The Country Music Association of Ontario (CMAOntario) is excited to announce the winners of the 12th Annual CMAOntario Awards, presented by Slaight Music, which took place on Sunday, June 2 in Hammerson Hall at the Living Arts Centre in Mississauga. Jason Blaine, Owen Riegling, and James Barker Band each took home two CMAOntario trophies.

Hosted by Pure Country Radio’s Jason McCoy and country TikTok sensation Teigen Gayse, the CMAOntario Awards acknowledged the talent and achievements of Ontario’s country music industry across 17 categories plus special awards. The show included special performances by 2024 CMAOntario award winners Owen Riegling, Jason Blaine, Nicole Rayy, and Elyse Saunders, and nominees Karli June, Griffen Palmer, River Town Saints, Sugar Crush, Callie McCullough, Ryan Langdon, and The Western Swing Authority.

The Winners of the 12th Annual CMAOntario Awards are:

SINGLE OF THE YEAR sponsored by Pure Country
The Road that Raised You Up – Jason Blaine

ALBUM OF THE YEAR sponsored by Country 106.7 Kitchener
Greatest Show on Dirt – Meghan Patrick

SONGWRITER(S) OF THE YEAR sponsored by SOCAN
Jason Blaine, The Road the Raised You Up, recorded by Jason Blaine

FEMALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR sponsored by IBEW Local 353
Elyse Saunders

MALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR sponsored by IBEW Local 353
Owen Riegling

GROUP OR DUO OF THE YEAR sponsored by Country 103
James Barker Band

RECORD PRODUCER(S) OF THE YEAR
Shawn Moore

ROOTS ARTIST OR GROUP OF THE YEAR
Mackenzie Leigh Meyer

BREAKTHROUGH ARTIST OF THE YEAR sponsored by Slaight Music
Owen Riegling

MUSIC VIDEO OF THE YEAR sponsored by Jim Dunlop Productions
Honky Tonkin About – The Reklaws ft. Drake Milligan
Dirty – Nicole Rayy
(Tied)

INDUSTRY PERSON OF THE YEAR sponsored by Manrkē
Dave Woods

FRANCOPHONE ARTIST OR GROUP OF THE YEAR
Reney Ray

FANS’ CHOICE sponsored by Visit Mississauga
Tim Hicks

MUSICIAN OF THE YEAR sponsored by Cithara Guitars
Shane Guse

COMPASS AWARD
James Barker Band

HOLLY & STEVE KASSAY GENEROUS SPIRIT AWARD
Walter Nowakowski

IMPACT AWARD
Charlie Major

RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR (LARGE MARKET) sponsored by Fielding Estate Winery
KX 94.7, Hamilton

RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR (MEDIUM MARKET) sponsored by Lucknow’s Music in the Fields
Hot Country 93.9, Brantford

RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR (SMALL MARKET)
Pure Country 106, Orillia

The Country Music Association of Ontario (CMAOntario) is excited to announce the nominees for the 12th Annual CMAOntario Awards, presented by Slaight Music, taking place on Sunday, June 2 at the Living Arts Centre in Mississauga. For the first time ever, the CMAOntario Awards will include six nominees in each category (except Fans’ Choice) instead of five to celebrate more country music talent from Canada’s second largest province.

Jade Eagelson leads with five nominations, followed by The Reklaws, Josh Ross, Meghan Patrick, and Karli June with four nominations each.

Hosted by Pure Country Radio’s Jason McCoy and Country TikTok sensation Teigen Gayse, the CMAOntario Awards Show will close out the CMAOntario Festival & Awards Weekend May 31-June 2, 2024. The CMAOntario Awards will acknowledge the talent and achievements of Ontario’s country music industry across 17 categories plus special awards. Tickets for the CMAOntario Awards Show are on sale now.

The Nominees for the 12th Annual CMAOntario Awards are:

SINGLE OF THE YEAR sponsored by Pure Country

Honky Tonkin’ About, The Reklaws
Match For My Memory, Robyn Ottolini
Old Dirt Roads, Owen Riegling
Rodeo Queen, Jade Eagleson
The Road That Raised You Up, Jason Blaine
Trouble, Josh Ross

ALBUM/EP OF THE YEAR sponsored by Country 106.7 Kitchener

Ahead of Our Time, James Barker Band
Burning Back, Jessie T
Do It Anyway, Jade Eagleson
Greatest Show on Dirt, Meghan Patrick
Now & Then, Nicole Rayy
Unlearn, Griffen Palmer

SONGWRITER(S) OF THE YEAR sponsored by SOCAN

Craig Brooks, Nicole Rayy – Now & Then, recorded by Nicole Rayy
Genevieve Fisher, Aaron Goodvin, Jennifer Schott – Best Thing About the Rain, recorded by Genevieve Fisher
Jade Eagleson, Daryl Scott – Rodeo Queen, recorded by Jade Eagleson
Jason Blaine – The Road the Raised You Up, recorded by Jason Blaine
Karli June, Gavin Slate – Feel Like Home, recorded by Karli June
Meghan Patrick, Matt Alderman, Tom Salter – Red Roses and Red Flags, recorded by Meghan Patrick

FEMALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR sponsored by IBEW Local 353

Elyse Saunders, Famous
Jessie T, Just A Number
Karli June, Feels Like Home
Meghan Patrick, The Greatest Show on Dirt
Robyn Ottolini, Match to My Memory
Sacha, Confident

MALE ARTIST OF THE YEAR sponsored by IBEW Local 353

Andrew Hyatt, L is For
Jade Eagleson, Rodeo Queen
Jason Blaine, The Road that Raised You Up
Josh Ross, Trouble
Owen Riegling, Old Dirt Road
Tim Hicks, Yee to the Haw

GROUP OR DUO OF THE YEAR sponsored by Country 103

James Barker Band, Meet Your Mama
New Moon Junction, Mind of Its Own
River Town Saints, She Got That
Rosewood Ave, I Won’t
The Reklaws, Honky Tonkin’ About
The Western Swing Authority, Happy Chickens

ROOTS ARTIST OR GROUP OF THE YEAR

Callie McCullough, What If I Don’t
Emily Clair, Stealing Hearts
Julian Taylor, Georgia Moon
Mackenzie Leigh Meyer, Barbie Doll
The Abrams, Something New
The Western Swing Authority, Happy Chickens

BREAKTHROUGH ARTIST OF THE YEAR sponsored by Slaight Music

Alexa Goldie, Set in Stone
Dayna Reid, The Way You Lie
Jessie T, Just A Number
Karli June, Feels Like Home ft. Ryan Langdon
Lemon Cash, Breakup Song
Owen Riegling, Old Dirt Roads

FRANCOPHONE ARTIST OR GROUP OF THE YEAR

Dayv Poulin, Tout est relatif
Kristine St-Pierre, Et si
Les Rats d’Swompe, Dans l’cabanon
Reney Ray, La p’tite tomboy
Sugar Crush, Pause
Vincent Bishop, L’amour serait bienvenu

MUSIC VIDEO OF THE YEAR sponsored by Jim Dunlop Productions

Dirty, Nicole Rayy
Feel Like Home, Karli June Feat Ryan Langdon
Happy Chickens, Western Swing authority
Honky Tonkin’ About, The Reklaws feat. Drake Milligan
Long Way Back, The Redhill Valleys
Trouble, Josh Ross

FANS’ CHOICE sponsored by Visit Mississauga

Griffen Palmer
Jade Eagleson
James Barker Band
Josh Ross
Meghan Patrick
Steven Lee Olsen
The Reklaws
Tim Hicks

RECORD PRODUCER(S) OF THE YEAR

Adam Newcomb (Mackenzie Leigh Meyer, Runaway Angel)
Gavin Slate (Karli June feat. Ryan Langdon)
Jeff Dalziel (New Moon Junction, Abby Stewart)
Matt Koebel (Amanda Kind, Paige Rutledge, Angelica Appelman, Jessica Sevier)
Shawn Moore (Spencer Burns, Jessica Sole, Emily Clair, Matt Teed)
The Agenda (Patrick James Clark, David Madras, Peter Peres, Graham Scott Fleming)

RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR (LARGE MARKET) sponsored by Fielding Estate Winery

Country 104, London
Country 106.7, Kitchener
KX 94.7, Hamilton
KX96, Oshawa
Pure Country 93, London
Pure Country 94, Ottawa

RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR (MEDIUM MARKET) sponsored by Lucknow’s Music in the Fields

Cool 100.1, Belleville
Country 92.9, Chatham
Country 93.5, Kingston
Hot Country 93.9, Brantford
Pure Country 105, Peterborough
Pure Country 99, Kingston

RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR (SMALL MARKET)

