![]() “We’re thrilled to partner with the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame to honour the tremendous legacy of Rita MacNeil,” said ECMA CEO Andy McLean. “There are few artists who have such an intimate and authentic connection with their fans, and that bond lives on through her songs.” - Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame CEO Vanessa Thomas She is tied with Rose Cousins as the second most-winning female artist in the event’s history, after fellow Cape Bretoner Natalie MacMaster. The singer had a long association with the East Coast Music Awards, attending the first ceremony in Halifax in 1989 (then called the Maritime Music Awards), and going on to receive 11 ECMAs and the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2005. Just over a decade after her 1975 debut Born a Woman, MacNeil was signed to Virgin Records which released the double-platinum album Flying on Your Own, earning her first Juno Award in 1987 and beginning the string of accolades that followed. MacNeil’s success was born of hard work and determination, beginning in the 1970s with her earliest songs written in support of the feminist movement while she built a grassroots audience at folk clubs, coffee houses and folk festivals like Mariposa. “There are few artists who have such an intimate and authentic connection with their fans, and that bond lives on through her songs.” Rita didn’t sing to people, she sang for people and her audiences, in return, gave her strength to overcome her shyness and stage anxiety. “The love between songwriter and audience was mutual. “Through her lyrics and songwriting, Rita allowed us into her heart and soul,” said Vanessa Thomas, executive director of the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame. The singer from Big Pond will have a permanent place in the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame at the National Music Centre in Calgary, for songs that made her a star with her own recipe of adult pop, country, folk and blues, and her down-to-earth personality that resonated with listeners across the country and around the globe on record, stage and television. The gala takes place on Thursday, May 6 at Centre 200 in Sydney on her home island of Cape Breton. On Friday, the anniversary of her passing in 2013, the hall of fame announced it is partnering with the East Coast Music Association to celebrate MacNeil’s legacy with the induction during a special tribute at the 2021 East Coast Music Awards Show. Known worldwide for her stirring musical glimpses into everyday life and a deeply personal connection to her fans, Cape Breton’s First Lady of Song, Rita MacNeil, will be inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame.
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