2024 Award and Showcase Submission Dates; Manuals Now Live

Apply to be a part of the 2024 ECMAs, taking place May 1 - 5, 2024 in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island! Submissions for showcasing and awards will open on Friday, September 1, 2023 and close on Tuesday, October 3, 2023.

Submission manuals for the 2024 East Coast Music Awards: Festival & Conference are now live and can be found here. These manuals are your comprehensive guide to the submissions process, award and showcase eligibility, and 2024 nomination categories.

We encourage you to read all submission manuals thoroughly prior to submitting.

What’s New in 2024?

• The following awards have been introduced as new categories for 2024:

  • Fusion Recording of the Year - Recognizes recordings of Fusion music, a genre that combines two or more distinctly different genres to create a unique sound such as Afrobeat, Celtic Hip-Hop, Classical Crossover, Electronic Fusion, Folk Fusion, Jazz Fusion, etc.

  • Innovator of the Year - Recognizes the unique accomplishments and contributions of an individual or company to the Atlantic Canadian music industry through innovation and creativity

  • Audio Engineer of the Year - Recognizes excellence in sound engineering in live or in-studio environments

  • Music Publishing Company of the Year - Recognizes an Atlantic Canadian business that excels in publishing original works by Atlantic Canadian writers

• The following award categories have been retired for 2024:

  • Inspirational/Gospel Recording of the Year

  • Artist Innovator of the Year

  • Industry Innovator of the Year

  • Studio Recording Engineer of the Year

  • Live Sound Engineer of the Year

  • Media Outlet of the Year

  • Studio of the Year

  • Company of the Year

• Music licensing: By submitting your music for an East Coast Music Award you agree that you represent 100% administrative rights for the composition, reproduction, and publishing of all music submitted, and grant ECMA the right to use the submitted music as the artist, or artist representative, walks to accept the award.

• Minimum criteria for Classical Composer of the Year has been changed to include all original Atlantic Canadian classical works composed within the last five years and recorded within the eligibility period

• Minimum criteria for Rising Star Recording of the Year has been revised:

  • Artists must submit 1 song released within the eligibility period

  • A combination of any three (3) of the following criteria listed below:

    • Substantial amount of video plays within the eligibility period

    • Over 5,000 views on at least one video

    • and cumulative views exceeding 10,000 on all videos

    • Social media following of at least 5,000 followers on all platforms combined
    • One tour outside of your home province within the eligibility period
    • 4 festival dates within the eligibility period
    • Media coverage that is national in scope within the eligibility period
    • 1,000 units sold or 10,000 cumulative streams of music released within the eligibility period

• Minimum criteria for Album of the Year has been revised:

  • Artists must submit a full-length recording released within the eligibility period

    • A combination of any three (3) of the following criteria listed below:

      • Substantial amount of video plays within the eligibility period

      • Over 5,000 views on at least one video

      • and cumulative views exceeding 10,000 on all videos

      • Social media following of at least 5,000 followers on all platforms combined
      • One tour outside of your home province within the eligibility period
      • 4 festival dates within the eligibility period
      • Media coverage that is national in scope within the eligibility period
      • 1,000 units sold or 10,000 cumulative streams of music released within the eligibility period

• Reference letters are no longer required to submit for Venue of the Year

• Attendance numbers are no longer required to submit for Artist Manager of the Year

• Audience reach information is no longer required to submit for Media Person of the Year

For more information on these revisions and how our submissions process has changed, please see our submissions manuals here.

Submission Info

SUBMISSIONS OPEN: SEPTEMBER 1, 2023 AT 12 PM ADT

SUBMISSIONS CLOSE: OCTOBER 3, 2023 AT 11:59 PM ADT

All submissions will be accepted from September 1st to October 3rd, 2023 at 11:59 PM (ADT) on https://ecma.awardstage.com.

• All submission requirements must be met. Incomplete or late applications will not be accepted.

• Following submissions and jurying, nominees will be announced at the ECMA 2024 Press Conference (date TBD).

• Winners are selected by a full jury and will be announced during the ECMA Music & Industry Awards. Any occurrences of questionable eligibility shall be dealt with at the discretion of the ECMA Awards & Stages Committee.

Eligibility Periods

• For Music and Industry Awards, music must be fully released within the eligibility period: June 1, 2022 - December 31st, 2023

  • Music must be released by the end of the submission period or available for preorder by September 30, 2023

• The eligibility period for non-recording based awards is June 1, 2022 - September 30th, 2023

• The following categories have an extended eligibility period of June 1, 2021 - December 31st, 2023:

  • African Canadian Artist of the Year

  • Children’s Entertainer of the Year

  • Choral Recording of the Year

  • Fusion Recording of the Year

  • Global Music Recording of the Year

  • Indigenous Artist of the Year

Submission Pricing

All music award submissions cost $20 CAD (with the exception of the free categories listed below), $20 CAD to submit to the Export Buyers Showcase Series, and $15 CAD to submit to the Breakout Stage, Rising Star Stage, and Genre-Based Showcasing.

It is free to submit to:

• African Canadian Artist of the Year / Indigenous Artist of the Year

• All Industry Awards / All Honourary Awards

NOTE: Applicants must be ECMA members in good standing, and will be invoiced directly from ECMA if membership is not in good standing.

Jurying Process

All East Coast Music Awards & Showcases are fully juried by qualified regional, national, and international industry professionals. Jury members evaluate applications and score based on a set criteria (please see the Submission Evaluation Criteria section in the submission manuals).

After being juried, the nominees are chosen based on the 5 highest-scoring submissions per category. In the case of a tie, there may be more than five (5) nominees per category.

ECMA has two Fans’ Choice categories that are voted on by the public. These awards are first submitted for jurying and then shared with the public for voting. No other awards are submitted for public voting.

The East Coast Music Association is soliciting its members and the general public for submissions for the 2023 Stompin’ Tom Honourary Awards.

A committee of the ECMA Board of Directors will determine the Honourary award recipients.

There are separate applications for awards and showcases, to be considered you must submit through the appropriate official application process.

More Information

If you have any questions about the submission process or requirements, please contact Anthony Carew, Membership & Special Projects Manager, at [email protected].