WHEN RIVERS MEET – ROCK THE LOCKDOWN – LIVE STREAMS
MOST INNOVATIVE USE OF VIRTUAL MEDIA OF THE YEAR
JAMES OLIVER’S TWANG TUESDAYS
RUFUS FRY HARMONICA FITNESS PROGRAMME SERIES
TOMMY ALLEN – LIVE IN THE CHAIR
TUESDAY NIGHT MUSIC CLUB – ZOOM GIGS
WHITE NOISE STUDIOS – ONLINE SESSIONS
RAW RAMP 