Gwobrau Gwerin Cymru - Wales Folk Awards

08/02/2024

19/12/2023

From my good pals Angharad Jenkins Gareth Bonello Jordan Price Williams and Owen Shiers. Published in Songlines

Wake up to Wales!

Dear Songlines,

We noticed that your British/Irish Folk round-up last issue made no mention of Welsh artists. Sadly, it's not uncommon for Welsh music to be overlooked. This stems partly from the lack of music industry infrastructure in Wales herself.

There are few professional agents and managers operating here and those with influence beyond the border are rare. As a niche genre within a small scene, folk and traditional music have not historically received as much funding as other art forms in Wales. The situation is set to get worse following a recent decision by the Arts Council of Wales to remove core funding from Trac Cymru; the only organisation with a mandate to promote and develop folk music in Wales.

Wales' broader political and cultural isolation also plays its part. Long-established prejudices that view the language as dead, investment as a waste and our music as inferior means many bookers are wary of artists singing in Welsh. This is as much a problem within Wales as the rest of the UK and Ireland, where there is pressure to conform to Anglo-centric expectations of Welsh folk.
Most artists singing in Welsh have been told to switch to English, or had a review bemoaning
'impenetrable' lyrics or worse. It is telling that the few Welsh artists operating in the wider UK/Irish scenes today play predominantly instrumental music.

Our exclusion is also a symptom of the general lack of diversity and inclusion in the folk scene. It's a closed shop where knowing the right people is essential for admittance. The rosters of a handful of agencies and legacy labels still dominate the lineups of prominent festivals, tours and venues. Indeed, many still have no open application process for performing artists. The scene would be much richer if a larger platform were given to the variety of cultures and languages that exist in the UK/Ireland today.

Engaging more with the Welsh scene would be a positive step forward. We encourage publications such as Songlines to commission more work from English and Welsh-speaking writers in Wales. Attendance at cultural events, such as the Tŷ Gwerin at the National Eisteddfod would provide an insight into the musicianship, passion and variety of Welsh music. Bookers throughout the UK and Ireland should have more faith in their audiences and make an effort to reflect these islands' diversity in their lineups. And please, for the love of Dewi Sant, no more 'Celtic' festivals without us.

Yr eiddoch yn gywir,

Gareth Bonello, Angharad Jenkins, Jordan Price Williams, Owen Shiers

24/04/2023

21/04/2023

Llongyfarchiadau Dafydd Iwan, Ar Log A’r Wal Goch 🎉
Mae ‘Yma o Hyd’ yn ennill y Gwobr Gwerin Cymru am Y Gân Gymraeg Wreiddiol Orau 🏆

Congratulations Dafydd Iwan, Ar Log & The Red Wall 🎉
‘Yma o Hyd’ wins the Wales Folk Award for Best Original Welsh Language Song 🏆

21/04/2023

Llongyfarchiadau VRï 🎉
Mae ‘Islais a Genir’ yn ennill y Gwobr Gwerin Cymru am Yr Album Gorau 🏆

Congratulations Vri 🎉
‘Islais a Genir’ wins the Wales Folk Award for Best Album 🏆

21/04/2023

Llongyfarchiadau Bwncath 🎉
Mae Bwncath yn ennill y Gwobr Gwerin Cymru am Y Grŵp Gorau 🏆

Congratulations Bwncath 🎉
Bwncath win the Wales Folk Award for the Best Group 🏆

21/04/2023

Llongyfarchiadau Dafydd Iwan 🎉
Mae Dafydd Iwan yn ennill y Gwobr Gwerin Cymru am Yr Artist Unigol Gorau 🏆

Congratulations Dafydd Iwan 🎉
Dafydd Iwan wins the Wales Folk Award for Best Solo Artist 🏆

21/04/2023

Llongyfarchiadau Rusty Shackle 🎉
Mae Rusty Shackle yn ennill y Gwobr Gwerin Cymru gan pleidlais gyhoeddus am Ffefryn Gwerin Cymru 🏆

Congratulations Rusty Shackle 🎉
Rusty Shackle wins the Wales Folk Award by public votes for Wales’ Folk Favourite 🏆

21/04/2023

Llongyfarchiadau Phyllis Kinney am ennill y Gwobr Cyfraniad Oes 🎉🏆

Congratulations Phyllis Kinney for winning the Lifetime Contribution Award 🎉🏆

21/04/2023

Llongyfarchiadau VRï 🎉
Mae ‘Yr Ehedydd’ yn ennill y Gwobr Gwerin Cymru am Y Trac Offerynnol Gorau 🏆

