Polaris Music Prize

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The Polaris Music Prize is a music award annually given to the best full-length Canadian album based on artistic merit, regardless of genre, sales, or record label. The award was established in 2006 and includes a C$20,000 cash prize. The Polaris Music Prize is modelled after the Mercury Music Prize, which is handed to the best British or Irish album over the past year<ref>The Polaris Music Prize Will Go To Canada's Best Album. Retrieved on July 4, 2006.</ref>. The award is sponsored by Rogers, XM Satellite Radio, Radio Starmaker Fund, and the Canadian Recording Industry Association.

1 Jury and selection process
2 2006 shortlist
3 See also
4 Notes and references
5 External links

[edit] Jury and selection process

A panel of 100 Canadian journalists and broadcasters act as jurors in the selection process. To ensure impartiality, the chosen jurors must not have any direct financial relationships with the nominees. Notable jurors include MuchMusic VJ Hannah Sung, Toronto Star music columnists Ben Rayner and John Sakamoto, CFNY-FM program director Alan Cross, CBC Radio personalities Jowi Taylor, Patti Schmidt, Jian Ghomeshi, Grant Lawrence and Amanda Putz, and CBC News: The Hour's host George Stroumboulopoulos.

The jurors were asked to choose the 5 best Canadian albums released between June 1, 2005 and May 31, 2006. The first choice was given 5 points, the second choice assigned 4 points and so forth. From these selections, a shortlist was released on July 4, 2006. Final Fantasy was selected on September 18, 2006 in Toronto, Ontario.