The 2026 Western Canadian Music Award winners have been announced.
Between Oct. 1 and 3, the Western Canadian Music Alliance crowned 16 homegrown artists, executives and companies from across British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut. The winners were revealed during this year’s BreakOut West conference and festivalfestival, hosted in Victoria, B.C., for the first time since 2015.
This year, Saskatchewanian country and bluegrass artist Jake Vaadeland took home BreakOut artist of the year, surpassing other acts like Leith Ross and Pony Gold. It’s Vaadeland’s latest accolade, joining his Juno award and Canadian Country Music Association award, both received in 2025.
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Fellow Saskatchewan native Katie Tupper was up for two awards but only claimed one over the weekend: R&B artist of the year. In January, Tupper released her debut album, Greyhound, and has played many sold-out shows across the globe in support of the project — to much acclaim. Additionally, the soulful singer was nominated for recording of the year, which was awarded to Foxwarren, the rock band fronted by acclaimed singer-songwriter Andy Shauf.
Jess Moskaluke was named country artist of the year, just a couple of weeks after the singer was invited to make her Grand Ole Opry debut at this year’s CCMAs to celebrate its 50th anniversary in a tearful surprise. The Saskatchewan-born Moskaluke will be joining fellow country songstress Kalsey Kulyk, who was personally invited to perform at the major venue by Lainey Wilson.
Manitoba-born artist Fontine co-led the Western Canadian Music Award 2026 nominations with three nods and later secured two major awards at the multi-day ceremony, including Indigenous artist of year and rock artist of the year. Hot on the heels of Begonia’s performance at this year’s Polaris Music Prize, the Manitoba act took home pop artist of the year for the fourth year in a row.
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Following up the Polaris Music Prize-nominated album Everywhere I Used to Be, Alberta’s Mariel Buckley released Strange Trip Ahead in 2025, which featured the track “Vending Machines.” The solo-written indie-rock song was the catalyst for Buckley’s songwriter of the year win.
While the ceremony rewarded many musicians, a handful of executives and companies that work tirelessly behind the scenes had their time to shine.
Taylor Brown on Manitoba was awarded video director of the year for her work on “Cowboy Dreams,” a collaborative track by Boy Golden and Cat Clyde. The track landed on the Billboard Canada Modern Rock Airplay chart back in April.
Spencer Bleasdale of 604 Studios in B.C. has worked with many homegrown acts, including Fionn — who played a packed headline show during this year’s NXNE in Toronto — Rachel Chiu, Kerrington Gillespie, Dallas Smith and Elena Erin. This year, he took home the audio engineering award after receiving his first-ever nomination.
Manitoba’s Birthday Cake Records received two accolades: impact in artist development and impact in music marketing. The Western Canadian label, management and publishing company is home to many established and rising stars like Begonia, Fontine, Leith Ross, Naduh, Mariel Buckley, True Mountain Laurel and more.
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This year’s impact in live music award was sponsored by the Canadian Live Music Association (CLMA). It was awarded to Paquin Artists Agency, known for elevating the touring landscape for many artists such as Arkells, Diana Krall, Fionn, Jully Black, Ruby Waters, Patrick Watson, Sarah McLachlan, among other notable names.
Find the full list of Western Canadian Music Award 2026 winners here.
