The Best Folk Music of the Year – Awards Season

It’s awards season, and that means it’s time to celebrate the best folk music of the year! From the Grammy Awards to the Folk Alliance International, check out our list of the top nominees and winners.

Grammy Awards

The Grammy Awards are the biggest night in music, and this year was no different. Some of the biggest names in folk music were nominated, and the competition was fierce. But in the end, there can only be one winner. Here are the results of the Grammy Awards for the best folk music of the year.

The Best Folk Album:
The winner of the Grammy Award for Best Folk Album is The Bootleg Series, Vol. 11: The Basement Tapes Raw by Bob Dylan. This is a collection of previously unreleased recordings that were made by Dylan and his band in 1967.

The Best Folk Performance:
The winner of the Grammy Award for Best Folk Performance is “Ain’t No Grave” by Ralph Stanley & The Clinch Mountain Boys. This performance is from the album A Distant Land to Roam, which is a tribute to Stanley’s late friend and fellow musician Carter Stanley.

The Best Folk Song:
The winner of the Grammy Award for Best Folk Song is “Last Lonely Eagle” by John Prine. This song is from Prine’s album In Spite of Ourselves, which is a collection of country covers that he recorded with his wife, Iris DeMent.

Best Folk Album

The Grammy Award for Best Folk Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. According to the 54th Grammy Awards description guide, the award is presented to “albums containing at least 51% playing time of new vocal or instrumental folk recordings”. This award was first presented to John Gorka for the album I Know in 1992.

Since its inception, this award has been presented annually to a different artist with the exception of 1995 when it was not awarded. It has been given to musicians originating from the United States each year except 2009 when Australian singer-songwriter Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds won for their album Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!. Irish musician Glen Hansard has been presented with this award twice, first winning in 2007 for his album The Road to Zion and again in 2013 for his album Rhythm and Repose. American singer-songwriter Doc Watson was presented with this award three times: first in 2005 for his album Legacy – A Tribute to Merle Travis; again in 2008 for his album Remembering Merle Travis; and finally in 2011 for his album True Life Blues: The Songs of Bill Monroe. Emmylou Harris holds the record for most wins with five total, three consecutive wins from 2000–2002 and two additional wins in 2006 & 2010. Harris also holds the record for most nominations without ever winning as she has been nominated eleven times but never won.

Best Folk Performance

The Best Folk Performance award goes to the artist or group who gave the best overall performance of a traditional or contemporary folk song during the eligibility year. This award encompasses both vocal and instrumental performances, as well as original songs.

Americana Music Honors & Awards

The Americana Music Honors & Awards is an annual awards show and gathering of musicians, held in early September in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. The event is produced by the Americana Music Association and honors artists, albums, songs, and more within the genre of Americana music.

This year’s award show will take place on September 10th at the historic Ryman Auditorium. A performance by Allison Krauss & Union Station featuring Jerry Douglas is already confirmed. Additional performers and presenters will be announced in the coming weeks.

Album of the Year

This is the top award of the night, and it goes to the best album of the year. This is a reflection of the entire body of work for an artist, not just a single song or record. Grammy voters take into account an artist’s entire body of work when choosing the winner in this category. To win, an album must be released within the eligibility period, which is currently October 1st of the previous year through September 30th of the current year.

Artist of the Year

The best folk music of the year – awards season is upon us and we have compiled a list of our favorite artists and albums of the year. We’ve been listening to a lot of great music this year and we’re excited to share our top picks with you.

Artist of the Year:

-The Wood Brothers
-The Secret Sisters
-The War and Treaty
-Sarah Jarosz
-altering Cake

Song of the Year

The Grammy Award for Song of the Year is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. This award is one of the four most prestigious categories at the awards (alongside Best New Artist, Record of the Year and Album of the Year) and is presented to the songwriter(s) of a track written specifically for a soundtrack album or compilation album.

A songwriter can be awarded a Song of the Year trophy for a new song or an existing song that has had a significant impact in pop music during the eligibility period. In order to be eligible, a song must have been recorded by a qualifying artist and released as part of a qualifying album. If a song has been recorded by more than one artist, only the version by the artist(s) performing under their own name(s) can be nominated. Solo artists are eligible to win Song of the Year, but groups are not.

