Ottawa's Twin Flames win big at Native American music awards

Ottawa duo Twin Flames won bigFriday at theNative American Music Association Awards.

Indigenous musiciansChelsey June, who is Mtis, and Jaaji, who is Inuk and Mohawk, took home with the awards for the best folk album of the year for Signal Fireand best duo.

The pair,who released their first self-titled album in 2015,were nominatedforseven awards at the Niagara Falls, N.Y., gala,including best song of the year.

The seven nominations were the most for one artist in the nearly 20-yearhistory of the awards. They were also nominated for:

• Record of the year.
• Song of the year.
• Best music video.
• Best Americana recording.
• Best historical/linguistic performance

"Just being nominated is an honour, especially in a very huge market in the United States. The Indigenous community in the United States is very big," Jaajitold CBCRadio's All In A Day on Tuesday before their big win.

"For usto be [contenders] in each category is all we could ever ask for."