Polaris Music Prize

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The Polaris Music Prize is awarded every year to the best Canadian album. The prize is awarded on merit instead of sales or popularity. The winner is decided by a panel of figures from within the Canadian music industry.

2006

• WINNER: Final Fantasy – He Poos Clouds [Classical]
  
• Broken Social Scene – Broken Social Scene [Indie Rock]
  
• Cadence Weapon – Breaking Kayfabe [Abstract Hip Hop]
• K'naan – The Dusty Foot Philosopher [World Music]
• Malajube – Trompe-l'oeil [Indie Rock]
• Metric – Live It Out [Indie Rock]
  
• Sarah Harmer – I'm a Mountain [Singer-Songwriter]
  
• The Deadly Snakes – Porcella [Indie Rock]
  
• The New Pornographers – Twin Cinema [Power Pop]
• Wolf Parade – Apologies to the Queen Mary [Indie Rock]
  

2007

• WINNER: Patrick Watson – Close to Paradise [Alternative Folk]
  
• Arcade Fire - Neon Bible [Baroque Pop]
• Chad VanGaalen – Skelliconnection [Indie Pop]
  
• Feist – The Reminder [Indie Pop]
  
• Joel Plaskett Emergency – Ashtray Rock [Indie Rock]
  
• Julie Doiron – Woke Myself Up [Folk Pop]
  
• Junior Boys – So This Is Goodbye [Synthpop]
  
• Miracle Fortress – Five Roses [Dream Pop]
  
• The Besnard Lakes – The Besnard Lakes Are the Dark Horse [Post Rock]
  
• The Dears – Gang of Losers [Indie Rock]
  

2008

• WINNER: Caribou - Andorra [Indietronica]
  
• Black Mountain – In the Future [Neo-Psychedelia]
  
• Basia Bulat – Oh, My Darling [Folk Pop]
  
• Kathleen Edwards – Asking for Flowers [Alt-Country]
  
• Holy Fuck – LP [Indietronica]
  
• Plants and Animals – Parc Avenue [Post Rock]
  
• Shad – The Old Prince [Hip Hop]
  
• Stars – In Our Bedroom After the War [Synthpop]
  
• Two Hours Traffic – Little Jabs [Indie Rock]
  
• The Weakerthans – Reunion Tour [Indie Rock]
  

2009

• WINNER: Fucked Up – The Chemistry of Common Life [Punk]
  
• Chad VanGaalen – Soft Airplane [Indie Rock]
  
• Elliott Brood – Mountain Meadows [Alt-Country]
  
• Great Lake Swimmers – Lost Channels [Folk]
  
• Hey Rosetta! – Into Your Lungs [Indie Rock]
  
• Joel Plaskett – Three [Alt-Country]
  
• K'naan – Troubadour [World Music]
  
• Malajube – Labyrinthes [Indie Pop]
  
• Metric – Fantasies [Indie Rock]
  
• Patrick Watson – Wooden Arms [Alternative Folk]
  

2010

• WINNER: Karkwa – Les Chemins de verre [Indie Rock]
  
• Broken Social Scene – Forgiveness Rock Record [Indie Rock]
  
• Caribou – Swim [Indietronica]
  
• Dan Mangan – Nice, Nice, Very Nice [Indie Folk]
  
• Owen Pallett – Heartland [Chamber Folk]
  
• Radio Radio – Belmundo Regal [Pop Rap]
  
• The Sadies – Darker Circles [Alt-Country]
  
• Shad – TSOL [Hip Hop]
  
• Tegan and Sara – Sainthood [Indie Pop]
  
• The Besnard Lakes – The Besnard Lakes Are the Roaring Night [Post Rock]
  

2011

• WINNER: Arcade Fire - The Suburbs [Baroque Pop]
• Austra – Feel It Break [Synthpop]
  
• Braids – Native Speaker [Art Pop]
  
• Destroyer – Kaputt [Art Pop]
  
• Galaxie – Tigre et diésel [Garage Rock]
  
• Hey Rosetta! – Seeds [Indie Rock]
  
• Ron Sexsmith – Long Player Late Bloomer [Singer-Songwriter]
  
• Colin Stetson – New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges [Minimalism]
  
• Timber Timbre – Creep on Creepin' On [Folk]
  
• The Weeknd – House of Balloons [Alternative R&B]
  