The Academy allows songs that were first recorded and released prior to 1959 to be nominated as long as they have not been entered into previous Grammy competitions. Songs from 1959 onwards can only be entered if they were first released within the eligibility period.

Emerging Artist of the Year

The award for Emerging Artist of the Year goes to an artist who has made a significant impact in the folk music world in the last year. This year’s nominees are:

-Darlingside
-Anna Tivel
-The Ballroom Thieves
-The Brother Brothers

Darlingside is a group of four friends who met at Williams College in Massachusetts and quickly bonded over their love of songwriting. They released their debut album, “Birds Say,” in 2015, and it led to appearances at some of the most prestigious music festivals in the country, including Newport Folk Festival and Bonnaroo. Their latest album, “Extralife,” came out in 2018 to critical acclaim. It’s a gorgeous record that blends indie rock, chamber pop, and traditional folk influences into something wholly unique.

Anna Tivel is a singer-songwriter based in Portland, Oregon. She released her fourth album, “Small Believer,” in 2018 to great acclaim. The album is a beautiful collection of introspective folk songs that deal with themes of love, loss, and hope. Tivel is a masterful storyteller, and her songs are filled with vivid images and emotional honesty.

The Ballroom Thieves are a folk rock band from Boston, Massachusetts. They released their debut album, “A Wolf In The Doorway,” in 2013, and it led to appearances at major festivals like Lollapalooza and Bonnaroo. Their sophomore album, “dearest everybody,” came out in 2017 and garnered critical praise for its bold departure from their folky roots into new sonic territory. The band’s third album, “Unlovely Fathers ,” will be released in 2019.

The Brother Brothers are a folk duo from Colorado made up of identical twins Adam and David Moss. They released their debut album , “Some People I Know ,” in 2018 to critical acclaim . The album is filled with beautiful harmonies and classic songwriting reminiscent of groups like Simon & Garfunkel and the Everly Brothers .

Folk Alliance International

Folk music has been having a moment in the past few years, with a renewed interest in traditional and acoustic sounds. This has been reflected in the award season, with Folk Alliance International being one of the leading bodies celebrating the best of the genre. This year’s ceremony was held virtually, with some of the biggest names in folk music being honoured. Here are some of the winners from this year’s ceremony.

-Artist of the Year: Sarah Jarosz
-Album of the Year: Good Souls Better Angels, by Valerie June
-Song of the Year: “Thunderbird”, by Emma Ruth Rundle
-Steve Martin Prize for Excellence in Bluegrass: Billy Strings
-Lifetime Achievement Awards: Joan Baez, Mary Gauthier, and Si Kahn

Best Album

The nominees for Best Album are:

-“The Ghosts of Highway 20” by Lucinda Williams
-“Shine On” by The Jayhawks
-“You Don’t Own Me Anymore” by The Secret Sisters
– “Undercurrent” by Sarah Jarosz
– “Can You Hear Me Now?” by John Prine

Best Artist

The Best Artist award is given to the performer who has made the most significant contribution to folk music over the course of the year. This includes not only recordings, but also live performances, songwriting, and more. The Best Artist award is the most prestigious award given out by the Folk Music Awards, and it is a career-defining honor.

Best Traditional Folk Album

The Best Traditional Folk Album Grammy is awarded to solo artists, duos or groups for albums containing at least 51% playing time of new traditional folk recordings.

Best Contemporary Folk Album

The Best Contemporary Folk Album is an album award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. According to the 54th Grammy Awards description guide, the award is reserved for vocal or instrumental contemporary folk recordings “containing at least 51 percent playing time of newly recorded, currently available material whose lyrical content deals with issues of our time.” Due to its nature, the award has frequently been presented to musicians who have recording careers spanning several decades. The award was first presented to Doc Watson in 1964 for his album Folk Songs from the Hills.

Other notable winners include Bob Dylan, Odetta, Joan Baez, Phil Ochs, Tom Paxton, Peter, Paul & Mary, Nina Simone, John Prine, Bonnie Raitt and Lucinda Williams.