Esteemed NL Folk Singer Linda Byrne, to Receive MusicNL’s Honorary Unsung Hero Award
For Immediate Release
News Release
November 25, 2021
For information contact:
Sarah Newell
(709) 754- 2574 Ext. 3
sarah@musicnl.ca
Each year the MusicNL Board of Directors present a number of honorary awards that acknowledge special achievements in the province’s music industry.
The Unsung Hero Award is presented to an individual who has contributed to the fabric of the music sector in Newfoundland and Labrador. An individual that has worked tirelessly behind the scenes for the greater good of the sector.
This year the Unsung Hero Award goes to Linda Byrne, folk singer from Kingwell, Placentia Bay, Newfoundland and Labrador.
Linda Byrne
Linda is a renowned singer from Kingwell, Placentia Bay who resettled to Arnold’s Cove in the mid 60’s. As a teenager she had a keen interest in learning songs, particularly traditional ballads, and she recorded many of the older folks from a number of Placentia Bay communities singing in the traditional unaccompanied style. A leading proponent and torch-bearer of Placentia Bay Unaccompanied Singing tradition, Linda has performed at every Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival since its inception. Almost twenty years ago, she co-founded and continues to co-host a monthly Ballad Night at the Crow’s Nest Club in St. John’s, where unaccompanied singing is centre stage.
“Many thanks to MusicNL for honouring me with this very much unexpected, but appreciated award. I expect there are many, many others just as deserving with whom I could share this honour,” Byrne said.
The Unsung Hero Honorary Award will be presented on Tuesday, November 30 at 5PM as part of the Industry Awards Reception at the Emera Innovation Exchange.