2012

• WINNER: Feist - Metals [Indie Pop]
• Cadence Weapon – Hope in Dirt City [Abstract Hip Hop]
  
• Cold Specks – I Predict a Graceful Expulsion [Indie Folk]
  
• Drake – Take Care [Pop Rap]
  
• Kathleen Edwards – Voyageur [Alt-Country]
  
• Fucked Up – David Comes to Life [Punk]
  
• Grimes – Visions [Electropop]
  
• Handsome Furs – Sound Kapital [Synthpop]
  
• Japandroids – Celebration Rock [Rock]
  
• Yamantaka // Sonic Titan – YT//ST [Prog Rock]
  

2013

• WINNER: Godspeed You! Black Emperor – 'Allelujah! Don't Bend! Ascend! [Post Rock]
  
• A Tribe Called Red – Nation II Nation [World Music]
  
• Colin Stetson – New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light [Minimalism]
  
• Metric – Synthetica [Indie Rock]
  
• Metz – Metz [Noise Rock]
  
• Purity Ring – Shrines [Synthpop]
  
• Tegan and Sara – Heartthrob [Indie Pop]
  
• Whitehorse – The Fate of the World Depends on This Kiss
• Young Galaxy – Ultramarine [Dream Pop]
  
• Zaki Ibrahim – Every Opposite [R&B]
  

2014

• WINNER: Tanya Tagaq – Animism [Throat Singing]
  
• Arcade Fire – Reflektor [Baroque Pop]
  
• Basia Bulat – Tall Tall Shadow [Folk Pop]
  
• Drake – Nothing Was the Same [Pop Rap]
• Jessy Lanza – Pull My Hair Back [Alternative R&B]
  
• Mac DeMarco – Salad Days [Bedroom Pop]
  
• Owen Pallett – In Conflict [Chamber Folk]
  
• Shad – Flying Colours [Hip Hop]
  
• Timber Timbre – Hot Dreams [Folk]
  
• Yamantaka // Sonic Titan – UZU [Prog Rock]
  

2015

• WINNER: Buffy Sainte-Marie – Power in the Blood [World Music]
  
• Alvvays – Alvvays [Indie Pop]
  
• BadBadNotGood & Ghostface Killah – Sour Soul [Jazz]
  
• Braids – Deep in the Iris [Art Pop]
  
• Caribou – Our Love [Indietronica]
• Drake – If You're Reading This It's Too Late [Pop Rap]
• Jennifer Castle – Pink City [Indie Folk]
  
• The New Pornographers – Brill Bruisers [Power Pop]
• Tobias Jesso Jr. – Goon [Piano Rock]
  
• Viet Cong – Viet Cong [Post-Punk]
  

2016

• WINNER: Kaytranada – 99.9% [Alternative R&B]
  
• Andy Shauf - The Party [Indie Folk]
  
• Black Mountain - IV [Neo-Psychedelia]
  
• Basia Bulat - Good Advice [Folk Pop]
• Carly Rae Jepsen - Emotion [Pop]
• Grimes - Art Angels [Synthpop]
  
• Jessy Lanza - Oh No [Alternative R&B]
• PUP - The Dream Is Over [Pop Punk]
  
• U.S. Girls - Half Free [Art Pop]
  
• White Lung - Paradise [Post-Punk]
  

2017

• WINNER: WINNER: Lido Pimienta – La Papessa [Latin]
  
• A Tribe Called Red - We Are the Halluci Nation [World Music]
  
• BADBADNOTGOOD - IV [Jazz]
• Feist - Pleasure [Indie Pop]
  
• Gord Downie - Secret Path [Indie Rock]
  
• Leif Vollebekk - Twin Solitude [Singer-Songwriter]
• Leonard Cohen - You Want It Darker [Folk]
  
• Lisa LeBlanc - Why You Wanna Leave, Runaway Queen? [Folk Rock]
  
• Tanya Tagaq - Retribution [Inuit Music]
  
• Weaves - Weaves [Indie Rock]
  

2018

• WINNER: Jeremy Dutcher – Wolastoqiyik Lintuwakonawa [Classical]
• Alvvays - Antisocialites [Indie Pop]
  
• Jean-Michel Blais - Dans ma main [Classical]
  
• Daniel Caesar - Freudian [Neo-Soul]
  
• Pierre Kwenders - MAKANDA at the End of Space, the Beginning of Time [Afrobeat]
  
