Best Of Awards:
Artist, Album, and Song of the Year
Final choices for Album, Song, and Artist of the Year at the International Folk Music Awards (IFMAs) are nominated by Folk Alliance members. The nominees slate is finalized by a committee comprised of FAI staff and the Awards Committee of the FAI Board. Award winners are determined by FAI’s voting membership and are announced at the IFMAs.
Best of 2024
Album of the Year
Other Nominees
All My Friends
Aoife O'Donovan
Ordinary Elephant
Ordinary Elephant
Strange Medicine
Kaïa Kater
The Space Between
The Heart Collectors
Trail of Flowers
Sierra Ferrell
Song of the Year
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$20 Bill (for George Floyd)
written by Tom Prasada-Rao, performed by Dan Navarro & Janiva Magness
ListenOther Nominees
How I Long for Peace
written by Peggy Seeger, performed by Rhiannon Giddens, Crys Matthews, and the Resistance Revival Chorus
Love Letters
written by Julian Taylor and Tyler James Ellis, performed by Julian Taylor
Tenzin Sings with Nightingales
written by Tenzin Choegyal, performed by Tenzin Choegyal and Michael Askill
Ukrainian Now
written and performed by Tom Paxton & John McCutcheon
Woman Who Pays
written and performed by Connie Kaldor
Best of 2023
Album of the Year
Other Nominees
Amatssou
Tinariwen
False Lankum
Lankum
Stand in the Joy
William Prince
Welcome to Whatever
Rainbow Girls
Song of the Year
Other Nominees
Changes
written and produced by Joy Oladokun and Dan Wilson, performed by Joy Oladokun
Keep It On A Burner
written and performed by Margo Cilker
Tears Run Dry
written by Abraham Alexander, Ian Barter, and Leo Stannard, performed by Abraham Alexander
The Returner
written by Drew Lindsay, JT Nero, and Allison Russell, performed by Allison Russell
Best of 2022
Album of the Year
Sponsored by Rounder Records
Other Nominees
Marchita
Silvana Estrada
Queen Of Sheba
Angélique Kidjo and Ibrahim Maalouf
Get on Board: The Songs of Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee
Taj Mahal and Ry Cooder
Anaïs Mitchell
Anaïs Mitchell
Song of the Year
Sponsored by Sound Royalties
Bright Star
Anaïs Mitchell
B61
Aoife O’Donovan
Best of 2021
Album of the Year
Outside Child
Allison Russell
Other Nominees
They’re Calling Me Home
Rhiannon Giddens with Francesco Turrisi
Wary + Strange
Amythyst Kiah
Un Canto por México, Vol. 2
Natalia Lafourcade
The Fray
John Smith
Artist of the Year
Allison Russell
Other Nominees
The Longest Johns
Kalani Pe’a
Arooj Aftab
John Francis Flynn
Song of the Year
Sponsored by Yamaha
Changemakers
Crys Matthews
Other Nominees
On Solid Ground
Reggie Harris
Painted Blue
Sarah Jarosz
We Believe You
Diana Jones
Call Me A Fool
Valerie June
Best of 2020
Album of the Year
Long Time Passing: Kronos Quartet & Friends Celebrate Pete Seeger
Kronos Quartet
Other Nominees
Bet on Love
Pharis and Jason Romero
Old Wow
Sam Lee
Spider Tales
Jake Blount
Wu Fei & Abigail Washburn
Wu Fei & Abigail Washburn
Artist of the Year
The War and Treaty
Other Nominees
Gina Chavez
John McCutcheon
Samantha Crain
William Prince
Song of the Year
Peace in Our Hearts
Eliza Gilkyson
Other Nominees
Gone
Tim Grimm
Look Long
Indigo Girls
South Gotta Change
Adia Victoria
The Benefits of Being Alone
Rose Cousins
Best of 2019
Album of the Year
We Get By
Mavis Staples
Other Nominees
Even the Sparrow
Kelly Hunt
Soar
Catrin Finch and Seckou Keita
The Great Irish Songbook
Dervish
To Everyone In All The World: A Celebration of Peter Seeger
John McCutcheon
Artist of the Year
The Small Glories
Other Nominees
Che Apalache
J.S. Ondara
Lula Wiles
Rising Appalachia
Song of the Year
Black Myself
Amythyst Kiah
Other Nominees
All Some Kind of Dream
Josh Ritter
All That’s yet to Come
Dave Gunning
Put a Woman in Charge
Keb’ Mo’ (performed by Keb’ Mo’ and Rosanne Cash)
Where I Come From
Patty Griffin
Best of 2018
Album of the Year
Rifles & Rosary Beads
Mary Gauthier
Other Nominees
Secularia
Eliza Gilkyson
TÌR: Highland Life & Lore
Brian Ó hEadhra & Fiona MacKenzie
El Mal Querer
Rosaliá
Dust Dance
TriContinental
Artist of the Year
I'm With Her
Other Nominees
William Prince
Wallis Bird
Jeremy Dutcher
Dom Flemons
Song of the Year
The President Sang Amazing Grace
by Zoe Mulford, recorded by Joan Baez
Other Nominees
Oom Sha La La
Haley Heynderickx
SunShiner
The Mammals
People Get Old
Lori McKenna
I See Gold
The Good Lovelies
Best of 2017
Album of the Year
Freedom Highway
Rhiannon Giddens
Other Nominees
A Stranger In This Time
Tim Grimm And The Family Band
Between Earth & Sky
Lankum
The Queen of Hearts
Offa Rex
When the Bloom Falls from the Rose
Sarah Jane Scouten
Artist of the Year
Ordinary Elephant
Other Nominees
Martin Simpson
Rose Cousins
The War and Treaty
Yola Carter
Song of the Year
You Didn't Call My Name
Molly Tuttle
Other Nominees
Hazel
Andrew Combs
Salt In The Water
John Blek
Tshin an Nitauassim
Shauit
Y’all Means All
John McCutcheon
Best of 2016
Album of the Year
Undercurrent
Sarah Jarosz
Other Nominees
All These Years
Solas
Auprès du Poêle
Ten Strings and a Goat Skin
Nine Pin
Kaia Kater
Upland Stories
Robbie Fulks
Song of the Year
Black Man in a White World
Michael Kiwanuka & Inflo
Other Nominees
Ain’t Nobody
Dori Freeman
Move Me
Sara Watkins
Play By Your Own Rules
Sam Bush
We are Love
The Once & Chris Kirby
Best of 2015
Album of the Year
Tomorrow is My Turn
Rhiannon Giddens
Other Nominees
With the Dawn
Bella Hardy
Joe Hill’s Last Will
John McCutcheon
Jayme Stone’s Lomax Project
Jayme Stone
The Social Music Hour Vol 1
Spuyten Duyvil
Artist of the Year
Darlingside
Other Nominees
Chuck Brodsky
Fortunate Ones
Jerron “Blind Boy” Paxton
We Banjo 3
Song of the Year
Best Medicine
The Stray Birds
Other Nominees
Get Up
Caitlin Canty
Boston Town
Della Mae
A Wanderer I’ll Stay
Pharis & Jason Romero
River Winding Down The Sweet
Lowdown
