The Maple Blues Awards went down in Toronto on Monday night (February 12) and CKRZ was in attendance to present the first ever Indigenous artist of the year award to Crystal Shawanda.
The origins of the Maple Blues Awards start from a showcasing of Indigenous blues artists that turned into a slew of concerts that began in 1992 says Elaine Bomberry who coined the phrase “Rez Blues” at CKRZ radio which is still used today.
The Maple Blues Awards were established in 1997 to promote the blues in Canada and to recognize outstanding achievement by blues musicians.
