The Juno Awards will rename its indigenous album of the year category to indigenous artist/group of the year, CBC reports.
The award’s previous name was criticized for restricting Indigenous artists.
“We feel strongly that this change will eliminate a lot of the confusion and put us in a better position to explain the need for the category when challenged,” the Juno advisory committee says.
CBC has reported that this is not the first time the category name has been changed. It was originally called the best music of aboriginal Canada recording in 1994. This name went through numerous changes before the Junos settled on aboriginal album of the year in 2010.
Two years ago, the name changed again to Indigenous album of the year to reflect the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
The previous winner of the award, Jeremey Dutcher asked fellow nominees to stand up and receive recognition during his acceptance speech.
“All of your work changes this place, and it deserves to be considered outside of this category,” he said.
This album category alteration will be in effect at the Juno Awards in Saskatoon next March.
