Let’s be clear. For years, the Manitoba music industry acted like we didn’t exist.
Metal. Punk. Hardcore. Rock. The noise coming from the basement, the feedback from the stage, the sweat dripping from the ceiling of a packed-out bar. The music made by people with day jobs, calloused hands, and a permanent ringing in their ears. While the taxpayer-funded institutions and corporate-backed awards handed out polite trophies to the safe, the predictable, and the connected, our entire scene was left to fend for itself. To grind it out in the shadows.
It was a rigged game. A closed loop of the same faces, same sounds, same back-patting bullshit. We all saw it. We all knew it.
Dag Aymont, the founder of Badlands Promotions Inc. and the guy who got this whole thing started, finally said the quiet part out loud. He told Global News, point blank:
“Country music gets all the support … we work just as hard as everybody else. There’s no reason we can’t be supported.”
That wasn’t a complaint. It was a statement of fact. A recognition that if the establishment wouldn’t build a stage for us, we’d have to build our own damn stage. From the concrete floor up.
THE SCENE BUILT ITS OWN STAGE
The idea had been festering since 2016. The need for it was a raw, open wound in the community. An entire ecosystem of musicians, sound techs, photographers, promoters, and die-hard fans was bleeding for this music with nothing to show for it but busted gear and gas receipts.
The core claim was a gut-punch of undeniable truth: “loud musicians work just as hard … we deserve recognition.”
In 2021, the Manitoba Loud Music Awards finally kicked the door down. The mission was welded into its frame from day one: celebrate the loud shit. Uplift the real scene. And do it with one, single, unbreakable law.
THIS IS OUR MACHINE. NOT THEIR ELECTION.
Any asshole can slap a “fan-voted” sticker on their event. For us, it’s not a marketing angle. It’s the entire goddamn engine. There are no secret handshakes. No backroom panels of aging tastemakers deciding what’s “important” this year.
It’s 100% public. You want to know who wins? YOU decide. Here’s exactly how the machine works:
It’s all run on WordPress, but built custom for us; not some plug-and-play voting widget. It uses real-time tools to keep voting smooth and fair. You need a Facebook login to vote, which keeps bots out. One vote, per category, per day. The system’s lean, fast, and built to reflect the scene’s real voice.
The timeline is locked in:
- Nominations: Each nomination cycle. The gates are open. If an act is at least 75% Manitoba-born or resident, was active in the last year, plays original material, and isn’t a platform for hate, they can be nominated on loudawards.com.
- Voting: Each Voting cycle. This is the war. One vote, per category, per person, per day. The votes reset at midnight. It’s an endurance test.
This isn’t a popularity contest. It’s a census of who gives a shit. The winners aren’t chosen; they are proven.
THE PROOF IS IN THE PIT
You think this is some niche project? A charity case for the freaks in black t-shirts? You haven’t been paying attention.
LOOK AT THE NUMBERS.
In 2021, our first year, we pulled 3,100 votes. A statement.
By 2024? 33,627 VOTES.
That’s not growth. That’s a takeover. Power 97, our media partner, wasn’t blowing smoke when they called it “one of the fastest growing events in Manitoba.” We just proved them right.
We didn’t ask for a bigger room. WE TOOK IT.
- 2021: Bulldog Event Centre. The beachhead.
- 2022: Pyramid Cabaret. Gaining ground.
- 2023: The Park Theatre, headlined by Canadian rock legends Econoline Crush.
- 2024: The Park Theatre again, headlined by sci-fi metal gods VOIVOD.
- 2025: We’re taking over THE MET on October 11.
The 2024 winners list is a kill-sheet of who’s running the scene right now. Murder Capital didn’t just win; they took home both Loud Album of The Year AND Hardcore Band of The Year. The Haileys dominated, snagging both Female Fronted Band and Rock Band of The Year. Doug Douglas proved his salt by winning both Performer of The Year and Guitarist of The Year. Trav Anema’s relentless work earned him both Videographer and Photographer of The Year. This isn’t about rewarding one lucky band; it’s about recognizing the pillars holding this whole thing up.
MORE THAN A GODDAMN PARTY
A trophy is nice. It looks good on an amp. But a scene needs more than hardware to survive. It needs an infrastructure. An ecosystem. The MLMA is about building that for a community that has always been forced to DIY or die.
This is about keeping our people in fighting shape for the long haul, not just for one more show.
We’re talking about REAL, TANGIBLE OPPORTUNITIES. The winner of the category sponsored by the Loud As Hell Festival doesn’t just get a trophy; they get a mainstage slot at a major Western Canadian festival. That’s a career-changing prize, not a handshake and a photo op.
We’re talking about a SAFER, STRONGER SCENE. The all-ages sober shows, held with partners like Westminster United Church, are non-negotiable. It’s about making a place for everyone, especially the next generation. The integration with School of Rock isn’t a cute gimmick; it’s about passing the torch. Our fundraisers, like the “Let’s Pool Around” pool tournament and food drive, are about building community year-round.
And we recognize EVERYONE. The 21+ categories cover the whole goddamn crew. The people behind the glass like Engineer of The Year Phil Castagne and Studio of The Year Studio 23. The drummers holding down the beat like Marj Castagne. The songwriters crafting the hooks like Graham Downey. The podcasters like Back Alley Beers keeping the conversation going. The up-and-comers like Mad Lack, 2024’s Upcoming Band of The Year. This is for all of us.
GET IN OR GET OUT OF THE WAY
The media is finally catching on. Global News gets it: we’re “Making sure Manitoba’s loudest bands get the recognition they deserve.” No shit. The Winnipeg Free Press called it “a good way to celebrate and acknowledge the hard-working musicians.”
But the real validation comes from the floor. From the people this was built for. That quote from Jason Bekiaris? That’s it. That’s the whole fucking point. For the people grinding it out for something more than a bar tab and a ringing in their ears.
That’s not a cute hashtag. It’s our entire operational philosophy. It’s a command. Show up. Buy the merch. Share the goddamn post. Cast your vote until your finger is sore.
If you want to be more than a face in the crowd, if you want to be a pillar; the door is open. Sponsorships are how we keep this machine running. The #SYLS tier is $250. Sponsoring a category is $500 and gets your name on a trophy. The Title sponsorship is $3,000. This is how we keep gala tickets at a reasonable $35 and reinvest in the community.
The MLMA didn’t invent the Manitoba loud scene. We just built the battering ram it deserved all along.
The fifth annual gala is October 11, 2025. It’s at The MET. Be there.
Nominations open once a year. Watch loudawards.com for the window.
Don’t just stand there and watch.
