ABOUT THE UNSUNG HERO AWARD
The Unsung Hero Award is presented annually in recognition of the exceptional contribution of an individual, active in any aspect of the Canadian folk music scene (production, promotion, presentation, etc). It is meant to recognize someone who works tirelessly behind the scenes for the love of the music and who has not been recognized for their contributions by national or international music entities. It includes volunteers in all their diversity who, year after year, lend support to folk clubs, festivals, house concerts, etc. Posthumous nominations are not accepted.
Nominees must be from, or reside in, the province in which the award is being presented that year. This is to help foster national recognition for local recipients at home, amongst their peers.
To nominate your Unsung Hero, please fill out the nomination form at the bottom of this page. Once submitted, you will receive an email confirming that your submission has been received. Please send any questions to info@folkawards.ca.
All submissions are adjudicated by members of the CFMA Board of Directors, who will select a recipient from the eligible submitted candidates. There is no fee for this nomination.
John Clarke is the recipient of the 2024 CFMA Unsung Hero Award!
The Canadian Folk Music Awards is pleased to announce that JOHN CLARKE is the 2024’s recipient of the CFMA’s annual Unsung Hero Award.
This award recognizes the contributions of people working behind the scenes, often without recognition or adequate recompense, to foster, promote, and encourage Canada’s music and cultural scenes.
About John Clarke
John Clarke has been involved in the St. John’s music scene for over two decades in many capacities. He has played dobro and guitar in various bands in genres from bluegrass to blues. In recent years, he has been a consistent sideman to late local blues legend Denis Parker. From 2008 to 2024, John served as Events Coordinator for the Folk Arts Society of Newfoundland and Labrador.
Not only did he coordinate the organizations’ annual flagship event for the past 15 years, The Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival, he programmed and managed almost 800 Folk Night at the Ship, 15 annual Wassail events, Young Folk at the Hall (assisting Fergus O’Byrne), and The Broadside, a folk music live stream which runs in The Festival off season. Folk Night and The Broadside are both weekly events.
Above all, John has taken a special interest in helping young musicians, making room for them in the local industry. He works with partners, such as the City of St. John’s to program “young folk”, oversees the programming for the Neil Murray stage at The Festival.
John Clarke’s love and enthusiasm for music and community is evident through everything he does, whether it’s setting up chairs at Folk Night, stage-managing Young Folk at the Hall, making every effort to encourage young musicians, whether it be writing a reference letter, or being part of the audience at their gigs. He is the quintessential “sideman” to the music scene in Newfoundand/Labrador.
Past Recipients
Previous recipients include Toronto Publicist Jane Harbury (2011); New Brunswick Journalist Gerry Taylor (2012); Winnipeg Folk Festival Founder Mitch Podolak (2013); Ottawa Impresario and Philanthropist Harvey Glatt (2014); Ottawa Folklore Centre Founder Arthur McGregor (2015); Vancouver’s Rogue Folk Club Founder Steve Edge (2016); Co-Founder of The Carbonear Folk Festival Gerry Strong (2017); Edmonton Folk Music Festival Artistic Director and producer and event sponsor Terry Wickham (2018), Nova Scotian performer, promoter and historian of Canadian Folk music Donnie Campbell (2020), Winnipeg Home Routes General Manager Ava Kobrinsky (2021), and manager, director and producer of trad music and song in Quebec, Geneviève Nadeau (2022), Executive Director of the Culturel Federation of PEI, Ghislaine Cormier (2023).
If you know someone who deserves this award, please fill out the nomination form below. Once submitted, you will receive an email confirming that your submission has been received. Please send any questions to info@folkawards.ca.
All submissions must be completed online using this form (click here)