Country 103 – Great Lakes Country
Country 107.3, Tillsonburg
Country 89, Welland
Country 93, Owen Sound
Pure Country 106, Orillia
The Ranch, 100.1, Listowel

INDUSTRY PERSON OF THE YEAR sponsored by Manrkē

Aj Astle, Roadhouse Productions
Ali Raney, Starseed Entertainment
Dave Woods, In the Country
Madelaine Napoleone, Warner Music Canada
Samantha Pickard, Strut Entertainment
Wendy Boomer, Country 92.3

MUSICIAN OF THE YEAR sponsored by Cithara Guitars

Adrian Juras (Karli June, Ryan Langdon)
Jeff Downtown Brown (Jason Blaine, Washboard Union, Kelsi Mayne, Shantaia)
Joey DePaiva (Elyse Saunders, Mackenzie Leigh Meyer, Aaron Allen)
Mackenzie Leigh Meyer (Robyn Ottolini)
Shane Guse (The Western Swing Authority, Session, Dean Brody)
Will Hebbes (Jess Moskaluke/The Agenda)

The CMAOntario Awards Show will also include the Compass Award, and Impact Award, which recognizes an artist, group, industry personality or organization that has left an enduring and indelibly positive footprint on the landscape of country music in Ontario.

Voting for the awards is restricted to CMAOntario members, with the exception of the Fans’ Choice Award, which is open to both public and membership voting. Eligible members will have the opportunity to vote on the final ballot as of today up until April 8, 2024 at www.cmaontario.ca/awards/voting. Music fans can cast their votes for the Fans’ Choice award as of April 26.

The CMAOntario Award Show is preceded by a weekend of activities as part of the CMAOntario Festival & Awards Weekend, May 31-June 2, 2024. The CMAOntario Festival & Awards Weekend will include Songs & Stories: Songwriters in the Round, R2i TuneUp Conference, Street Fair, Bonfire and Tailgate Party. Additional details, including performers, will be announced in the coming weeks.

CMAOntario Awards Show
Sunday, June 2 from 7pm
Hammerson Hall, Living Arts Centre
4141 Living Arts Centre Drive, Mississauga, ON

Regular Reserved Seating starts at $35 plus fees
Awards & Conference Combo package is $140 plus fees
VIP Tickets are $260 plus fees

www.cmaontario.ca

Today’s New Albums

• Ashley McBryde – The Devil I Know
• Austin Snell – Muddy Water Rockstar
• Creed Fisher – This Ain’t the Hamptons
• Jon Langston – Heart on Ice
• Josh Turner – Greatest Hits
• Justin Lane Gates – Goodbye Warning Pt. 1 (EP)
• Kier – Welcome to the Strange Life
• Logan Ledger – Golden State
• Pat Boone – Country Jubilee
• Tyler Childers – Rustin’ in the Rain

Today’s New Singles

• Been There – Case Hardin
• Beer and the Bible – Corey Davis
• Boots in the Bed – Adam Warner
• Boys in Boots – Juna N Joey
• Champagne – James Barker Band
• Claim – Jeremy Phillips
• Creek Ran Red – Ross Flora
• Done Wonderin’ – Lucie Tiger
• Everything Is Fine – Meghan Linsey
• Every Wheel on This Buzz – City Limits
• Good Time Girl – Paige Plaisance
• Heart Lesson – Joey Green
• Heart on the Line – Orlando Mendez
• Her to Here – Alex Hall
• Highway Sound – A Thousand Horses
• I Ain’t Country – Travis Denning & Jon Langston
• I Got a Problem – Drake Milligan
• I’d Lie to You For Love – Bellamy Brothers w/ K.T. Oslin
• In a Beer – Josh Mirenda
• In My Blood – Houston Bernard
• Livin’ Ain’t Killed Me Yet – Naomi Cooke Johnson
• Need You Now – William Wallace Band feat. Megan Greer
• Nightmare and a Dream – Truck Stop Gamblers
• Perfect Stranger – Eric Paslay
• Promiseland – Colin Stough
• Rodeo Reds – Copperhead Jones
• Rough in Carolina – Dean Paul Willeford
• Show Me – The Resonant Rogues
• Think I’m In Love With You – Chris Stapleton
• Through My Window – Fresh Breath
• Throwing My Life Away – Autumn Ragland w/ Sunny Sweeney & Bri Bagwell
• What If I Don’t – Callie McCullough
• With a Kiss – Judy Paster
• You Lit a Fire – Jessie G
• Young and Hungry – The Cadillac Three