Congratulations Vri 🎉
‘Yr Ehedydd’ wins the Wales Folk Award for the Best Instrumental Track 🏆

21/04/2023

Llongyfarchiadau Cerys Hafana 🎉
Mae Cerys Hafana yn ennill y Gwobr Gwerin Cymru am Y’r Artist neu Fand sy’n Dechrau Dod I Amlygrwydd 🏆

Congratulations Cerys Hafana 🎉
Cerys Hafana wins the Wales Folk Award for Best Emerging Artist/Band 🏆

21/04/2023

Llongyfarchiadau Keith Floyd am ennill Tlws Y Werin 🎉🏆

Congratulations Keith Floyd for winning the New Traditions Award 🎉🏆

21/04/2023

Llongyfarchiadau Mari Mathias 🎉
Mae ‘Tŷ Bach Twt / Milgi Milgi’ yn ennill y Gwobr Gwerin Cymru am Y Gân Draddodiadol Gymraeg Orau 🏆

Congratulations Mari Mathias 🎉
‘Tŷ Bach Twt / Milgi Milgi’ wins the Wales Folk Award for Best Welsh Traditional Song 🏆

21/04/2023

Llongyfarchiadau CALAN 🎉
Mae Calan yn ennill y Gwobr Gwerin Cymru am Y Perfformiad Byw Gorau 🏆

Congratulations Calan 🎉
Calan win the Wales Folk Award for The Best Live Act 🏆

21/04/2023

Llongyfarchiadau Alaw 🎉
Mae ‘Fill The House’ yn ennill y Gwobr Gwerin Cymru am Y Gân Saesneg Wreiddiol Orau 🏆

Congratulations Alaw 🎉
’Fill The House’ wins the Wales Folk Award for Best Original English Language Song 🏆

19/04/2023

✨ 1 DDIWRNOD I FYND! 1 DAY TO GO! ✨

Cyfle olaf i gael eich tocynnau i Wobrau Gwerin Cymru 2023, gyda pherfformiadau gan Mari Mathias, Alaw, Bwncath a VRï 🙌

Gweld chi yno yfori 🤩
--
Last chance to get your tickets to the Wales Folk Awards 2023, with performances from Mari Mathias, Alaw, Bwncath & VRï 🙌

See you there tomorrow 🤩

Tocynnau/Tickets 👇
bit.ly/41OJiI6

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿✨ Gwobrau Gwerin Cymru / Wales Folk Awards ✨🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

🗓 20/04/23
🕓 Drysau/Doors 7pm - Dechrau/Start 7:30pm

Pwy sy'n mynd i ennill?? Who's going to win?? 🏆🤩

Prynwch eich tocynnau i'r gwobrau i ffeindio allan! Buy your tickets to the awards to find out! 👇
bit.ly/41OJiI6

18/04/2023

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🫶🏻✨
Ni allwn aros i dathlu gyda chi ar Ddydd Iau! We can’t wait to celebrate with you on Thursday!

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿✨ Gwobrau Gwerin Cymru / Wales Folk Awards ✨🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

🗓 20/04/23
🕓 Drysau/Doors 7pm - Dechrau/Start 7:30pm

Pwy sy'n mynd i ennill?? Who's going to win?? 🏆🤩

Prynwch eich tocynnau i'r gwobrau i ffeindio allan! Buy your tickets to the awards to find out! 👇
bit.ly/41OJiI6

17/04/2023

🤩🫶🏻🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿✨

4 diwrnod i fynd! 4 days to go! 🎉🤩

Gallwn nawr rannu bydd perfformiadau ar y noson gan yr artistiaid Mari Mathias, Alaw, Bwncath, a VRï 🙌

Allwn ni ddim aros! Dewch i ddathlu'r gorau o gerddoriaeth werin Cymru gyda ni 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿✨
—
We can now share that there will be performances on the night from artists Mari Mathias, Alaw, Bwncath, and VRï 🙌

We can’t wait! Come and celebrate the best of Welsh folk music with us 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿✨

Gallwch cael eich tocynnau yma o ddim ond £5!
Get your tickets here from only £5!👇
https://tocyn.cymru/en/event/7e35bc70-a6ee-43d8-b502-2d4c88ce29a5

Gwobrau Gwerin Cymru - Wales Folk Awards