Inuviks Leanne Goose up for best country album tonight

A singer-songwriter from Inuvik says she's honouring murdered and missing Aboriginal women at an awards show tonight.

Leanne Goose is nominated for Best Country Album at the Aboriginal Peoples Choice Music Awards.

She's encouraging her fellow artists to wear a butterfly at the event.

She'll be wearing a dress painted with butterflies.

"A butterfly doesn't speak or make noise so when we pray or when we give our deepest thoughts to the butterfly, it's carried on to the creator and the creator is the only one who can hear those prayers, who can hear those thoughts," she said.

"And we hope that for all the women whose stories are left in silence, that the creator hears those."

The Aboriginal Peoples Choice Music Awards airstonight on APTN at 7 p.m. CT and will be livestreamed online.