• Hubert Lenoir - Darlène [Art Pop]
  
• Partner - In Search of Lost Time [Altrenative Rock]
  
• Snotty Nose Rez Kids - The Average Savage [Trap]
  
• U.S. Girls - In a Poem Unlimited [Art Pop]
  
• Weaves - Wide Open [Indie Rock]
  

2019

• WINNER: Haviah Mighty – 13th Floor [Hip Hop]
• Dominique Fils-Aimé - Stay Tuned! [Pop Soul]
• Elisapie - The Ballad of the Runaway Girl [Folk Pop]
  
• FET.NAT - Le Mal [Noise Rock]
• Jessie Reyez - Being Human in Public [Pop Soul]
• Les Louanges - La nuit est une panthère [R&B]
• Marie Davidson - Working Class Woman [Synthpop]
• PUP - Morbid Stuff [Pop Punk]
  
• Shad - A Short Story About a War [Hip Hop]
  
• Snotty Nose Rez Kids - Trapline [Trap]
  

2020

• WINNER: Backxwash – God Has Nothing to Do with This Leave Him Out of It [Digital Hardcore]
• Caribou - Suddenly [Indietronica]
  
• Jessie Reyez - Before Love Came to Kill Us [Pop Soul]
  
• Junia-T - Studio Monk [Pop Rap]
  
• Kaytranada - Bubba [Alternative R&B]
  
• Lido Pimienta - Miss Colombia [Latin]
  
• Nêhiyawak - nipiy [World Music]
  
• Pantayo - Pantayo [Kulintang]
  
• U.S. Girls - Heavy Light [Art Pop]
  
• Witch Prophet - DNA Activation

2021

• WINNER: Cadence Weapon – Parallel World [Abstract Hip Hop]
• DijahSB - Head Above the Waters [Abstract Hip Hop]
  
• Dominique Fils-Aimé - Three Little Words [Pop Soul]
  
• Klô Pelgag - Notre-Dame-des-Sept-Douleurs [Baroque Pop]
  
• Leanne Betasamosake Simpson - Theory of Ice [Slam Poetry]
  
• Mustafa - When Smoke Rises [Neo-Soul]
  
• The OBGMs - The Ends [Garage Punk]
  
• The Weather Station - Ignorance [Art Pop]
  
• Tobi - Elements Vol. 1 [Neo-Soul]
  
• Zoon - Bleached Wavves [Shoegaze]
  

2022

• WINNER: Debby Friday – Good Luck [Digital Hardcore]
• Charlotte Day Wilson - Alpha [Neo-Soul]
  
• Destroyer - Labyrinthitis [Art Pop]
  
• Hubert Lenoir - PICTURA DE IPSE : Musique directe [Bedroom Pop]
  
• Kelly McMichael -Waves [Rock]
  
• Lisa Leblanc - Chiac Disco [Folk Rock]
  
• OMBIIGIZI - Sewn Back Together [Indie Rock]
  
• Ouri - Frame of a Fauna [Alternative R&B]
• Shad - Tao [Hip Hop]
  
• Snotty Nose Rez Kids - Life After [Trap]
  

2023

• WINNER: Pierre Kwenders – José Louis and the Paradox of Love [Afrobeat]
• Alvvays - Blue Rev [Indie Pop]
  
• Aysanabee - Watin [World Music]
  
• Begonia - Powder Blue [Pop]
  
• Dan Mangan - Being Somewhere [Indie Folk]
  
• Daniel Caesar - Never Enough [Neo-Soul]
  
• Feist - Multitudes [Indie Pop]
  
• Gayance - Mascarade [Alternative R&B]
• Snotty Nose Rez Kids - I'm Good, HBU? [Trap]
  
• The Sadies - Colder Streams [Alt-Country]
  

2024

• WINNER: Jeremy Dutcher - Motewolonuwok [World Music]
  
• Allison Russell - The Returner [Folk]
  
• BAMBII - Infinity Club [Dancehall]
  
• Charlotte Cardin - 99 Nights [Blue Eyed Soul]
  
• Cindy Lee - Diamond Jubilee [Hypnagogia]
  
• DijahSB - The Flower That Knew [Jazz Rap]
  
• Elisapie - Inuktitut [World Music]
  
• NOBRO - Set Your Pussy Free [Garage Punk]
• The Beaches - Blame My Ex [Indie Pop]
  
• Tobi - Panic [Neo-Soul]