On Monday night, the 2014 Polaris Music Prize was awarded to Inuit throat singer Tanya Tagaq for her album Animism.  Tagaq, who received a standing ovation from the gala attendees following her uplifting performance, was awarded a cash prize of $30,000 for her Polaris win. The winner was decided by a panel of selected music critics and announced during the 9th annual gala event at The Carlu in Toronto, hosted by actor Jay Baruchel.

The evening consisted of performances from 6 of the 10 nominees including Mac Demarco, Basia Bulat, Owen Pallett, Jessy Lanza, Shad and winner Tanya Tagaq. Timber Timbre, Yamantaka//Sonic Titan and Win Butler of Arcade Fire were in attendance but did not perform. Drake, who was nominated for Nothing Was The Same was not able to attend the gala due to a scheduled concert at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles with Lil Wayne.

Music Canada is a proud sponsor of the Polaris Music Prize and would like to congratulate Tanya Tagaq on winning this year’s award, as well as all of the nominees for making the 2014 short list. Photos of the gala can be seen below: