Last night, after a delay due to Covid, the Country Music Association of Ontario (CMAOntario) held their 8th annual awards show in the first-ever drive-in awards show in the world! Held on the track at the Western Fair District in London, the outdoor live show went ahead despite rainy weather almost all day with the sky starting to clear before the show and chilly temperatures with the audience remaining in their vehicles.

The Reklaws won their first Fans’ Choice award, becoming the first duo to win the award since its inception in 2016, and the first family act to do so. Stu and Jenna, the brother and sister duo, won their second consecutive award for Group or Duo.

(The Reklaws, photo courtesy Jason Holbrook)

But the big winner was Meghan Patrick. She won her 4th Female Artist trophy and sets the record for the most wins in that category and most wins in-a-row! Meghan shares the Songwriter award with Jordan Rager and Michael Whitworth for the title track of her “Wild as Me” album, the second time she’s won that award. “Wild as Me” won Patrick her third Album award, earning the distinctions of having all three of her studio albums win (“Country Music Made Me Do It” last year and “Grace and Grit” in 2017) and is the only artist to win Album of the Year multiple times—no one else has won it more than once!

Tim Hicks returned as Male Artist for the fifth time, a record in that category. Tim remains the only artist to win that trophy in consecutive years (2014 and 2015). Hicks won his third consecutive Nielsen Compass award. That award, compiled by the Nielsen company, was first presented in 2018 and is based on a combination of different metrics such as on-demand streams, album sales, digital song downloads, radio airplay spins and social media statistics (Facebook, Instagram and Twitter). Tim shared the award with the James Barker Band when it was inaugurated and is the only person to win it since.

Speaking of the James Barker Band, they made history last night. For the second time, they won Single of the Year, this year for “Keep It Simple.” Having won the award in 2018 for “Chills,” they become the only artist(s) to win that award more than once—no one had any repeat wins in that category until now. “Keep it Simple” also won the band their first Music Video award, making them the first group to win in that category.

The Abrams won their third Roots Artist trophy, their second consecutive win, and setting a record in that category for the most wins.

There’s no doubt winning an award is pretty sweet, but there may have been none sweeter than Aaron Allen’s win for Rising Star. It was extra special that he won it in his hometown!

Aaron’s producer, Jeff Dalziel, won his third consecutive Producer of the Year award, tying the record set by Jason Barry. However, Dalziel is the only person to win in every year he’s been nominated.

Les Rats d’Swompe became the first group to win Francophone Artist or Group of the Year last night. Mind you, the award is only in its second year and Gabrielle Goulet was the first winner last year.

Congrats to all the CMAOntario Award winners and especially to the CMAOntario for a truly historic awards show!